Movatterモバイル変換

2015 in spaceflight

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2015 in spaceflight
Orbital launches
Highlights from spaceflight in 2015^[a]
First	10 January
Last	28 December
Total	87
Successes	82
Failures	4
Partial failures	1
Catalogued	83^[b]
National firsts
Satellite	Turkmenistan Laos
Space traveller	Denmark Kazakhstan
Rockets
Maiden flights	Long March 3C/E /YZ-1 Long March 3B /YZ-1 Long March 6 Long March 11 Super Strypi Falcon 9 Full Thrust
Retirements	Dnepr-1
Crewed flights
Orbital	4
Total travellers	12
EVAs	7
v t e

2015 in spaceflight

Timeline of spaceflight ← 2014 2016 →

v t e Timeline of spaceflight
Spaceflight before 1951
1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s	2020 2021 (H1,H2) 2022 (H1,H2) 2023 (H1,H2) 2024 (H1,H2) 2025 (H1,H2) 2026 2027 2028 2029
Future

In 2015, the maidenspaceflights of the ChineseLong March 6 andLong March 11 launch vehicles took place.

A total of 87 orbital launches were attempted in 2015, of which 82 were successful, one was partially successful and four were failures. The year also saw sevenEVAs by ISS astronauts. The majority of the year's orbital launches were conducted byRussia, theUnited States andChina, with 27, 20 and 19 launches respectively.

Overview

[edit]

In February 2015, theEuropean Space Agency's experimental lifting body spacecraft, theIntermediate eXperimental Vehicle, successfully conducted its first test flight.

In March 2015,Ceres became the firstdwarf planet to be visited by a spacecraft whenDawn entered orbit. In July 2015,New Horizons visited thePluto-Charon system after a 9-year voyage, returning a trove of pictures and information about the former "ninth planet" (now classified as a dwarf planet). Meanwhile, theMESSENGER probe was deliberately crashed intoMercury after 4 years of in-orbit observations.

On 23 November 2015, theBlue Origin New Shepard suborbital rocket achieved its first powered soft landing near the launch site, paving the way for full reuse of its propulsion stage. On 21 December, the maiden flight of theSpaceX Falcon 9 Full Thrust took place, ending with a successful landing of its first stage.

Two oldweather satellites,NOAA-16 andDMSP 5D-2/F13, broke up in 2015, creating several hundred pieces ofspace debris. In both cases, a battery explosion is suspected as the root cause.

Orbital launches

[edit]

Date and time (UTC)

Rocket

Flight number

Launch site

LSP

Payload
(⚀ =CubeSat)

Operator

Orbit

Function

Decay (UTC)

Outcome

Remarks

January

[edit]

10 January
09:47:10

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

Low Earth (ISS)

11 February 2015
00:44

Successful

11 May 2015

Successful

Flock-1d' 1

13 October 2015

Successful

Flock-1d' 2

27 December 2015

Successful

SpaceX attempted to land the first stage on aplatform in theAtlantic Ocean, but the first stage crash-landed on its landing platform.^[1] The AESP-14 CubeSat was deployed from the space station on 5 February 2015,^[2] while the Flock-1 CubeSats were deployed on 3 March 2015.^[3]

21 January
01:04:00

Atlas V 551

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

31 January
14:22:00

Delta II 7320

Vandenberg SLC-2W

United Launch Alliance

SMAP

NASA

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

⚀

ExoCube

Cal Poly

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

FIREBIRD II A

Montana State

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

2 August 2023^[4]

Successful

⚀

FIREBIRD II B

Montana State

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

2 August 2023^[5]

Successful

⚀

GRIFEX

NASA /JPL

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

February

[edit]

1 February
01:21:00

H-IIA 202

IGS-Radar Spare

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Successful^[6]

1 February
12:31:00

Proton-M/Briz-M

Baikonur Site 200/39

International Launch Services

In orbit

Operational

2 February
08:50

LBS.2001

Technology demonstration

26 February 2015

Successful

11 February
13:40:00

Transatmospheric

Technology demonstration

11 February 2015
15:19

Successful

Vega's 4th stage briefly entered low Earth orbit before de-orbiting; thus it did not get aCOSPAR ID. This marked the first flight of theIXV

11 February
23:03:32

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

Earth observation /Heliophysics

In orbit

Operational

First SpaceX launch aimed beyondGTO. First stage soft landed on water.

17 February
11:00:17

Progress M-26M / 58P

Low Earth (ISS)

14 August 2015
14:17

Successful

27 February
11:01:35

Soyuz-2.1a

Plesetsk Site 43/4

RVSN RF

Kosmos 2503 (Bars-M 1L)

VKO

Low Earth (SSO)

Reconnaissance

In orbit

Operational

March

[edit]

2 March
03:50:00

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

First communication satellites to use all-electric propulsion to reach intended orbits fromGTO.

13 March
02:44:00

Atlas V 421

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

MMS-1

NASA

Elliptical High Earth

Magnetospheric research

In orbit

Operational

MMS-2

NASA

Elliptical High Earth

Magnetospheric research

In orbit

Operational

MMS-3

NASA

Elliptical High Earth

Magnetospheric research

In orbit

Operational

MMS-4

NASA

Elliptical High Earth

Magnetospheric research

In orbit

Operational

18 March
22:05:00

In orbit

Operational

25 March
18:36:00

Delta IV M+(4,2)

Cape Canaveral SLC-37B

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

25 March
22:08:53

Dombarovsky Site 13

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

Final flight of Dnepr-1 rocket, due to theRusso-Ukrainian war.

26 March
01:21:00

H-IIA 202

IGS-Optical 5

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

27 March
19:42:57

Low Earth (ISS)

Expedition 43/44/45/46

12 September 2015
00:51

Successful

Crewed flight with three cosmonauts, including two on a year-long mission.

27 March
21:46:18

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

28 March
11:49:00

PSLV-XL

In orbit

Operational

30 March
13:52:30

In orbit

Operational

31 March
13:47:56

Rokot /Briz-KM

Plesetsk Cosmodrome Site 133/3

VKO

Gonets-M 11

Gonets Satellite System

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

Gonets-M 12

Gonets Satellite System

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

Gonets-M 13

Gonets Satellite System

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

Kosmos 2504

VKO

Low Earth

Technology demonstration /Satellite inspection (?)

In orbit

Operational

April

[edit]

14 April
20:10:41

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

Low Earth (ISS)

21 May 2015
16:42

Successful

Arkyd 3 Reflight

Planetary Resources

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

23 December 2015

Successful

Flock-1e × 14

First: 8 February 2016
Last: 24 August 2016

Successful

First stage recovery failed; the rocket stage landed on the target drone ship too fast, tipped over, and exploded.^[7]
All secondary payloads were deployed from an ISS airlock later. Arkyd 3 Reflight is a replacement for Arkyd 3, which was lost in theCygnus CRS Orb-3 flight accident in 2014.

26 April
20:00:07

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

27 April
23:03:00

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

SpaceX

TürkmenÄlem 52°E / MonacoSAT

Turkmen Telecom

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

FirstTurkmen satellite (not countingTurkmenistan Memorial Capsule).

28 April
07:09:50

Progress M-27M / 59P

Low Earth (ISS)

8 May 2015

Failure

Spacecraft lost communications and attitude control soon after separation failure during launch.^[8]International Space Station docking attempt cancelled.^[9] Mission declared a total loss.^[10]

May

[edit]

16 May
05:47:39

Proton-M /Briz-M

Baikonur Site 200/39

International Launch Services

16 May 2015

Launch failure

Proton third stage vernier engine failed at T+497 seconds due to turbopump shaft coating degradation causing excess vibration.^[11]

20 May
15:05:00

Atlas V 501

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

AFSPC-5 (X-37B OTV-4)

U.S. Air Force

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

7 May 2017

Operational

ULTRASat

NASA

Low Earth

CubeSat Deployment

In orbit

Operational

⚀

LightSail 1

The Planetary Society

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

14 June 2015
17:23

Successful

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

BRICSat-P

U.S. Naval Academy /George Washington

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

AeroCube-8A

The Aerospace Corporation

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

11 October 2021^[13]

Successful

⚀

AeroCube-8B

The Aerospace Corporation

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

2 October 2021^[14]

Successful

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

The X-37B spaceplane landed autonomously atKennedy Space Center'sShuttle Landing Facility after spending a record-breaking 718 days in orbit.^[12]

27 May
21:16:07

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

June

[edit]

5 June
15:23:54

Soyuz-2.1a

Plesetsk Site 43/4

RVSN RF

Kosmos 2505 (Kobalt-M №10)

VKO

Low Earth

Reconnaissance

18 September 2015

Successful

23 June
01:51:58

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

23 June
16:44:00

Soyuz-2.1b

Plesetsk Site 43/4

RVSN RF

Kosmos 2506 (Persona №3)

VKO

Low Earth (SSO)

Reconnaissance

In orbit

Operational

26 June
06:22:04

Taiyuan LC-9

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation /Reconnaissance

In orbit

Operational

28 June
14:21:11

Falcon 9 v1.1

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

Low Earth (ISS)

28 June 2015

Launch Failure

Flock-1f × 8^[16]

28 June 2015

Launch Failure

Vehicle disintegrated at T+139 seconds after second stage helium tank support strut failure caused helium tank to break through second stage tanks.^[15] Attempted to deliver the IDA-1 segment of theNASA Docking System. CubeSats were to be deployed from the International Space Station at a later date. Planned first stage landing test not achieved.

