November 20

What happened on November 20 in aviation and space history.

• November 20, 1998

  Launch of Zarya, first module of the International Space Station

  Space launch — On 20 November 1998 a Proton-K rocket placed Zarya, also known as the Functional Cargo Block, into orbit as the first module of the International Space Station. In the station's early years it supplied power, propulsion and guidance; as the ISS grew, its role shifted mainly to storage, including its external fuel tanks. A descendant of the TKS spacecraft from the Salyut programme, it was built in Russia but financed by the United States, and its name means "sunrise".

• November 20, 2008

  Norway recommends the F-35 over Sweden's Gripen

  Institutional — The Norwegian government announced it was recommending to the Storting the purchase of up to forty-eight F-35As to replace its F-16s, having rejected the Saab Gripen NG in the evaluation. The decision drew protests in Sweden, which questioned the cost comparison Oslo had used. Norway was the first European programme partner to formally settle on the aircraft.