2016 in spaceflight
Orbital launches | |
---|---|
First | 15 January |
Last | 28 December |
Total | 85 |
Successes | 82 |
Failures | 2 |
Partial failures | 1 |
Catalogued | 83 |
Rockets | |
Maiden flights | |
Retirements | |
Crewed flights | |
Orbital | 5 |
Total travellers | 14 |
EVAs | 4 |
Several new rockets and spaceports began operations in 2016.
Overview
[edit]Russia inaugurated the far-Eastern Vostochny Cosmodrome on 28 April 2016 with a traditional Soyuz-2.1a flight,[1] before expanding it for the Angara rocket family in the following years. The Chinese Long March 7 flew its maiden flight from the new Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan Island on 25 June, and the maiden flight of the Long March 5 took place on 3 November. Two years after its 2014 accident, the Antares rocket returned to flight on 17 October with its upgraded 230 version featuring the Russian RD-181 engine.
After many failed attempts, SpaceX began landing its Falcon 9 first stages on autonomous spaceport drone ships, edging closer to their long-stated goal of developing reusable launch vehicles. The company indicated that the recovered engines and structures did not suffer significant damage.[2] One of the landed boosters, B1021, launched in April 2016, was flown again in March 2017;[3] two others were converted to side boosters for the maiden flight of Falcon Heavy.[4]
The ExoMars mission, a collaboration between the European and Russian space agencies, was launched on 14 March and reached Mars on 19 October.[5] Dedicated to astrobiology investigations, this flight carried the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, which reached Mars orbit, and the Schiaparelli EDM lander, which crashed upon landing. A subsequent flight scheduled for 2020 will carry the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover along with four static surface instruments.[6] Meanwhile, the Japanese space probe Akatsuki started its observations of Venus in May[7] after spending five months gradually adjusting its orbit. Planetary exploration activities took center stage with the orbit insertion of NASA's Juno probe at Jupiter on 4 July, followed by the launch of NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission to asteroid 101955 Bennu on 8 September. Finally, on 30 September, the Rosetta probe executed a slow crash-landing on comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.[8][9]
Human spaceflights included the return of Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko in March after a yearlong mission on the ISS, the longest-ever continuous stay by astronauts at the station. Kelly also set the record for the longest-duration stay of an American in orbit. Four ISS Expeditions numbered 47 to 50 were launched in 2016, the first one using the last Soyuz TMA-M spacecraft and the next three inaugurating the modernized Soyuz MS. Expedition 50 will continue into 2017. Several EVAs were performed to maintain the exterior of the ISS. The experimental BEAM inflatable habitat was attached to the ISS on 16 April and expanded on 28 May to begin two years of on-orbit tests. Meanwhile, China launched its new Tiangong-2 space laboratory in September, which was first visited by two astronauts for a month between 19 October and 17 November.
Orbital launches
[edit]Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | |||
Remarks | ||||||||
January[edit] | ||||||||
15 January 16:57:04 | Long March 3B/E | Xichang LC-3 | CASC | |||||
Belintersat 1 | Belarus | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
17 January 18:42:18 | Falcon 9 v1.1 | F9-021 | Vandenberg SLC-4E | SpaceX | ||||
Jason-3 | NOAA / EUMETSAT | Low Earth | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Final flight of the standard Falcon 9 v1.1, future flights will use the upgraded Falcon 9 Full Thrust. Falcon 9's first stage performed a soft landing on an autonomous spaceport drone ship in the Pacific Ocean, but the failure of one landing leg to lock into position caused it to fall over and break apart.[10] | ||||||||
20 January 04:01:00 | PSLV-XL | C31 | Satish Dhawan SLP | ISRO | ||||
IRNSS-1E | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
27 January 23:20:48 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA228 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
Intelsat 29e | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Spacecraft failure in 2019[11] | |||
29 January 22:20:09 | Proton-M / Briz-M | Baikonur Site 200/39 | International Launch Services | |||||
Eutelsat 9B | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
