The Central Committee for the Study of Rocket Propulsion (GIRD) was established in the Soviet Union to develop rocket technology. They launched a series of liquid fuel rockets in the 1930's before many of them ended up in prison during Stalin's purges. Those that survived were released and built the Soviet space and missile programs on the basis of German technology after the war.

• GiRD established.

  Central Committee for the Study of Rocket Propulsion established in the Soviet Union.

• First Russian liquid rocket.

  First Soviet liquid-propellant rocket successfully fired.

• Russian meteorological rocket flown.

  Russian liquid-propellant meteorological rocket, designed by M. K. Tikhonravov, successfully flown.

• 17 - Emme, Eugene M, Aeronautics and Astronautics: An American Chronology of Science and Technology in the Exploration of Space 1915-1960, NASA, 1961. HTML when accessed: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/timeline.html