In January 1958, JPL established what can be called the forerunner of the DSN. At that time, portable radio tracking stations were set up in Nigeria, Singapore, and California to receive telemetry and determine the orbit of the first successful U.S. satellite, Explorer 1, designed and built by JPL and launched by the U.S. Army.

On December 3, 1958, JPL was transferred from the Army to NASA, which had been established on October 1 of that year. JPL was assigned the responsibility for the design and execution of lunar and planetary exploration programs using robotic spacecraft.

In early 1959, NASA established the concept of the DSN as a separately managed and operated communications service that would accommodate all deep space missions. This arrangement eliminated the need for each flight project to acquire and operate its own specialized space communications network. Since then, the DSN has become the world leader in development of low-noise receivers, tracking, downlink (telemetry) and uplink systems, digital signal processing, and deep space navigation. The DSN's state-of-the-art telecommunications system is continuously evaluated and upgraded to meet the requirements of new missions, while maintaining support for current missions.