Carries the first laser communication node for the European Data Relay System | ||||||||
February[edit] | ||||||||
1 February 07:29:04 | Long March 3C/E / YZ-1 | Xichang LC-3 | CASC | |||||
BeiDou M3-S | CNSA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
5 February 13:38:00 | Atlas V 401 | AV-057 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
USA-266 (GPS IIF-12) | US Air Force | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
7 February 00:21:07 | Soyuz-2.1b / Fregat | Plesetsk Site 43/4 | RVSN RF | |||||
Kosmos 2514 (GLONASS-M 751) | VKS | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
7 February 00:30 | Unha-3 | Sohae | KCST | |||||
Kwangmyŏngsŏng-4[12] | KCST | Low Earth | Earth observation | 30 June 2023[13] | Successful | |||
10 February 11:40:32 | Delta IV M+ (5,2) | Vandenberg SLC-6 | United Launch Alliance | |||||
USA-267 / Topaz-4[14] | NRO | Retrograde LEO | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
NROL-45 mission. Spacecraft launched in a retrograde orbit. | ||||||||
16 February 17:57:40 | Rokot / Briz-KM | Plesetsk Site 133/3 | / Eurockot | |||||
Sentinel-3A | ESA | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
17 February 08:45:00 | H-IIA 202 | F30 | Tanegashima LA-Y1 | MHI | ||||
Hitomi (ASTRO-H) | JAXA / NASA | Low Earth | X-ray astronomy | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | |||
ChubuSat-2 | Nagoya University | Low Earth | Radiation / Amateur radio | In orbit | Operational | |||
ChubuSat-3 | MHI | Low Earth | Remote sensing / Space debris monitor | In orbit | Operational | |||
Horyu-4 | Kyushu Institute of Technology | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
Hitomi malfunctioned after initial checkouts, and is believed to have lost attitude control and snapped off its solar array. 28 April, JAXA has abandoned efforts to recover the spacecraft.[15][16] | ||||||||
March[edit] | ||||||||
4 March 23:35:00 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-022 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
SES-9 | SES S.A. | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
High-velocity landing test ended with a hard landing on the drone ship Of Course I Still Love You and destruction of the first stage. | ||||||||
9 March 05:20:07 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA229 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
Eutelsat 65 West A | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
10 March 10:31:00 | PSLV-XL | C32 | Satish Dhawan SLP | ISRO | ||||
IRNSS-1F | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
13 March 18:56:00 | Soyuz-2.1b | Baikonur Site 31/6 | Roscosmos | |||||
Resurs-P No.3 | Roscosmos | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | 17 October 2023[17] | Partial spacecraft failure[18] | |||
The launch succeeded on its second attempt after a rare pad abort the day before. | ||||||||
14 March 09:31:42[6] | Proton-M / Briz-M | Baikonur Site 200/39 | Khrunichev | |||||
/ ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter | ESA | Areocentric orbit | Mars orbiter | In orbit | Operational | |||
Schiaparelli EDM lander | ESA | TMI to Martian Surface | Mars lander | 19 October 2016 | Landing failure | |||
Briz-M upper stage exploded after separation, apparently without damaging the orbiter or lander.[19] | ||||||||
18 March 21:26:38 | Soyuz-FG | Baikonur Site 1/5 | Roscosmos | |||||
Soyuz TMA-20M | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Expedition 47/48 | 7 September 2016 01:13 | Successful | |||
Crewed flight with three cosmonauts. Final flight of the Soyuz TMA-M variant | ||||||||
23 March 03:05:52 | Atlas V 401 | AV-064 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
Cygnus CRS OA-6 S.S. Rick Husband | Orbital ATK / NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 22 June 2016 13:29 | Successful | |||
Diwata-1 | DOST / TU | Low Earth | Earth observation | 6 April 2020[21] | Successful | |||
⚀ Flock-2e' × 20 | Planet Labs | Low Earth | Earth observation | First: 3 October 2017[22] Last: 10 November 2018[23] | Successful | |||
⚀ Lemur-2 × 9 | Spire Global | Low Earth | Earth observation | First: 27 February 2017[24] Last: 7 April 2017[25] | 8 successful, 1 failed to deploy | |||
Anomaly in the mixture ratio control valve assembly, causing the Atlas V booster engine to cut off five seconds early, resulting in a longer-than-usual Centaur orbital insertion burn.[20] Cubesats deployed from the ISS and the Cygnus spacecraft at a later date. | ||||||||
24 March 09:42:00 | Soyuz-2.1a | Plesetsk Site 43/4 | RVSN RF | |||||
Kosmos 2515 (Bars-M 2L) | VKS | Low Earth (SSO) | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