July

[edit]

3 July
04:55:48

Progress M-28M / 60P

Low Earth (ISS)

19 December 2015

Successful

10 July
16:28:00

PSLV-XL

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

UK-DMC-3B

DMCii

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

UK-DMC-3C

DMCii

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

CBNT-1

SSTL

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

DeOrbitSail

Surrey Space Centre

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

15 July
15:36:00

Atlas V 401

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

15 July
21:42:07

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

22 July
21:02:44

Low Earth (ISS)

11 December 2015
13:10

Successful

Crewed flight with three cosmonauts.

24 July
00:07:00

Delta IV M+(5,4)

Cape Canaveral SLC-37B

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

25 July
12:29:04

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

August

[edit]

19 August
11:50:49

Low Earth (ISS)

29 September 2015

Successful

⚀

AAUSAT5

Aalborg

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

15 March 2016

Successful

Flock-2b × 14^[18]

First: 22 May 2016
Last: 17 October 2016

Successful
(12 deployed)

⚀

GOMX-3

GomSpace

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

19 October 2016^[19]

Successful

⚀

S-CUBE

Chiba Institute of Technology

Low Earth

Meteor observation

23 November 2016^[20]

⚀

SERPENS

University of Brasília /Brazilian Space Agency

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

27 March 2016

Successful

CubeSats to be deployed from the International Space Station at a later date. SERPENS and S-CUBE were deployed on 17 September. AAUSAT5, GOMX-3, and Dove Flocks were deployed on 5–7 October, but two out of the fourteen Dove Flocks failed to be deployed due to a malfunction of the deployer.^[17]

20 August
20:34:08

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

27 August
02:31:35

Taiyuan LC-9

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

27 August
11:22:00

Indian Armed Forces/ISRO

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

28 August
11:44:00

Proton-M /Briz-M

Baikonur Site 200/39

International Launch Services

In orbit

Operational

September

[edit]

2 September
04:37:43

Low Earth (ISS)

Expedition 45/46/iriss^[23]

2 March 2016
04:26

Successful

Crewed flight with three cosmonauts: includingESA astronautAndreas Mogensen, the firstDane in space, andAidyn Aimbetov, the first cosmonaut from an independentKazakhstan.
Sarah Brightman was intended to fly this mission as a spaceflight participant, but withdrew from training on 13 May 2015 for personal reasons.^[21]Japanese space tourist Satoshi Takamatsu was believed to be taking Brightman's place, but he declined and Roscosmos chose Aimbetov as an alternative instead.^[22]
Landed with the Year in Space crew ofScott Kelly andMikhail Korniyenko

2 September
10:18:00

Atlas V 551

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

11 September
02:08:10

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

12 September
15:42:04

In orbit

Operational

14 September
04:42

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation /Reconnaissance

In orbit

Operational

14 September
19:00:00

In orbit

Operational

19 September
23:01:14

Taiyuan LC-16

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

NS-2

Tsinghua University

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

NUDT-PhoneSat

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

29 March 2023^[24]

Successful

Tiantuo-3

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Xingchen 1

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Xingchen 2

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Xingchen 3

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Xingchen 4

NUDT

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Xiwang-2A

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

25 April 2023^[25]

Successful

Xiwang-2B

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

In orbit

Operational

Xiwang-2C

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

In orbit

Operational

Xiwang-2D

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

In orbit

Operational

Xiwang-2E

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

In orbit

Operational

Xiwang-2F

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Amateur radio

In orbit

Operational

XY-2

CASC

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

ZDPS-2A

ZJU

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

ZDPS-2B

ZJU

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

ZJ-1

Tsinghua University

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

ZJ-2

Tsinghua /Xidian

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

DCBB

CAMSAT

Low Earth (SSO)

Education

In orbit

Operational

Maiden flight of the Long March 6 vehicle.

23 September
21:59:38

Rokot /Briz-KM

Plesetsk Site 133/3

VKO

Kosmos 2507 (Strela-3M)

VKO

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

Kosmos 2508 (Strela-3M)

VKO

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

Kosmos 2509 (Strela-3M)

VKO

Low Earth

Communications

In orbit

Operational

25 September
01:41:40

Jiuquan LS-95A

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

Tianwang 1A (Shankeda 2)

ShanghaiTech

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

30 December 2022^[26]

Successful

⚀

Tianwang 1B (NJUST 2)

NJUST

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

31 March 2021^[27]

Successful

⚀

Tianwang 1C (NJFA 1)

ShanghaiTech

Low Earth (SSO)

Technology demonstration

27 February 2021^[28]

Successful

Maiden flight of the Long March 11 vehicle.

28 September
04:30:00

PSLV-XL

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

Lemur-2 1

In orbit

Operational

Lemur-2 2

In orbit

Operational

Lemur-2 3

In orbit

Operational

Lemur-2 4

In orbit

Operational

29 September
23:13:04

In orbit

Operational

30 September
20:30:07

Ariane 5 ECA

Kourou ELA-3

Arianespace

NBN-Co 1A (Sky Muster)

NBN Co

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

October

[edit]

1 October
16:49:40

Progress M-29M / 61P

Low Earth (ISS)

8 April 2016

Successful

2 October
10:28:00

Atlas V 421

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

7 October
04:13:04

Long March 2D

Jiuquan SLS-2

CASC

Jilin-1 Smart Verification Satellite^[29]

Chang Guang Satellite Technology

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

Jilin-1 Optical-A^[30]

Chang Guang Satellite Technology

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

Jilin-1 Video-01 (Lingqiao 1-01)^[31]

Chang Guang Satellite Technology

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

Jilin-1 Video-02 (Lingqiao 1-02)^[31]

Chang Guang Satellite Technology

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

In orbit

Operational

8 October
12:49:30

Atlas V 401

Vandenberg SLC-3E

United Launch Alliance

USA-264 (NOSS)

NRO

Low Earth

ELINT

In orbit

Operational

USA-264 (NOSS)

NRO

Low Earth

ELINT

In orbit

Operational

⚀

Aerocube-5c

The Aerospace Corporation

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

Aerocube-7

The Aerospace Corporation

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

Amateur radio /Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

ARC-1

UAF

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

BisonSat

In orbit

Operational

⚀

LMRST-Sat

NASA /JPL

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

PropCube x 2

Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

SINOD-D x 2

SRI International

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

⚀

SNaP-3 x 3

U.S. Army SMDC

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

16 October
16:16:04

APT Satellite Holdings

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

16 October
20:40:11

Proton-M /Briz-M

Baikonur Site 200/39

International Launch Services

In orbit

Operational

26 October
07:10:04

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation (Cartography)

In orbit

Operational

31 October
16:13:00

Atlas V 401

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

In orbit

Operational

November

[edit]

3 November
16:25:04

In orbit

Operational

4 November
03:45:00

SPARK

Pacific Missile Range Facility LP-41

ORS

HiakaSat

ORS

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

⚀

EDSN x 8

NASA

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

⚀

PrintSat

Montana State University

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

⚀

Argus

St. Louis University andVanderbilt University

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

⚀

STACEM

Utah State University

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

⚀

Supernova-Beta

Pumpkin, Inc.

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

4 November 2015

Launch failure

Maiden flight of the SPARK/Super Strypi launch vehicle.
Vehicle lost attitude control at T+1 minute.

