Charles Hall Biography and Timeline

Pioneer 10 Bow Shock Crossing

Pioneer 10 crosses Jupiter's bow shock, beginning direct sampling of the Jovian magnetospheric boundary.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer 10 Close-Up Imaging

Pioneer 10 begins returning Jupiter images surpassing the best Earth-based views then available.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer 10 Jupiter Flyby

Pioneer 10 makes humanity's first close spacecraft encounter with Jupiter.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer 11 Saturn Retargeting

Mission planners retarget Pioneer 11 to use Jupiter's gravity for a later encounter with Saturn.

Role range: 1919-1999

First Jupiter Polar Images

Pioneer 11 returns the first close spacecraft views of Jupiter's polar regions.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer 11 Great Red Spot Imaging

Pioneer 11 obtains the most detailed spacecraft images then available of Jupiter's Great Red Spot.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer 11 Jupiter Flyby

Pioneer 11 passes closer to Jupiter than Pioneer 10 and surveys high latitudes.

Role range: 1919-1999

Pioneer Venus Orbiter Launch

Pioneer Venus Orbiter launches to study Venus's atmosphere, ionosphere, gravity field and cloud-hidden surface.

Pioneer Venus Multiprobe Launch

Pioneer Venus Multiprobe launches carrying one large and three small atmospheric probes toward Venus.

Pioneer Venus Orbiter

Pioneer Venus Orbiter becomes the first American spacecraft to enter orbit around Venus.

Pioneer Venus Probe Entry

The Pioneer Venus probes enter the atmosphere at widely separated locations to sample Venus simultaneously.

Pioneer Venus Surface Transmission

One Pioneer Venus small probe survives impact and continues transmitting from the surface for more than an hour.