29 March 20:11:04 | Long March 3A | Xichang LC-2 | CASC | |||||
BeiDou IGSO-6 | CNSA | IGSO | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
31 March 16:23:57 | Soyuz-2.1a | Baikonur Site 31/6 | Roscosmos | |||||
Progress MS-02 / 63P | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 14 October 2016 13:39 | Successful | |||
⚀ Tomsk-TPU-120 | Tomsk Polytechnic University | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 20 October 2019[27] | Successful | |||
Tomsk-TPU-120 is a CubeSat deployed into orbit from ISS by Russian astronauts spacewalk on 17 August 2017.[26] | ||||||||
April[edit] | ||||||||
5 April 17:38:04 | Long March 2D | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
Shijian 10 | CAS | Low Earth | Microgravity Science | 18 April 2016 08:30 | Successful | |||
8 April 20:43:31 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-023 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
SpaceX CRS-8 | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 11 May 2016 18:31 | Successful | |||
BEAM | Bigelow Aerospace / NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | Technology demonstration / ISS Assembly | In orbit | Operational | |||
First stage landed successfully on drone ship Of Course I Still Love You for the first time, the second successful landing overall | ||||||||
25 April 21:02:13 | Soyuz-STA / Fregat | Kourou ELS | Arianespace | |||||
Sentinel-1B | ESA | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
MICROSCOPE | CNES | Low Earth (SSO) | Astrophysics | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ AAUSAT-4 | Aalborg | Low Earth (SSO) | AIS ship tracking | 8 September 2023[28] | Successful | |||
⚀ e-st@r-II | Polytechnic University of Turin | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ OUFTI-1 | Liège | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
28 April 02:01:21 | Soyuz-2.1a / Volga | Vostochny Site 1S | Roscosmos | |||||
Mikhailo Lomonosov | MSU | Low Earth (SSO) | Gamma-ray astronomy | 16 December 2023[29] | Satellite malfunction | |||
Aist-2D | SSAU | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ SamSat 218 | SSAU | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | 4 March 2022[30] | Spacecraft failure | |||
First orbital flight from Vostochny Cosmodrome. | ||||||||
28 April 07:20:00 | PSLV-XL | C33 | Satish Dhawan FLP | ISRO | ||||
IRNSS-1G | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
May[edit] | ||||||||
6 May 05:21:00 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-024 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
JCSAT-14 | JSAT | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
First stage landed on Of Course I Still Love You drone ship, the third successful landing and the first landing with a payload to geostationary transfer orbit. | ||||||||
15 May 02:43 | Long March 2D | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
Yaogan 30 | CNSA | Low Earth (SSO) | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
24 May 08:48:43 | Soyuz-STB / Fregat | Kourou ELS | Arianespace | |||||
Galileo FOC 10 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Galileo FOC 11 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
27 May 21:39:00 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-025 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
Thaicom 8 | Thaicom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
First stage landed on Of Course I Still Love You drone ship, the fourth successful landing and the second landing with a payload to geostationary transfer orbit. | ||||||||
29 May 08:44:35 | Soyuz-2.1b / Fregat | Plesetsk Site 43/4 | RVSN RF | |||||
Kosmos 2516 (GLONASS-M 753) | VKS | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | |||
Kosmos 2516 experienced a depressurization event in November 2020, which permanently disabled the satellite after four years in operation. It was replaced by GLONASS-K 705.[31] | ||||||||
30 May 03:17:04 | Long March 4B | Taiyuan LC-9 | CASC | |||||
Ziyuan III-02 | CNSA | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
ÑuSat-1/-2 (Aleph-1 constellation)[32] | Satellogic | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
June[edit] | ||||||||
4 June 14:00:13 | Rokot / Briz-KM | Plesetsk Site 133/3 | RVSN RF | |||||
Kosmos 2517 (Geo-IK-2 No.12) | VKS | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Operational | |||
9 June 07:10:00 | Proton-M / Briz-M | Baikonur Site 81/24 | International Launch Services | |||||
Intelsat 31 / DLA-2 | Intelsat / DirecTV | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