8 November
07:06:04

Taiyuan LC-9

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

10 November
21:34:07

Ariane 5 ECA

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

17 November
06:33:41

Soyuz-2.1b /Fregat

Plesetsk Site 43/4

RVSN RF

Kosmos 2510 (EKS (Tundra))

VKO

Molniya^[33]

Early warning

In orbit

Operational^[34]

First space component for Russia's new unified missile early warning network.^[32]

20 November
16:07:04

Laos National Authority for Science and Technology

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

FirstLaotian satellite^[35]

24 November
06:50:00

H-IIA 204

In orbit

Operational

26 November
21:24:04

Taiyuan LC-9

Low Earth (SSO)

In orbit

Operational

December

[edit]

3 December
04:04:00

ESA /NASA

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

5 December
14:08:33

Soyuz-2-1v /Volga

Plesetsk Site 43/4

RVSN RF

Kosmos 2511 (Kanopus-ST)

VKO

Low Earth (SSO)

Earth observation

8 December 2015
05:43

Launch failure

Kosmos 2512 (KYuA-1)

Almaz-Antey

Low Earth (SSO)

Radar calibration

In orbit

Operational

Kanopus-ST failed to separate from the Volga upper stage.^[36]^[37]

6 December
21:44:57

Atlas V 401

Cape Canaveral SLC-41

United Launch Alliance

Cygnus CRS OA-4
S.S.Deke Slayton II

Orbital ATK /NASA

Low Earth (ISS)

ISS resupply

20 February 2016

Successful

SIMPL

NovaWurks

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

26 July 2022^[40]

Successful

Flock-2e x 12

First: 25 July 2017^[41]
Last: 14 August 2018^[42]

Successful

⚀

CADRE

University of Michigan

Low Earth

Technology demonstration

3 January 2017^[43]

Successful

⚀

MinXSS 1

University of Colorado Boulder

Low Earth

Solar physics,Space weather

5 May 2017^[44]

Successful

Technology demonstration

23 September 2017^[45]

Successful

⚀

STMSat 1

St. Thomas More Cathedral School

Low Earth

Education

21 April 2017^[46]

Successful

Flight moved fromAntares 130 rocket following launch failure ofCygnus CRS Orb-3. Originally scheduled for 1 April 2015.^[38] MinXSS was deployed into orbit from ISS on 16 May 2016.^[39]

9 December
16:46:04

In orbit

Operational

11 December
13:45:33

In orbit

Operational

13 December
00:19:00

Proton-M /Briz-M

Baikonur Site 81/24

Khrunichev

Kosmos 2513 (Garpun No. 12L)

VKO

Geosynchronous

Communications

In orbit

Operational

15 December
11:03:09

Low Earth (ISS)

18 June 2016
09:15

Successful

Crewed flight with three cosmonauts.

16 December
12:30:00

PSLV-CA

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

Technology demonstration

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

17 December
00:12:04

Low Earth (SSO)

High-energy astronomy

In orbit

Operational

17 December
11:51:56

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

21 December
08:44:39

Progress MS-01 / 62P

Low Earth (ISS)

3 July 2016
07:50

Operational

First launch of the newProgress-MS variant.

22 December
01:29:00

Falcon 9 Full Thrust

Cape Canaveral SLC-40

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

In orbit

Operational

First flight of the upgraded"full thrust" version of Falcon 9,first Falcon 9 flight after launch failure in June. First successfulreturn to launch site andvertical landing of a first stage, demonstrated as part of acontrolled descent test.

24 December
21:31:19

In orbit

Operational

28 December
16:04:04

In orbit

Operational

Suborbital flights

[edit]


Date and time (UTC)	Rocket		Flight number	Launch site		LSP
		Payload (⚀ =CubeSat)	Operator	Orbit	Function	Decay (UTC)	Outcome
		Remarks
26 January 09:13	Terrier-Improved Malemute			Poker Flat		NASA

		M-TEX	Alaska	Suborbital	Auroral	26 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~160 kilometres (99 mi)?
26 January 09:14	Terrier-Orion			Poker Flat		NASA

		MIST	Clemson	Suborbital	Auroral	26 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~130 kilometres (81 mi)?
26 January 09:46	Terrier-Improved Malemute			Poker Flat		NASA

		M-TEX	Alaska	Suborbital	Auroral	26 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~160 kilometres (99 mi)?
26 January 09:47	Terrier-Orion			Poker Flat		NASA

		MIST	Clemson	Suborbital	Auroral	26 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~130 kilometres (81 mi)?
28 January 10:41	Talos Terrier Oriole Nihka			Poker Flat		NASA

		ASSP	USU	Suborbital	Auroral	28 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~590 kilometres (370 mi)?
31 January 02:36:00^[47]	Agni V			Integrated Test Range Launch Complex IV		DRDO

			DRDO	Suborbital	Missile test	31 January	Successful
		Apogee: ~800 kilometres (500 mi)
19 February	Prithvi II			Integrated Test Range Launch Complex 3		DRDO

			DRDO	Suborbital	Missile test	19 February	Successful
		Apogee: ~100 kilometres (62 mi)
19 February 22:06	VS-30/Improved Orion			Andøya		Andøya

		ICI-4 (CanoRock 4)	Oslo/Andøya	Suborbital	Technology	19 February	Successful
		Apogee: 365 kilometres (227 mi)
22 February 07:52	VSB-30			Esrange		CNES

		Cryofenix	CNES	Suborbital	Microgravity	22 February	Successful
		Apogee: 265 kilometres (165 mi)
22 February	UGM-133 Trident II D5			Submarine, Pacific Ocean		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	22 February	Successful
22 February	UGM-133 Trident II D5			Submarine, Pacific Ocean		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	22 February	Successful
24 February 07:30	Terrier-Oriole			Wallops Island		TBD

			DOD	Suborbital	Missile Defense Test	24 February	Successful
		FTX-19 target, apogee: ~150 kilometres (93 mi)?
24 February 07:30	Terrier-Oriole			Wallops Island		TBD

			DOD	Suborbital	Missile Defense Test	24 February	Successful
		FTX-19 target, apogee: ~150 kilometres (93 mi)?
24 February 07:30	Terrier-Oriole			Wallops Island		TBD

			DOD	Suborbital	Missile Defense Test	24 February	Successful
		FTX-19 target, apogee: ~150 kilometres (93 mi)?
25 February 12:26	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		MOSC 2	AFRL	Suborbital	Ionospheric research	25 February	Successful
		Apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi)?
26 February	UR-100NU			Yasniy		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	26 February	Launch failure^[48]
		Yu-71 Hypersonic Vehicle Test
1 March^[49]	Hwasong-6			Nampo		Korean People's Army Strategic Force

			Korean People's Army Strategic Force	Suborbital	Missile test	1 March	Successful
		Apogee: 134 kilometres (83 mi). 1 of 2.
1 March^[49]	Hwasong-6			Nampo		Korean People's Army Strategic Force

			Korean People's Army Strategic Force	Suborbital	Missile test	1 March	Successful
		Apogee: 134 kilometres (83 mi). 2 of 2.
5 March 01:44	VS-30			Andøya		DLR

		WADIS-2	DLR	Suborbital	Atmospheric	5 March	Successful
		Apogee: 126 kilometres (78 mi), 13 Super Loki meteorological rockets were also launched
9 March	Shaheen-III			Sonmiani		ASFC

			ASFC	Suborbital	Missile test	9 March	Successful
		Apogee: 500 kilometres (310 mi)?
18 March	RS-26 Rubezh			Kapustin Yar		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	18 March	Successful
23 March 10:36	LGM-30G Minuteman III			VandenbergLF-10		US Air Force

			US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	23 March	Successful
		GT214GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ?
27 March 10:54	LGM-30G Minuteman III			VandenbergLF-04		US Air Force

			US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	27 March	Successful
		GT215GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ?
30 March	VSB-30			Andøya		DSTO

		HiFire-7	DSTO	Suborbital	Technology demonstration	30 March	Successful
9 April	Dhanush			Ship,Indian Ocean		DRDO

			DRDO	Suborbital	Target	9 April	Successful
		Apogee: ~100 kilometres (62 mi)
15 April	Ghauri			Tilla		Army of Pakistan

		Haft-5	Army of Pakistan	Suborbital	Missile test	15 April	Successful
		Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi)
16 April 04:22	Agni-III			ITR IC-4		Indian Army

			Indian Army	Suborbital	Missile test	16 April	Successful
		Apogee: 350 kilometres (220 mi)
18 April 11:01	Terrier-Improved Malemute			Wallops Island		NASA

		Rocksat-X	University of Colorado Boulder	Suborbital	Student Research	18 April	Successful
		Apogee: ~174 kilometres (108 mi)
23 April 07:35	VSB-30			Esrange		EuroLaunch

