In vivid and stunning detail this book captures every aspect of the astonishing developments that have taken place in space exploration over the last six decades. From the invention of rocket power and the launch of the first Earth-orbiting satellite, Sputnik, it traces the development of space exploration with a collection of remarkable images. Among the events captured are the momentous flight of Yuri Gagarin, the first human to orbit the Earth in Vostok 1 in April, 1961; the early Mercury spaceflights, which saw the Americans achieve their goals of putting astronauts into orbit; the flight of Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space; the first spacewalks; the Gemini missions, and the Apollo 11 mission when Neil Armstrong became the first human to set foot on the Moon. The book goes on to cover the development of space stations in the 1970s which culminated in a new era of collaboration with the link up of Apollo and Soyuz; the missions of the US Space Shuttle and the Russian Mir Space Station. There are also many images from unpiloted missions and craft including the incredible images brought to us by the Hubble Space Telescope. With more than 300 images this is a remarkable book about a pivotal, and hugely exciting period in history.