11 June 17:51:00 | Delta IV Heavy | Cape Canaveral SLC-37B | United Launch Alliance | |||||
USA-268 (Orion 9) | NRO | Geosynchronous | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
NROL-37 mission. | ||||||||
12 June 15:30:04 | Long March 3C/E | Xichang LC-3 | CASC | |||||
BeiDou G7 | CNSA | Geosynchronous | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
15 June 14:29:00 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-026 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
Eutelsat 117 West B | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
ABS-2A | ABS | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
Satellites were successfully delivered to orbit, first stage landing on drone ship failed. | ||||||||
18 June 21:38:39 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA230 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
EchoStar 18 | EchoStar | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
BRIsat | BRI | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
22 June 03:56:00 | PSLV-XL | C34 | Satish Dhawan SLP | ISRO | ||||
Cartosat-2C | ISRO | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
BIROS | DLR | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
GHGSat-D (Claire) | GHGSat | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
LAPAN-A3 | LAPAN | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
M3MSat | CSA | Low Earth (SSO) | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
SkySat-C1 | Terra Bella | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ BeeSat 4 | TU Berlin | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Flock-2p × 12 | Planet Labs | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | First: 20 October 2022 Last: 28 March 2023[33] | Successful | |||
⚀ SathyabamaSat | Sathyabama University | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Swayam | College of Engineering, Pune | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
24 June 14:30:00 | Atlas V 551 | AV-063 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
MUOS-5 | US Navy | GSO | Communications | In orbit | Operational in off-nominal but usable orbit[34] | |||
25 June 12:00:07 | Long March 7 / YZ-1A | Y1 | Wenchang LC-2 | CASC | ||||
Next-generation crew capsule scale model | CMSA | Low Earth | Technology demonstration Flight test | 26 June 2016 07:41 | Successful | |||
⚀ Star of Aoxiang | NPU | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 29 September 2016 | Successful | |||
Aolong-1 | CALT | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 27 August 2016 | Successful | |||
Tiange-1 | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 27 August 2016 | Successful | ||||
Tiange-2 | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 24 August 2016 | Successful | ||||
Maiden flight of the Long March 7 rocket and the first launch from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center.[35] | ||||||||
29 June 03:21:04 | Long March 4B | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
Shijian 16-02 | CNSA | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
July[edit] | ||||||||
7 July 01:36:40 | Soyuz-FG | Baikonur Site 1/5 | Roscosmos | |||||
Soyuz MS-01 | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Expedition 48/49 | 30 October 2016 03:58 | Successful | |||
Crewed flight with three cosmonauts. Maiden flight of the modernized Soyuz MS spacecraft variant. | ||||||||
16 July 21:41:45 | Soyuz-U | Baikonur Site 31/6 | Roscosmos | |||||
Progress MS-03 / 64P | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 1 February 2017 18:24 | Successful | |||
18 July 04:45:29 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-027 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
SpaceX CRS-9 | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 26 August 15:47 | Successful | |||
Delivering the IDA-2 segment of the NASA Docking System. Second successful return to launch site and vertical landing of a first stage, demonstrated as part of a controlled descent test. | ||||||||
28 July 12:37:00 | Atlas V 421 | AV-065 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
USA-269 (Quasar NROL-61) | NRO | Geosynchronous[36] | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
August[edit] | ||||||||
5 August 16:22:04 | Long March 3B | Xichang LC-3 | CASC | |||||
Tiantong-1 01 | CAST | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
9 August 22:55:25 | Long March 4C | Taiyuan LC-9 | CASC | |||||
Gaofen-3 | CAST | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
14 August 05:26:00 | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | F9-028 | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | ||||