		/TEXUS-51	DLR/ESA	Suborbital	Microgravity	23 April	Successful
		Apogee: 261 kilometres (162 mi)
27 April 04:55	VSB-30			Esrange		EuroLaunch

		/TEXUS-52	DLR/ESA	Suborbital	Microgravity	27 April	Successful
		Apogee: 255 kilometres (158 mi)
2 May 08:30:01	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		OGRESS	University of Iowa	Suborbital	X-Ray Astronomy	2 May	Successful
		Apogee: 272 kilometres (169 mi)
20 May 10:37	LGM-30G Minuteman III			VandenbergLF-09		US Air Force

			US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	20 May	Successful
		GT212GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ?
21 May 19:15	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		EVE	CU Boulder	Suborbital	SDO calibration	21 May	Launch failure
		Second stage failure, flight was terminated safety officials about four seconds into the second stage burn after data showed the vehicle was flying off-course. The payload carrying the experiment separated from the rocket and descended via parachute.
6 June	SM-3-IIA			San Nicolas Island		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	ABM test	6 June	Successful
		Maiden flight of SM-3 Block IIA Cooperative Development Controlled Test Vehicle-01 (SCD CTV-01)
25 June 10:00	Terrier-Improved Orion			Wallops Island		NASA

		RockOn	CU Boulder	Suborbital	Student experiments	25 June	Successful
		Apogee: 118 kilometres (73 mi)
26 June	ARAV ?			Kauai		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	ABM target	26 June	Launch failure
		Aegis radar target
30 June 04:55	VSB-30			Esrange		EuroLaunch

		MAPHEUS-5	DLR	Suborbital	Technology demonstration	30 June	Successful
		Apogee: 252 kilometres (157 mi)
7 July 10:15	Black Brant IX			Wallops Island		NASA

		SOAREX-8	NASA	Suborbital	Technology demonstration	7 July	Successful
		Apogee: 350 kilometres (220 mi)
29 July 08:30	ARAV ?		MMW E1	Kauai		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	ABM target	29 July	Successful
		Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi)?, Aegis MMW E1 target, successful intercept by SM-6 Dual I missile
30 July 06:15	ARAV ?		MMW E2	Kauai		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	ABM target	30 July	Successful
		Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi)?, Aegis MMW E2 target, successful intercept by SM-2 Block IV missile
12 August 10:14	Terrier-Improved Malemute			Wallops Island		NASA

		Rocksat-X	Various universities	Suborbital	Student Research	12 August	Successful
		Apogee: ~156km (97 miles).^[50]
19 August 10:03	LGM-30G Minuteman III			VandenbergLF-10		US Air Force

			US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	19 August	Successful
		GT213GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ?
22 August 15:13	RS-12M Topol			Kapustin Yar		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	22 August	Successful
27 August 17:45	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		MOSES-2	MSU	Suborbital	Solar astronomy	27 August	Successful
		Apogee: 185 miles (298 km)^[51]
3 September 17:01	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		CLASP	NASA /JAXA /IAC /IAS	Suborbital	Solar astronomy	3 September	Successful
		Apogee: 167 miles (269 km)^[52]
11 September 11:00:00	S-520			Uchinoura		JAXA

			HU/UT/TU/JAXA	Suborbital	Microgravity	11 September	Successful
		Apogee: 312 km^[53]
16 September 19:06	Black Brant XI			Andøya		NASA

		CARE II	NRL	Suborbital	Aeronomy	16 September	Successful
		Apogee: 299 kilometres (186 mi)
30 September 08:28	M51			Landes		DGA/Marine nationale

			DGA/Marine nationale	Suborbital	Test flight	30 September	Successful
		Apogee: 500 kilometres (310 mi), apparently launched from the land test pad, rather than from a submarine.
2 October 05:39:00	/ VSB-30/Improved Orion			Esrange		Swedish Space Corporation

		O-STATES 1	SNSB	Suborbital	Atmospheric Research	2 October	Successful
		Apogee: 246 kilometres (153 mi)
7 October 23:07:00	Black Brant IX			Wallops Island		NASA

		Technology Test Flight	NASA GSFC	Suborbital	Rocket motor test	7 October	Successful
		LEO-1	Orbital ATK	Suborbital	Materials Testing	7 October	Successful
		NNS	NASA	Suborbital	Materials Testing	7 October	Successful
		Apogee: 257.5 kilometers (160mi).^[54] Test flight of the new Black Brant Mk4 sustainer motor. Other payloads included a cloud of barium and strontium, which was deployed to test the rocket's payload ejection system and was visible for miles along the East Coast of the United States.
19 October 14:09:00	/ VSB-30/Improved Orion			Esrange		Swedish Space Corporation

		O-STATES 2	SNSB	Suborbital	Atmospheric Research	19 October	Successful
		Apogee: 244 kilometres (152 mi)
20 October	Terrier-Orion		ADS-15 E2	South Uist, Hebrides		MDA

			DOD	Suborbital	Target	20 October	Successful
		SM-3 Target, apogee: ~100 kilometres (62 mi)?
20 October	SM-3		ADS-15 E2	USS Ross (DDG-71), Hebrides Range		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	ABM test	20 October	Successful
		First Aegis-Test in the North Atlantic, successful intercept, apogee: ~100 kilometres (62 mi)?
21 October 12:45:00	LGM-30G Minuteman III			VandenbergLF-04		US Air Force

			US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	21 October	Successful
		GT216GM, Apogee: ~1,300 kilometres (810 mi) ?
28 October 11:30	RS-24 Yars			Plesetsk		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	28 October	Successful
30 October	RS-12M Topol			Plesetsk		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	30 October	Successful
30 October	R-29RMU Sineva			K-117Bryansk, Barents Sea		VMF

			VMF	Suborbital	Missile test	30 October	Successful
30 October	R-29R Volna			K-223Podolsk,Sea of Okhotsk		VMF

			VMF	Suborbital	Missile test	30 October	Successful
31 October 23:00 ?	B-611			Shuangchengzi		PLA

			PLA	Suborbital	ABM target	31 October	Successful
		Target
31 October 23:00 ?	SC-19			Korla		PLA

			PLA	Suborbital	ABM test	31 October	Successful
		Interceptor, successful intercept
1 November 03:05	SRALT		FTO-02 E2a	C-17, Pacific Ocean		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	THAAD target	1 November	Successful
		Apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi), successful intercepted
1 November 03:07	THAAD		FTO-02 E2a	Wake Island		US Army

			US Army/MDA	Suborbital	ABM test	1 November	Successful
		Intercepted target missile, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi)
1 November 03:10	eMRBM		FTO-02 E2a	C-17, Pacific Ocean		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	THAAD target	1 November	Successful
		Apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi), successful intercepted
1 November 03:12	THAAD		FTO-02 E2a	Wake Island		US Army

			US Army/MDA	Suborbital	ABM test	1 November	Successful
		Intercepted target missile, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi)
6 November 15:01	SpaceLoft XL			Spaceport America		UP Aerospace

		FOP-4	NASA	Suborbital	Fourtechnology demonstration experiments	6 November	Successful
		Mission SL-10, Apogee: 120.7 kilometers (74.98 miles). First private suborbital rocket to demonstrate ejection of recoverable payloads.^[55]
8 November 02:00	UGM-133 Trident II D5			USS Kentucky, Pacific Ocean		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	8 November	Successful
		Demonstration and Shakedown Operation 26 (DASO-26)
9 November 04:15	Agni-IV			Integrated Test Range		DRDO

			DRDO	Suborbital	Missile Test	9 November	Successful
		Apogee: ~850 kilometres (530 mi)?
9 November 20:00	UGM-133 Trident II D5			USS Kentucky, Pacific Ocean		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	9 November	Successful
		Demonstration and Shakedown Operation 26 (DASO-26)
14 November	RSM-56 Bulava			K-551Vladimir Monomakh, White Sea		VMF

			VMF	Suborbital	Missile test	14 November	Successful
14 November	RSM-56 Bulava			K-551Vladimir Monomakh, White Sea		VMF

			VMF	Suborbital	Missile test	14 November	Successful
		Missile did not hit its targets at the Kura test site. The warheads did reach the Kamchatka region, but the miss was fairly large, but that was still not significant enough to abort the flight
17 November 12:12	RS-12M Topol			Kapustin Yar		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	17 November	Successful
21 November	Ghadr-1			Semnan ?		IRGC

			IGRC	Suborbital	Missile test	21 November	Successful
		apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi)
23 November 17:21	New Shepard			Corn Ranch		Blue Origin

