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Space Shuttle Discovery launches onSTS-26R, the first US crewed spaceflight after theChallenger accident | |
| Orbital launches | |
|---|---|
| First | 6 January 1988 |
| Last | 29 December 1988 |
| Total | 121 |
| Catalogued | 116 |
| National firsts | |
| Satellite | |
| Orbital launch | |
| Space traveller | |
| Rockets | |
| Maiden flights | Ariane 4 Long March 4A Shavit |
| Retirements | Energia Titan 34D |
| Crewed flights | |
| Orbital | 5 |
| Total travellers | 19 |
The following is an outline of1988 in spaceflight.
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ =CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
| Remarks | |||||||
| 25 March | |||||||
| ASI | Low Earth | Atmospheric research | In orbit | Successful | |||
| 7 June 21:38:16 | |||||||
| Low Earth (Mir) | MirEP-2 | 7 September 00:48:38 | Successful | ||||
| Crewed flight launching threecosmonauts and landing two, computer problems during deorbit nearly resulted in loss of crew, and delayed landing by one day | |||||||
| 15 June 11:19 | |||||||
| EUMETSAT | GTO | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | |||
| PanAmSat | GTO | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
| AMSAT | Low Earth | Amateur radio | 6 December 1996 | Successful | |||
| Maiden flight of the Ariane 4 rocket | |||||||
| 7 July 17:38 | |||||||
| Intended:Areocentric Actual:Heliocentric | Mars orbiter | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | ||||
| stationary lander | Phobos lander | In orbit | Never deployed | ||||
| Loss of communication 2 September 1988 en route to Mars | |||||||
| 12 July 17:01 | |||||||
| Areocentric | Mars orbiter | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | ||||
| stationary lander | Phobos lander | In orbit | Never deployed | ||||
| "hopping" lander | Phobos lander | In orbit | Never deployed | ||||
| Loss of communication 27 March 1989 nearPhobos | |||||||
| 29 August 04:23:11 | |||||||
| Low Earth (Mir) | MirEP-3 | 21 December 09:57:00 | Successful | ||||
| Crewed flight with three cosmonauts, one remained on Mir as part ofEO-3, firstAfghan space traveller | |||||||
| 29 September 15:37:00 | |||||||
| NASA | Low Earth | Satellite deployment | 3 October 16:37:11 | Successful | |||
| NASA | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
| Crewed flight with fiveastronauts, first US crewed spaceflight after theChallenger accident in 1986, TDRS deployed usingInertial Upper Stage | |||||||
| 15 November 03:00:02 | |||||||
| Low Earth | Test flight | 06:26 | Successful | ||||
| Low Earth (Buran) | Test flight | Successful | |||||
| Uncrewed test, only flight of Buran and final flight of Energia | |||||||
| 26 November 14:49:34 | |||||||
| Low Earth (Mir) | MirEO-4/EP-4 | 27 April 1989 02:57:58 | Successful | ||||
| Crewed flight with three cosmonauts | |||||||
| 2 December 14:30:34 | |||||||
| NASA/NRO | Low Earth | Satellite deployment | 6 December 23:30:39 | Successful | |||
| NRO/CIA | Low Earth | Radar imaging | 25 March 1997 | Successful | |||
| Crewed flight with five astronauts | |||||||
| 11 December 00:33 | |||||||
| UK Ministry of Defence | GTO | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
| SES Astra | GTO | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
There were no deep-space rendezvous in 1988.