JCSAT-16 | JSAT | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
15 August 17:40:04 | Long March 2D | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
Quantum Experiments At Space Scale (QUESS)[37] | CAS | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
Lixing-1 | CAS | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | 19 August 2016[38] | Spacecraft failure | |||
⚀ 3Cat 2 | UPC | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | 18 December 2023[39] | Successful | |||
19 August 04:52:00 | Delta IV M+ (4,2) | Cape Canaveral SLC-37B | United Launch Alliance | |||||
AFSPC 6 / USA-270 / GSSAP #3 | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Space surveillance | In orbit | Operational | |||
AFSPC 6 / USA-271 / GSSAP #4 | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Space surveillance | In orbit | Operational | |||
24 August 22:16:01 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA232 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
Intelsat 33e | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational[40] | |||
Intelsat 36 | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
31 August 18:50:00 | Long March 4C | Taiyuan LC-9 | CASC | |||||
Gaofen-10 | CAST | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | 31 August 2016 | Launch failure | |||
September[edit] | ||||||||
3 September 07:00–09:00 (scheduled)[42] | Falcon 9 Full Thrust | Cape Canaveral SLC-40 | SpaceX | |||||
AMOS-6 | Spacecom | Planned: Geosynchronous | Communications | N/A | Destroyed prior to launch[41] | |||
Launch pad explosion destroyed both the rocket and the satellite two days prior to scheduled launch, on 13:07, 1 September 2016 (UTC)[41] | .||||||||
8 September 11:20:00 | GSLV Mk II | F05 | Satish Dhawan SLP | ISRO | ||||
INSAT-3DR | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Meteorology | In orbit | Operational | |||
8 September 23:05:00 | Atlas V 411 | AV-067 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
OSIRIS-REx | NASA | Heliocentric | Asteroid sample return | In orbit | Operational | |||
Reached asteroid Bennu in December 2018. Scheduled to return to Earth in September 2023. | ||||||||
13 September 14:38:00 | Shavit-2 | Palmachim | Israel Aerospace Industries | |||||
Ofeq 11 | Israel Defense Forces | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Satellite malfunction[43] | |||
15 September 14:04:12 | Long March 2F/G | T2 | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-1 | CNSA | ||||
Tiangong-2 | CMSA | Low Earth | Space station | 19 July 2019[44] 13:06 | Successful | |||
BanXing 2 | SAST | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 15 July 2019[45] | Successful | |||
Second Chinese space laboratory, BanXing 2 deployed 22 October | ||||||||
16 September 01:43:35 | Vega | Kourou ELV | Arianespace | |||||
PeruSat-1 | Peruvian Armed Forces | Low Earth (SSO) | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
SkySat × 4 | Terra Bella | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
26 September 03:42:00 | PSLV-G | C35 | Satish Dhawan FLP | ISRO | ||||
ScatSat-1 | ISRO | Low Earth (SSO) | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful[46] | |||
Alsat-1B | Algerian Space Agency | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Alsat-2B | Algerian Space Agency | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Blacksky Pathfinder-1 | BlackSky Global | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Pratham | IIT Bombay | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
PISat | PES University | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Alsat-1N | Algerian Space Agency | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ CanX-7 | UTIAS Space Flight Laboratory | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | 21 April 2022[47] | Successful | |||
Final launch of the original Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-G configuration with S9 solid rocket motors. | ||||||||
October[edit] | ||||||||
5 October 20:30 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA231 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
NBN-Co 1B / Sky Muster II | NBN | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
GSAT-18 | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
16 October 23:30 | Long March 2F | Y11 | Jiuquan LA-4 / SLS-1 | CASC | ||||
Shenzhou 11 | CMSA | Low Earth | Docking with Tiangong-2 | 18 November 2016 06:15 | Successful | |||
Crewed flight with two astronauts[48] | ||||||||
17 October 23:45 | Antares 230 | MARS Pad 0A | Orbital ATK | |||||
Cygnus CRS OA-5 | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 27 November 2016 23:36 | Successful | |||