		New Shepard	Blue Origin	Suborbital	Test flight	23 November	Successful
		Apogee: 100.5 kilometres (62.4 mi). Second test flight of the New Shepard launch system, first to cross theKármán line, and first to achieve a powered landing of its propulsion stage.
25 November 04:17	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		PICTURE-B	UMass	Suborbital	Astronomy	25 November	Successful
		apogee: 217 kilometres (135 mi)
30 November 07:25	Talos Terrier Oriole Nihka			Andøya		NASA

		CAPER	Dartmouth College	Suborbital	Auroral research	30 November	Launch failure
		Third stage failure, payload recovered
1 December 05:00	VSB-30			Esrange		EuroLaunch

		MASER-13	SSC	Suborbital	Microgravity	1 December	Successful
		apogee: 270 kilometres (170 mi)
5 December 04:45	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		DXL-2	U of M	Suborbital	Astronomy	5 December	Successful
		apogee: 224 kilometres (139 mi)
8 December	SM-3-IIA			San Nicolas Island		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	ABM test	8 December	Successful
		Second flight of SM-3 Block IIA Cooperative Development Controlled Test Vehicle-02 (SCD CTV-02)
10 December 06:12	Silver Sparrow			F-15 Eagle,Israel		IAF

			IAI/IDF	Suborbital	ABM target	10 December	Successful
		Arrow-3 target, successfully intercepted, apogee: ~150 kilometres (93 mi)
10 December 06:15	Arrow III			Negev		IAF

			IAI/IDF	Suborbital	ABM Test	10 December	Successful
		First test of the Arrow-III against a target, successful intercept over the Mediterranean
10 December	SRALT		FTO-02 E1a	C-17, Pacific Ocean		MDA

			MDA	Suborbital	SM-3-IB target	10 December	Successful
		Apogee: 300 kilometres (190 mi), successful intercepted
10 December	SM-3-IB		FTO-02 E1a	Kauai		US Navy

			US Navy	Suborbital	ABM test	10 December	Successful
		First intercept flight test of a land-based Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) weapon system
10 December 13:55	Juno			Fort Wingate LC-96		US Army

			US Army	Suborbital	Target	10 December	Successful
		Target forMIM-104 Patriot PAC-3 MSE test, successfully intercepted
11 December	Shaheen-III			Sonmiani		ASFC

			ASFC	Suborbital	Missile test	11 December	Successful
		Apogee: 500 kilometres (310 mi)?
12 December	R-29RMU Sineva			K-51Verkhoturye,Barents Sea		VMF

			VMF	Suborbital	Missile test	12 December	Successful
13 December 04:32	Black Brant XIIA			Andøya		NASA

		RENU 2	New Hampshire	Suborbital	Geospace	13 December	Successful
		Apogee: 447 kilometres (278 mi)
15 December	Shaheen-IA			Sonmiani		ASFC

			ASFC	Suborbital	Missile test	15 December	Successful
18 December 06:52	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA

		FORTIS	JHU	Suborbital	UV Astronomy	18 December	Successful
		apogee: 282 kilometres (175 mi)
24 December 17:55	RS-12M Topol			Kapustin Yar		RVSN

			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	24 December	Successful

Deep space rendezvous

[edit]

Date (GMT)	Spacecraft	Event	Remarks
10 January	Chang'e 5-T1	Injection into Selenocentric orbit	Departed from Earth–MoonL2 on 4 January.
11 January^[56]	Cassini	109th flyby ofTitan	Closest approach: 970 kilometres (603 mi).
12 February	Cassini	110th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 1,200 kilometres (746 mi).
6 March^[57]	Dawn	Enters orbit ofCeres	1st visit to adwarf planet.
16 March	Cassini	111th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 2,275 kilometres (1,413 mi).
30 April	MESSENGER	Impact toMercury^[58]	The crash occurred on the side of the planet not visible from Earth.
7 May	Cassini	112th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 2,722 kilometres (1,691 mi).
16 June	Cassini	4th flyby ofDione	Closest approach: 516 kilometres (321 mi).
7 July	Cassini	113th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 10,953 kilometres (6,806 mi).
14 July	New Horizons	First flyby ofPluto andCharon	2nd visit to a dwarf planet. Closest approach: 12,500 km (7,800 mi).
17 August	Cassini	5th flyby of Dione	Closest approach: 474 kilometres (295 mi).
28 September	Cassini	114th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 1,036 kilometres (643 mi).
14 October	Cassini	Flyby ofEnceladus	Closest approach: 1,839 kilometres (1,142 mi).
28 October	Cassini	Flyby of Enceladus	Closest approach: 49 kilometres (30 mi).
12 November	Cassini	115th flyby of Titan	Closest approach: 11,920 kilometres (7,407 mi).
3 December^[59]	Hayabusa2	Flyby of Earth	Gravity assist
3 December^[60]	PROCYON	Flyby of Earth	Gravity assist en route to cancelled asteroid flyby.
4 December^[61]	Shin'en 2	Flyby of Earth	Gravity assist
7 December^[62]	Akatsuki	Venus orbit insertion	Akatsuki's 2nd flyby of Venus and 2nd (successful) attempt atorbit insertion.
19 December	Cassini	Flyby of Enceladus	Closest approach: 4,999 kilometres (3,106 mi).

Extra-Vehicular Activities (EVAs)

[edit]

Start Date/Time	Duration	End Time	Spacecraft	Crew	Remarks
21 February 12:45	6 hours 41 minutes	19:26	Expedition 42/43 ISSQuest	Barry E. Wilmore Terry W. Virts	Rigged and routed power and data cables at the forward end of theHarmony module as part of preparations for the installation of theInternational Docking Adapter atPMA-2.^[63]
25 February 11:51	6 hours 43 minutes	18:34	Expedition 42/43 ISSQuest	Barry E. Wilmore Terry W. Virts	Completed power and data cable routing at the forward end of the Harmony module. Removed launch locks from forward and aft berthing ports ofTranquility to prepare for relocation of thePermanent Multipurpose Module and the installation of theBigelow Expandable Activity Module. Lubricated end effector ofCanadarm2.^[64]^[65]
1 March 11:52	5 hours 38 minutes	17:30	Expedition 42/43 ISSQuest	Terry W. Virts Barry E. Wilmore	Finished cable routing, antenna and retro-reflector installation on both sides of the ISS truss and on other modules in preparation for the installation of theInternational Docking Adapter atPMA-2 and 3.^[66]^[67]
10 August 14:20	5 hours 31 minutes	19:51	Expedition 44/45 ISSPirs	Gennady Padalka Mikhail Korniyenko	Installed gap spanners on the hull of the station for facilitating movement of crew members on future spacewalks, cleaned windows of the Zvezda Service Module, install fasteners on communications antennas, replaced an aging docking antenna, photographed various locations and hardware on Zvezda and nearby modules, and retrieved a space environment experiment.^[68]^[69]
28 October 12:03	7 hours 16 minutes	19:19	Expedition 45 ISSQuest	Scott Kelly Kjell N. Lindgren	Prepared a Main Bus Switching Unit for repair, installed a thermal cover on theAlpha Magnetic Spectrometer, lubricated elements of theSpace Station Remote Manipulator System, and routed data and power cables to prepare for the installation of theInternational Docking Adaptor atPMA-2 and 3.^[70]
6 November 11:22	7 hours 48 minutes	19:10	Expedition 45 ISSQuest	Scott Kelly Kjell N. Lindgren	Worked to restore a portion of theISS's cooling system to its primary configuration, returning ammonia coolant levels to normal in the primary and backup radiator arrays.^[71]
21 December 13:45	3 hours 16 minutes	16:01	Expedition 46 ISSQuest	Scott Kelly Timothy Kopra	Released a brake on theMobile Servicing System to allow it to be properly stowed prior to the arrival of a visitingProgress vehicle. Routed cables in preparation for the installation of theNauka module and theInternational Docking Adapter, and retrieved tools from a toolbox.^[72]

Space debris events

[edit]

Date/Time (UTC)	Source object	Event type	Pieces tracked	Remarks
3 February 17:40^[73]	DMSP 5D-2/F13 (USA-109)	Satellite breakup	159^[74]	The breakup was most likely caused by a battery explosion.^[73]^[75] This satellite had beenlaunched in 1995. Another satellite from the same series,DMSP 5D-2/F11, had broken up in 2004.^[73] Debris are expected to remain in orbit for decades.^[76]
25 November 7:20^[77]	NOAA-16	Satellite breakup	275^[78]	As this weather satellite,launched in 2000, had a similar construction to theDMSP satellite which broke up in February 2015, the same cause is suspected (battery overheating and explosion).^[79]
22 December 16:00^[80]	Briz-M upper stage	Booster explosion	9^[80]	ABriz-M upper-stage booster, having subsisted ingeosynchronous transfer orbit since launching the CanadianNimiq 6 commsat in2012, was seen to have broken up into 9 pieces as of 26 January 2016. Orbital analysis of the debris allowed to time the explosion within one minute of 16:00UTC on 22 December 2015.^[80] Three other Briz-M upper stages had exploded earlier in 2007, 2010 and 2012.^[81]

Orbital launch statistics

[edit]

By country

[edit]

For the purposes of this section, the yearly tally of orbital launches by country assigns each flight to the country oforigin of the rocket, not to the launch services provider or the spaceport. For example,Soyuz launches by Arianespace in Kourou are counted under Russia becauseSoyuz-2 is a Russian rocket.

Country		Launches	Successes	Failures	Partial failures	Remarks
	China	19	19	0	0
	France	6	6	0	0
	Italy	3	3	0	0
	India	5	5	0	0
	Iran	1	1	0	0
	Japan	4	4	0	0
	Russia	27	24	2	1	Includes threeEuropean Soyuz launches fromKourou,French Guiana byArianespace
	Ukraine	2	2	0	0	Zenit and Dnepr rockets were launched from Russia and/or Kazakhstan
	United States	20	18	2	0
World		87	82	4	1

By rocket

By family

[edit]

Family	Country	Launches	Successes	Failures	Partial failures
Ariane	France	6	6	0	0
Atlas	United States	9	9	0	0
Delta	United States	3	3	0	0
Falcon	United States	7	6	1	0
GSLV	India	1	1	0	0
H-II	Japan	4	4	0	0
Long March	China	19	19	0	0
PSLV	India	4	4	0	0
R-7	Russia	17	15	1	1
R-36	Ukraine	1	1	0	0
Safir	Iran	1	1	0	0
Strypi	United States	1	0	1	0
Universal Rocket	Russia	10	9	1	0
Vega	Italy	3	3	0	0
Zenit	Ukraine	1	1	0	0

By type

[edit]

Rocket	Country	Family	Launches	Successes	Failures	Partial failures	Remarks
Ariane 5	France	Ariane	6	6	0	0
Atlas V	United States	Atlas	9	9	0	0
Delta II	United States	Delta	1	1	0	0
Delta IV	United States	Delta	2	2	0	0
Dnepr	Ukraine	R-36	1	1	0	0	Final flight
Falcon 9	United States	Falcon	7	6	1	0
GSLV	India	GSLV	1	1	0	0
H-IIA	Japan	H-II	3	3	0	0
H-IIB	Japan	H-II	1	1	0	0
Long March 2	China	Long March	4	4	0	0
Long March 3	China	Long March	9	9	0	0
Long March 4	China	Long March	4	4	0	0
Long March 6	China	Long March	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Long March 11	China	Long March	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Proton	Russia	Universal Rocket	8	7	1	0
PSLV	India	PSLV	4	4	0	0
Safir	Iran	Safir	1	1	0	0
Soyuz	Russia	R-7	7	7	0	0
Soyuz-2	Russia	R-7	10	8	1	1
Super Strypi	United States	Strypi	1	0	1	0	Maiden flight
UR-100	Russia	Universal Rocket	2	2	0	0
Vega	Italy	Vega	3	3	0	0
Zenit	Ukraine	Zenit	1	1	0	0

By configuration

[edit]

Rocket	Country	Type	Launches	Successes	Failures	Partial failures	Remarks
Ariane 5 ECA	France	Ariane 5	6	6	0	0
Atlas V 401	United States	Atlas V	4	4	0	0
Atlas V 421	United States	Atlas V	2	2	0	0
Atlas V 501	United States	Atlas V	1	1	0	0
Atlas V 551	United States	Atlas V	2	2	0	0
Delta II 7320	United States	Delta II	1	1	0	0
Delta IV Medium+ (4,2)	United States	Delta IV	1	1	0	0
Delta IV Medium+ (5,4)	United States	Delta IV	1	1	0	0
Dnepr	Ukraine	R-36	1	1	0	0	Final flight
Falcon 9 v1.1	United States	Falcon 9	6	5	1	0
Falcon 9 Full Thrust	United States	Falcon 9	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
GSLV Mk II	India	GSLV	1	1	0	0
H-IIA 202	Japan	H-IIA	2	2	0	0
H-IIA 204	Japan	H-IIA	1	1	0	0
H-IIB	Japan	H-IIB	1	1	0	0
Long March 2D	China	Long March 2	4	4	0	0
Long March 3B/E	China	Long March 3	7	7	0	0
Long March 3B /YZ-1	China	Long March 3	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Long March 3C/E /YZ-1	China	Long March 3	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Long March 4B	China	Long March 4	2	2	0	0
Long March 4C	China	Long March 4	2	2	0	0
Long March 6	China	Long March 5	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Long March 11	China	Long March 11	1	1	0	0	Maiden flight
Proton-M /Blok DM-03	Russia	Proton	1	1	0	0
Proton-M /Briz-M	Russia	Proton	7	6	1	0
PSLV-CA	India	PSLV	1	1	0	0
PSLV-XL	India	PSLV	3	3	0	0
Rokot /Briz-KM	Russia	UR-100	2	2	0	0
Safir-1B	Iran	Safir	1	1	0	0
Soyuz-2.1a	Russia	Soyuz-2	4	3	1	0
Soyuz-2.1b	Russia	Soyuz-2	1	1	0	0
Soyuz-2.1b /Fregat-M	Russia	Soyuz-2	1	1	0	0
Soyuz ST-B /Fregat-MT	Russia	Soyuz-2	3	3	0	0
Soyuz-2-1v /Volga	Russia	Soyuz-2	1	0	0	1
Soyuz-FG	Russia	Soyuz	4	4	0	0
Soyuz-U	Russia	Soyuz	3	3	0	0
Super Strypi	United States	Strypi	1	0	1	0	Maiden flight
Vega	Italy	Vega	3	3	0	0
Zenit-3F	Ukraine	Zenit	1	1	0	0

By spaceport

[edit]

China

France

India

Iran

Japan

Kazakhstan

Russia

United States

Site	Country	Launches	Successes	Failures	Partial failures
Baikonur	Kazakhstan	18	16	2	0
Barking Sands	United States	1	0	1	0
Cape Canaveral	United States	17	16	1	0
Dombarovsky	Russia	1	1	0	0
Kourou	France	12	12	0	0
Jiuquan	China	5	5	0	0
Plesetsk	Russia	7	6	0	1
Satish Dhawan	India	5	5	0	0
Semnan	Iran	1	1	0	0
Taiyuan	China	5	5	0	0
Tanegashima	Japan	4	4	0	0
Vandenberg	United States	2	2	0	0
Xichang	China	9	9	0	0
Total		87	82	4	1

By orbit

[edit]

Transatmospheric

Low Earth

Geosynchronous /transfer

Medium Earth

High Earth

Heliocentric orbit

Transatmospheric
Low Earth
Low Earth (ISS)
Low Earth (SSO)
Low Earth (retrograde)
Geosychronous
(transfer)
Medium Earth
High Earth
Heliocentric

Orbital regime	Launches	Achieved	Not achieved	Accidentally achieved	Remarks
Transatmospheric	1	1	0	0
Low Earth	45	42	2	1	14 to ISS (1 launch failure, 1 failure post-separation)
Geosynchronous/transfer	32	31	1	0
Medium Earth	7	7	0	0
High Earth	2	2	0	0
Total	87	83	3	1

Gallery

[edit]

Soyuz TMA-16M launches carryingISS year long mission crew membersScott Kelly andMikhail Korniyenko and Soyuz commanderGennady Padalka.
Photo of Ceres taken by the Dawn spacecraft at a distance of 13,600 km (8,500 mi).
First stage of theFalcon 9 Flight 20 rocket immediately before touching down atLanding Zone 1.
Scott Kelly working outside of the International Space Station

Notes

[edit]

^
Clockwise from top:
- The first eververtical landing of an orbital-class launch vehicle, during theFalcon 9's twentieth flight in December. The vehicle landed atCape Canaveral LZ-1.
- A close-up view of one of manyhigh albedo regions on the dwarf planetCeres spotted by theDawn spacecraft upon its arrival in March. Ceres was the second world to be visited byDawn after themain belt asteroid 4 Vesta.
- CommanderScott Kelly is pulled from theSoyuz TMA-MEridan following its landing in Kazakhstan in March. The landing signalled the conclusion of Kelly's andMikhail Kornienko'syear in space.
- A true colour view ofPluto, photographed by theNew Horizons spacecraft during its historic flyby in July. Launched in 2006, the spacecraft traversed a distance of nearly 5 billion kilometres (3.1 billion miles) before performing the first ever reconnaissance of aKuiper belt object (KBO).
^ The European experimental spaceplaneIXV was briefly in orbit but did not receive aCOSPAR catalog number.