⚀ Lemur-2 × 4 | Spire Global | Low Earth | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
CubeSats were deployed from the ISS and Cygnus spacecraft at a later date. | ||||||||
19 October 08:05 | Soyuz-FG | Baikonur Site 31/6 | Roscosmos | |||||
Soyuz MS-02 | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Expedition 49/50 | 10 April 2017 11:20 | Successful | |||
Crewed flight with three cosmonauts | ||||||||
November[edit] | ||||||||
2 November 06:20:00 | H-IIA 202 | F31 | Tanegashima LA-Y1 | MHI | ||||
Himawari 9 | JMA | Geosynchronous | Meteorology | In orbit | Operational | |||
3 November 12:42 | Long March 5 | Wenchang LC-1 | CASC | |||||
Shijian 17 | CNSA | Geosynchronous | Technology demonstration / Space rendezvous | In orbit | Operational | |||
Maiden flight of the Long March 5 rocket. Chinese state media claims Shijian-17 is a test of electric propulsion, though this is disputed by outside analysts tracking the satellite's unusual space rendezvous movements.[49][50] | ||||||||
9 November 23:42[51] | Long March 11 | Jiuquan LS-95A | CASC | |||||
XPNAV 1[52] | CAS | Low Earth (SSO) | X-ray pulsar-based navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Xiaoxiang 1[53] | Changsha Gaoxinqu Tianyi Research Institute | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Lishui 1-01 | Zhejiang LiTong Electronic Technology Co. | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Pina-2 × 2 | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | ||||
11 November 18:30 | Atlas V 401 | AV-062 | Vandenberg SLC-3E | United Launch Alliance | ||||
WorldView-4 | DigitalGlobe | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | 30 November 2021 05:20[55] | Spacecraft failure | |||
⚀ CELTEE 1 | M42 Technologies | Low Earth (SSO) | Calibration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ Prometheus-2 × 2 | LANL | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ AeroCube 8 × 2 | Aerospace | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ OptiCube 4 | NASA Orbital Debris Program Office | Low Earth (SSO) | Calibration | In orbit | Operational | |||
⚀ RAVAN | JHU/APL | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration / Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
CubeSats deployed after WorldView-4 separation as part of NRO-sponsored ENTERPRISE mission. WorldView-4 experienced a failure in one of its control moment gyroscopes in January 2019, making the spacecraft unrecoverable.[54] | ||||||||
11 November 23:14 | Long March 2D | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
Yunhai-1 | SAST | Low Earth | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
17 November 13:06:48 | Ariane 5 ES | VA233 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
Galileo FOC 7 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Galileo FOC 12 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Galileo FOC 13 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Galileo FOC 14 | ESA | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
First Galileo launch with Ariane 5 (8th overall), carrying Antonianna, Lisa, Kimberley, and Tijmen. | ||||||||
17 November 20:20:14 | Soyuz-FG | Baikonur Site 1/5 | Roscosmos | |||||
Soyuz MS-03 | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Expedition 50/51/52 | 2 June 2017 | Successful | |||
Crewed flight with three cosmonauts. Peggy Whitson's mission was prolonged over Expedition 52 until September 2017. | ||||||||
19 November 23:42:00 | Atlas V 541 | AV-069 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
GOES-R (GOES-16) | NASA / NOAA | Geosynchronous | Meteorology | In orbit | Operational | |||
22 November 15:24:04 | Long March 3C/E | Xichang LC-2 | CASC | |||||
Tianlian I-04 | CNSA | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
December[edit] | ||||||||
1 December 14:52 | Soyuz-U | Baikonur Site 1/5 | Roscosmos | |||||
Progress MS-04 / 65P | Roscosmos | Planned: Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 1 December | Launch failure | |||
5 December 13:51:44 | Vega | Kourou ELV | Arianespace | |||||
Göktürk-1 | Turkish Armed Forces | Low Earth (SSO) | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Operational | |||
7 December 04:54 | PSLV-XL | C36 | Satish Dhawan FLP | ISRO | ||||
Resourcesat-2A | ISRO | Low Earth (SSO) | Remote sensing | In orbit | Operational | |||
7 December 23:53 | Delta IV M+ (5,4) | Cape Canaveral SLC-37B | United Launch Alliance | |||||
USA-272 / WGS-8 | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
9 December 13:26:47 | H-IIB | F6 | Tanegashima LA-Y2 | MHI | ||||