References

[edit]

^@elonmusk (10 January 2015)."Rocket made it to drone spaceport ship, but landed hard. Close, but no cigar this time. Bodes well for the future tho" (Tweet). Retrieved4 April 2015 – viaTwitter.
^"Brazilian AESP-14 CubeSat was deployed from Kibo".JAXA. 5 February 2015. Retrieved17 September 2015.
^"Flock-1, -1b, -1c, -1d, -1d', -1e, -1f, -2, -2b, -2c, -2d, -2e".space.skyrocket.de. Retrieved17 September 2015.
^"FIREBIRD 3".N2YO.com. 2 August 2023. Retrieved2 December 2023.
^"FIREBIRD 4".N2YO.com. 2 August 2023. Retrieved2 December 2023.
^情報収集衛星レーダ予備機の運用終了について(PDF) (in Japanese). CSICE. 31 July 2024. Retrieved3 August 2024.
^Elon Musk at Twitter: "Ascent successful. Dragon enroute to Space Station. Rocket landed on droneship, but too hard for survival."
^"РОСКОСМОС: "ПРОГРЕСС М-27М" - ОПРЕДЕЛЕНА ПРИЧИНА АВАРИИ (ROSCOSMOS: "Progress M-27M" - cause of accident determined)" (in Russian).Roscosmos. 1 June 2015. Archived fromthe original on 11 June 2015. Retrieved1 June 2015.
^Hout, Dan (30 April 2015)."Progress 59 Update Apr. 30, 2015".NASA Blogs: Space Station.NASA.Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved16 May 2021.
^"Russian spacecraft Progress M-27M 'out of control'".BBC News. British Broadcasting Company. 29 April 2015. Retrieved30 April 2015.
^"РОСКОСМОС: НАЗВАНА ПРИЧИНА АВАРИИ РН "ПРОТОН-М" (ROSCOSMOS: Named cause of the accident "Proton-M")" (in Russian).Roscosmos. 29 May 2015. Archived fromthe original on 30 May 2015. Retrieved30 May 2015.
^Ray, Justin (7 May 2017)."X-37B spaceplane returns to Earth and makes autopilot landing in Florida".Spaceflight Now. Retrieved7 May 2017.
^"AEROCUBE 8A".N2YO.com. Retrieved27 October 2021.
^"AEROCUBE 8B - Norad 40660U".Satview. Retrieved8 October 2021.
^"CRS-7 INVESTIGATION UPDATE".SpaceX. 20 July 2015. Archived fromthe original on 26 March 2017. Retrieved28 July 2015.
^@planet4589 (27 June 2015)."Dragon also will carry eight @planetlabs Flock-1f imaging cubesats which will be stored on ISS for later deployment" (Tweet) – viaTwitter.
^"ISS Daily Summary Report – 10/7/15". NASA. 7 October 2015. Retrieved26 October 2015.
^"Stork Set to Make Special Space Station Delivery".NASA. 14 August 2015.
^"GomSpace - GOMX-3 mission completed and de-orbited according to plan"(PDF). 21 October 2016. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 20 December 2016. Retrieved8 December 2016.
^千葉工業大学惑星探査研究センター (in Japanese). 24 November 2016. Retrieved8 December 2016.
^"Brightman steps down from station flight".spaceflightnow.com. 13 May 2015.
^Jeff Foust (22 June 2015)."Kazakh Cosmonaut To Take Brightman's Place On Soyuz Flight".SpaceNews.com.
^ESA."Andreas Mogensen's mission name links cosmos and Earth". Retrieved22 June 2015.
^"NUDT-PHONESAT".N2YO.com. 29 March 2023. Retrieved31 March 2023.
^"XW-2A".N2YO.com. 25 April 2023. Retrieved15 January 2024.
^"TIANWANG 1A (TW-1A)".N2YO.com. 30 December 2022. Retrieved9 January 2023.
^"TIANWANG 1B (TW-1B)".N2YO.com. 31 March 2021. Retrieved27 October 2021.
^"TIANWANG 1C (TW-1C)".N2YO.com. 27 February 2021. Retrieved27 October 2021.
^Krebs, Gunter."Jilin-1 Smart Verfication [sic] Satellite".Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved10 January 2019.
^Krebs, Gunter."Jilin-1 Optical-A, B".Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved10 January 2019.
^^a ^bKrebs, Gunter."Jilin-1 Video-01, 02 (Lingqiao 1-01, 02)".Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved10 January 2019.
^Bergin, Chris; Graham, William (17 November 2015)."Soyuz 2-1B launches EKS-1 to upgrade Russian Early Warning System".NASASpaceflight.com.Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved16 May 2021.
^"Russia's 1st EKS Missile Warning Satellite enters surprising Orbit". 18 November 2015. Retrieved20 November 2015.
^"Новейший спутник Минобороны РФ вышел на связь и работает нормально РИА Новости". 17 November 2015. Retrieved17 November 2015.
^Clark, Stephen."China launches first satellite for Laos". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved27 November 2015.
^"Russian Military Satellite Suffers Launch Failure, Will Crash Soon".Space.com. 7 December 2015.
^"Russian Soyuz-2.1v launch a partial failure - SpaceFlight Insider".www.spaceflightinsider.com. 7 December 2015.
^"Private Cargo Spacecraft Gets New Rocket Ride After Accident". Space.com. 9 December 2014. Retrieved4 April 2015.
^"The Miniature X-ray Solar Spectrometer (MinXSS)".University of Colorado Boulder. Retrieved19 April 2018.
^"SIMPL".N2YO.com. 26 July 2022. Retrieved18 August 2022.
^"FLOCK 2E-8".N2YO.com. 25 July 2017. Retrieved20 October 2023.
^"FLOCK 2E-8".N2YO.com. 14 August 2018. Retrieved20 October 2023.
^"CADRE".N2YO.com. Retrieved19 August 2019.
^"MINXSS".N2YO.com. Retrieved19 August 2019.
^"NODES 2".N2YO.com. Retrieved19 August 2019.
^"STMSAT 1".N2YO.com. Retrieved19 August 2019.
^"Agni-V's maiden canister trial successful | Zee News". Zeenews.india.com. 31 January 2015. Retrieved4 April 2015.
^Podvig, Pavel (26 February 2015)."Flight test of a Project 4202 vehicle".Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces.
^^a ^b"The CNS North Korea Missile Test Database".Nuclear Threat Initiative. Retrieved17 January 2025.
^Black, Patrick (12 August 2015)."NASA Launches Student Experiments from Wallops". NASA.
^Frazier, Sarah (28 August 2015)."NASA-Funded MOSES-2 Sounding Rocket to Investigate Coronal Heating / Update". NASA. Retrieved18 September 2015.
^"NASA's 'CLASP' Mission Set to Gauge Upper Solar Chromosphere's Magnetic Field / Update - Sept. 4, 2015". 4 September 2015. Retrieved18 September 2015.
^観測ロケットS-520-30号機打上げ結果について (in Japanese). JAXA. 16 September 2015. Retrieved18 September 2015.
^Latrell, Joe (8 October 2015)."NASA Launches Student Experiments from Wallops". Spaceflight Insider.
^"Spaceport America's 24th Launch – an UP Aerospace SpaceLoft Rocket Demonstrated the Capability to Eject Separate Payloads Requiring Independent Re-entry". Spaceport America. 6 November 2015. Archived fromthe original on 16 January 2016. Retrieved14 November 2015.
^"Cassini Solstice Mission: Saturn Tour Dates: 2015".Cassini Solstice Mission. Archived fromthe original on 18 May 2015.
^"Dawn Spacecraft Begins Approach to Dwarf Planet Ceres". NASA. 29 December 2014.
^"From Mercury orbit, MESSENGER watches a lunar eclipse". Planetary Society. 10 October 2014.
^"Asteroid Explorer "Hayabusa2" Topics".JAXA. 2 November 2015.
^Emily Lakdawalla (13 April 2015)."PROCYON update: Asteroid 2000 DP107 target selected, ion engine stopped". The Planetary Society.
^"Keiichi Okuyama-Lab".Kyushu Institute of Technology.
^"Crippled space probe bound for second chance at Venus". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved21 November 2011.
^"First of Three Spacewalks Complete | Space Station". Blogs.nasa.gov. 21 February 2015. Retrieved4 April 2015.
^"Wilmore and Virts Begin Their Second Spacewalk". NASA. 25 February 2015. Retrieved25 February 2015.
^Pete Harding (25 February 2015)."EVA-30 concluded latest ISS commercial crew preparations". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved25 February 2015.
^"Spacewalkers Install C2V2 Cables". NASA. 1 March 2015. Retrieved1 March 2015.
^Chris Bergin (1 March 2015)."Spacewalkers install new comms system for future vehicles". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved1 March 2015.
^"Cosmonauts Complete Russian Spacewalk". NASA. 10 August 2015. Archived fromthe original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved11 August 2015.
^David Štula (10 August 2015)."RS-41: Cosmonaut duo complete the only Russian spacewalk of 2015". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved11 August 2015.
^"NASA Astronauts Complete Their First Spacewalk – Space Station".blogs.nasa.gov. Archived fromthe original on 2 June 2020. Retrieved29 October 2015.
^"Pair of NASA Astronauts Wrap Up Second Spacewalk – Space Station".blogs.nasa.gov. Archived fromthe original on 2 June 2020. Retrieved10 November 2015.
^"Astronauts Make Quick Work of Short Spacewalk – Space Station".blogs.nasa.gov. Archived fromthe original on 19 October 2019. Retrieved21 December 2015.
^^a ^b ^c"Recent Breakup of a DMSP Satellite"(PDF).Orbital Debris Quarterly News.19 (2).NASA. April 2015. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 3 May 2015. Retrieved8 February 2016.
^T.S. Kelso, CelesTrak (11 June 2015)."We have TLEs for 10 more pieces of debris from DMSP 5D-2 F13, which brings the total to 159 so far". Retrieved8 February 2016.
^Berger, Brian; Gruss, Mike (27 February 2015)."20-year-old Military Weather Satellite Apparently Exploded in Orbit".Space News. Retrieved28 February 2015.
^Gruss, Mike (6 May 2015)."DMSP-F13 Debris To Stay On Orbit for Decades".Space News. Retrieved7 May 2015.
^T.S. Kelso [@TSKelso] (5 December 2015)."Preliminary analysis of initial TLEs for NOAA 16 debris suggests an event time of 2015 Nov 25 @ ~0720 UTC" (Tweet). Retrieved8 February 2016 – viaTwitter.
^T.S. Kelso, CelesTrak [@TSKelso] (26 March 2016)."That brings the total so far for the NOAA 16 debris event to 275 pieces, with none having decayed from orbit" (Tweet). Retrieved28 March 2016 – viaTwitter.
^"NOAA Weather Satellite suffers in-orbit Breakup". 25 November 2015. Retrieved8 February 2016.
^^a ^b ^cJoint Space Operations Center [@JSpOC] (26 January 2016)."JSpOC confirms breakup of BREEZE-M R/B (#38343). Analysis shows it occurred Dec 22, 2015, 1600Z +/-1 min. 9 associated pieces. #38343Breakup" (Tweet). Retrieved28 March 2016 – viaTwitter.
^Clark, Stephen (24 October 2012)."Rocket explosion raises worries over space debris".Spaceflight Now. Retrieved28 March 2016.

External links

[edit]

Bergin, Chris."NASASpaceFlight.com".
Clark, Stephen."Spaceflight Now".
Kelso, T.S."Satellite Catalog (SATCAT)". CelesTrak.
Krebs, Gunter."Chronology of Space Launches".
Kyle, Ed."Space Launch Report". Archived fromthe original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved13 August 2022.
McDowell, Jonathan."GCAT Orbital Launch Log".
Pietrobon, Steven."Steven Pietrobon's Space Archive".
Wade, Mark."Encyclopedia Astronautica".
Webb, Brian."Southwest Space Archive".
Zak, Anatoly."Russian Space Web".
"ISS Calendar".Spaceflight 101.
"NSSDCA Master Catalog".NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive.NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
"Хроника освоения космоса" [Chronicle of space exploration].CosmoWorld (in Russian).
"Rocket Launch Manifest".Next Spaceflight.

Generic references:

Spaceflight portal

v t e Timeline of spaceflight
Spaceflight before 1951
1950s	1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
1960s	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
1970s	1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
1980s	1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
1990s	1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
2000s	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
2010s	2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
2020s	2020 2021 (H1,H2) 2022 (H1,H2) 2023 (H1,H2) 2024 (H1,H2) 2025 (H1,H2) 2026 2027 2028 2029
Future

v t e ← 2014 Orbital launches in2015 2016 →
January	SpaceX CRS-5 (Flock-1d' × 2,AESP-14) MUOS-3 SMAP,ExoCube
February	IGS-Radar Spare Inmarsat 5-F2 Fajr DSCOVR Progress M-26M Kosmos 2503 /Bars-M No. 1
March	ABS-3A,Eutelsat 115 West B WADIS-2 MMS Ekspress AM7 USA-260 /GPS IIF -9 KOMPSat-3A IGS-Optical 5 Soyuz TMA-16M Galileo FOC-3, FOC-4 IRNSS-1D BeiDou I1-S Gonets-M 11, 12, 13,Kosmos 2504
April	SpaceX CRS-6 (Arkyd-3R,Flock-1e × 14) Thor 7,SICRAL-2 TürkmenÄlem 52°E / MonacoSAT Progress M-27M
May	Mexsat-1 USA-261 /X-37 OTV-4,LightSail-1,USS Langley,BRICSat-P,ParkinsonSat,GEARRS-2,AeroCube 8A, 8B,OptiCube 1, 2, 3 DirecTV-15,SKY México-1
June	Kosmos 2505 /Kobalt-M №10 Sentinel-2A Kosmos 2506 /Persona №3 Gaofen 8 SpaceX CRS-7† (Flock-1f × 8†)
July	Progress M-28M UK-DMC 3 × 3,CBNT-1,DeOrbitSail USA-262 /GPS IIF -10 Star One C4,MSG-4 Soyuz TMA-17M USA-263 /WGS-7 BeiDou M1-S, M2-S
August	HTV-5 / Kounotori 5 (Flock-2b × 14) Eutelsat 8 West B,Intelsat 34 Yaogan 27 GSAT-6 / INSAT-4E Inmarsat 5-F3
September	Soyuz TMA-18M MUOS-4 Galileo FOC-5,Galileo FOC-6 TJS-1 Gaofen 9 Ekspress AM8 Kosmos 2507 /Strela-3M 13,Kosmos 2508 /Strela-3M 14,Kosmos 2509 /Strela-3M 15 Pujiang-1 Astrosat,LAPAN-A2,Lemur-2 × 4 BeiDou I2-S NBN-Co 1A,ARSAT-2
October	Progress M-29M Mexsat-2 Jilin-1 Smart Verification Satellite,Jilin-1 Optical-A,Jilin-1 Video-01,Jilin-1 Video-02 USA-264 /NOSS Intruder × 2,AMSAT Fox-1 APStar-9 Türksat 4B USA-265 /GPS IIF -11
November	Chinasat 2C HiakaSat,EDSN × 8,PrintSat,Argus,STACEM,Supernova-Beta Yaogan 28 Arabsat 6B,GSAT-15 Kosmos 2510 /EKS-1 / Tundra-11L LaoSat-1 Telstar 12V Yaogan 29
December	LISA Pathfinder Kosmos 2511 / Kanopus-ST†,Kosmos 2512 / KYuA-1 Cygnus CRS OA-4 (Flock-2e × 12,MinXSS 1,Nodes × 2) ChinaSat 1C Elektro-L No.2 Kosmos 2513 / Garpun-12L Soyuz TMA-19M TeLEOS-1 DAMPE Galileo FOC-8,Galileo FOC-9 Progress MS-01 Orbcomm-OG2 × 11 Ekspress-AMU1 Gaofen 4
Launches are separated by dots ( • ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( / ). Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the † sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in parentheses).

2015 in space

« 2014
2016 »

Space probe launches

Space probes	SMAP (weather satellite; Jan 2015) LISA Pathfinder (technology demonstration; Dec 2015)
Space observatories	DSCOVR (weather satellite; Feb 2015) Astrosat (space telescope; Sep 2015)