HTV-6 | JAXA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | 5 February 2017 15:06 | Successful | |||
⚀ EGG | UTokyo | Low Earth | Technology demonstration / Re-entry Demonstration | 15 May 2017[61] | Successful | |||
⚀ TuPOD | GAUSS Srl | Low Earth | TubeSat Deployment / Amateur radio | 8 September 2017[62] | Successful | |||
⚀ / AOBA-VELOX 3 | NTU / Kyutech | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 1 November 2018[63] | Successful | |||
⚀ STARS C | Kagawa University | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 3 March 2018[64] | Successful | |||
⚀ FREEDOM | Nakashimada Engineering Works / Tohoku University | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 5 February 2017[65] | Successful | |||
⚀ ITF-2 | University of Tsukuba | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 3 January 2019[66] | Successful | |||
⚀ Waseda-SAT 3 | Waseda University | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 6 October 2018[67] | Successful | |||
OSNSAT | Open Space Network | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 11 January 2018[68] | Successful | |||
Tancredo-1 | Escola Municipal Presidente Tancredo de Almeida Neves/INPE | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 18 October 2017[69] | Successful | |||
⚀ TechEdSat 5 | SJSU/UI | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 29 July 2017[70] | Successful | |||
⚀ Lemur-2 × 4 | Spire Global | Low Earth | AIS | First: 15 April 2018[71] Last: 5 December 2018[72] | Successful | |||
CubeSats to be deployed at a later date. Tancredo-1 and OSNSAT are carried inside TuPOD and to be deployed from it. STARS-C was deployed on 19 December 2016. ITF-2, WASEDA-SAT3, FREEDOM, EGG, AOBA-Velox III, and TuPOD were deployed on 16 January 2017.[56] Tancredo-1 and OSNSAT were released from TuPOD on 19 January 2017.[57] Lemur-2 and TechEdSat-5 were deployed on 6–7 March 2017.[58][59][60] | ||||||||
10 December 16:11:00 | Long March 3B | Xichang LC-3 | CASC | |||||
Fengyun 4A | CMA | Geosynchronous | Meteorology | In orbit | Operational | |||
15 December 13:37:21 | Pegasus-XL | Stargazer, Cape Canaveral | Orbital ATK | |||||
CYGNSS × 8 | NASA | Low Earth | Meteorology | In orbit | Operational | |||
18 December 19:13 | Atlas V 431 | AV-071 | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | United Launch Alliance | ||||
EchoStar 19 | HughesNet | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
20 December 11:00 | Epsilon | Epsilon-2[73] | Uchinoura | JAXA | ||||
Arase (ERG) | JAXA | Medium Earth (elliptical) | Magnetospherics | In orbit | Operational | |||
21 December 19:22 | Long March 2D | Jiuquan LA-4/SLS-2 | CASC | |||||
TanSat[74] | CAS | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
Spark × 2 | CAS | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | |||
21 December 20:30 | Ariane 5 ECA | VA234 | Kourou ELA-3 | Arianespace | ||||
Star One D1 | Star One | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
JCSAT-15 | JSAT | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
28 December 03:23:56 | Long March 2D | Taiyuan | CASC | |||||
SuperView / Gaojing-1 01 | Beijing Space View Technology | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Partial launch failure; Operational | |||
SuperView / Gaojing-1 02 | Beijing Space View Technology | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | In orbit | Partial launch failure; Operational | |||
⚀ Bayi Kepu 1 | China Association for Science and Technology | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | 18 February 2017[76] | Partial launch failure; Successful | |||
Launch vehicle problem deployed satellites in a lower than planned orbit. SuperView satellites raising their own orbits, but CubeSats cannot so may have short lifespan.[75] |
Suborbital flights
[edit]Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
15 January 03:00:00 | S-310 | Uchinoura | JAXA | ||||
TPU / TU / TU / KU / JAXA | Suborbital | Ionospheric research | 15 January | Successful | |||
Apogee: 161 kilometres (100 mi)[77] | |||||||
22 January | New Shepard | Corn Ranch | Blue Origin | ||||
New Shepard crew capsule | Blue Origin | Suborbital | Test flight | 22 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 101.7 kilometres (63.2 mi)[78] | |||||||
23 January 08:30 | VSB-30 | Esrange | EuroLaunch | ||||
/ TEXUS-53 | DLR / ESA | Suborbital | Microgravity | 23 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 252 kilometres (157 mi) | |||||||
28 January | SRALT? | C-17, Pacific Ocean | MDA | ||||
MDA | Suborbital | ABM target | 28 January | Successful | |||
Apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi), CTV-02+ target | |||||||
28 January | Ground Based Interceptor | Vandenberg LF-23 | MDA | ||||
MDA | Suborbital | ABM test | 28 January | Successful | |||
CTV-02+, successful test flight, the CE-II kill vehicle performed scripted maneuvers to demonstrate performance of alternate divert thrusters. Upon entering terminal phase, the kill vehicle initiated a planned burn sequence to evaluate the alternate divert thrusters until fuel was exhausted, intentionally precluding an intercept. | |||||||
2 February 21:09 | VS-30 | Esrange | SSC | ||||
SPIDER/LEEWAVES | SSC | Suborbital | Technology | 2 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 138 kilometres (86 mi) | |||||||
21 February 07:34 | LGM-30G Minuteman III | Vandenberg LF-09 | US Air Force | ||||
US Air Force | Suborbital | Test flight | 21 February | Successful | |||
GT217GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ? | |||||||
22 February 04:15 | Black Brant IX | White Sands | NASA | ||||
CHESS-2 | LASP | Suborbital | Astronomy | 22 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 309 kilometres (192 mi) | |||||||
26 February 07:01 | LGM-30G Minuteman III | Vandenberg LF-10 | US Air Force | ||||
US Air Force | Suborbital | Test flight | 26 February | Successful | |||
GT218GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ? | |||||||
1 March 14:50 | Terrier Malemute | Wallops Island | NASA | ||||
MUSIC | West Virginia University | Suborbital | Technology experiments | 1 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: ~185 kilometers (115 mi)[79] | |||||||
7 March 12:05 | Terrier Orion | Wallops Island | NASA | ||||
SOAREX-9 | NASA Ames | Suborbital | Technology experiment | 7 March | Successful | ||
RadPC | Montana State University | Suborbital | Technology experiment | 7 March | Successful | ||
VIP | Controlled Dynamics | Suborbital | Technology experiment | 7 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: ~159 kilometers (99 mi) | |||||||
7 March | K-4 | Visakhapatnam | Indian Navy | ||||
Indian Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: 500 km? | |||||||
8 March | Shahab-3 | Iran | IRGC | ||||
IRGC | Suborbital | Missile test | 8 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: ~150 kilometres (93 mi) | |||||||
14 March | Agni-I | Integrated Test Range | IDRDL | ||||
IDRDL | Suborbital | Missile test | 14 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: ~500 kilometres (310 mi)? | |||||||
14 March | UGM-133 Trident II D5 | Submarine, ETR | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 14 March | Successful | |||
Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test 52 | |||||||
15 March | UGM-133 Trident II D5 | Submarine, ETR | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 15 March | Successful | |||
Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test 52 | |||||||
16 March | UGM-133 Trident II D5 | Submarine, ETR | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 16 March | Successful | |||
Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test 52 | |||||||
31 March | K-4 | INS Arihant | Indian Navy | ||||
Indian Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 31 March | Successful | |||
First K-4 launch from a submarine[80] | |||||||
2 April 15:18 | New Shepard | Corn Ranch | Blue Origin | ||||
New Shepard crew capsule | Blue Origin | Suborbital | Test flight | 2 April | Successful | ||
BORE | Southwest Research Institute | Suborbital | Microgravity experiment | 2 April | Successful | ||
COLLIDE | University of Central Florida | Suborbital | Microgravity experiment | 2 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 103.8 kilometers (64.5 mi). Third successful booster landing of the same rocket.[81] | |||||||
19 April 06:41 | UR-100NU | Yasniy | RVSN | ||||
RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 19 April | Successful | |||
Yu-71 Hypersonic Vehicle Test, Apogee: 1,000 kilometres (620 mi)? | |||||||
26 April 17:00 | Tianying 3F | Hainan | CNSA | ||||
Kunpeng-1B | CSSAR | Suborbital | Environment monitoring | 26 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 316 kilometres (196 mi) | |||||||
18 May 00:45 | VS-30/Improved Orion | Woomera Test Range | DSTO | ||||
HiFire-5B | DSTO | Suborbital | Technology | 18 May | Successful | ||
Apogee: 278 kilometres (173 mi) | |||||||
18 May 07:02 | MRBM-T3 | Kauai | MDA | ||||
MDA | Suborbital | Radar target | 18 May | Successful | |||
Medium Range Ballistic Missile Target, Aegis radar target FTX-21, apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi)? | |||||||
25 May | RIM-161 Standard Missile 3-IB | USS Hopper, Kauai |