1997 in spaceflight

This article outlines notable events occurring in 1997 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.

1997 in spaceflight

Launch of the Cassini and Huygens spacecraft on a Titan IVB
Orbital launches
First	12 January
Last	24 December
Total	89
Successes	83
Failures	3
Partial failures	3
Catalogued	86
National firsts
Satellite	Philippines
Rockets
Maiden flights	M-V Titan IVB VLS-1 Taepodong-1
Retirements	Atlas I
Crewed flights
Orbital	10
Total travellers	51
v t e

1997 in spaceflight

Timeline of spaceflight ← 1996 1998 →

Cassini–Huygens launch

This paragraph is an excerpt from Cassini–Huygens.[edit]

Launched aboard a Titan IVB/Centaur on October 15, 1997, Cassini was active in space for nearly 20 years, spending its final 13 years orbiting Saturn and studying the planet and its system after entering orbit on July 1, 2004.^[1]

Orbital launches

← Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec →

Date and time (UTC)	Rocket		Flight number	Launch site		LSP
		Payload (⚀ = CubeSat)	Operator	Orbit	Function	Decay (UTC)	Outcome
		Remarks
January
12 January 09:27	Space Shuttle Atlantis			Kennedy LC-39B		United Space Alliance
		STS-81	NASA	Low Earth (Mir)	Shuttle-Mir flight	22 January 14:23	Successful
		SpaceHab LDM	NASA/SpaceHab	Low Earth (Atlantis)	Logistics
		Crewed orbital flight with six astronauts
17 January 16:28	Delta II 7925-9.5			Cape Canaveral LC-17A		Boeing IDS
		GPS IIR-1	US Air Force	Intended: Medium Earth	Navigation	+12 seconds	Launch Failure
		SRB structural failure caused rocket to explode; First flight of GPS Block IIR satellite
30 January 22:04	Ariane 4 (44L)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		GE 2	GE Americom	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Nahuel 1A	Nahuelsa	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
February
10 February 14:09	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Soyuz TM-25	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Mir EO-23	14 August 12:17	Successful
		Crewed orbital flight with three cosmonauts
11 February 08:55	Space Shuttle Discovery			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-82	NASA	Low Earth (HST)	Hubble Servicing Mission 2	21 February 08:32	Successful
		Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts
12 February 04:50	M-V			Uchinoura		ISAS
		HALCA (MUSES-B)	ISAS	Medium Earth	Astronomy	In orbit	Successful
		Maiden flight of M-V; Mission concluded in November 2005
14 February 03:47	Tsyklon-3			Plesetsk Site 32
		Gonets-D1	Gonets SatCom	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Gonets-D1	Gonets SatCom	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Gonets-D1	Gonets SatCom	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Kosmos 2337 (Strela-3)	MO RF	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Kosmos 2338 (Strela-3)	MO RF	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Kosmos 2339 (Strela-3)	MO RF	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
17 February 01:42	Atlas IIAS			Cape Canaveral LC-36B		International Launch Services
		JCSAT-4	JSAT	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
23 February 20:20	Titan IVB (402)/IUS			Cape Canaveral LC-40		Lockheed Martin
		USA-130 (DSP F18)	US Air Force	Geosynchronous	Early warning	In orbit	Operational
		Maiden flight of Titan IVB
March
1 March 01:07	Ariane 4 (44P)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Intelsat 801	Intelsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
4 March 02:00	Start-1			Svobodniy Site 5
		Zeya	MO RF	Low Earth	Communications	25 October 1999	Successful
8 March 06:01	Atlas IIA			Cape Canaveral LC-36A		International Launch Services
		Tempo 2	TCI	Current: Graveyard Operational: Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Successful
		Suffered damage from a solar flare in April 1997 and was retired on 15 August 2006.
April
4 April 16:47	Titan 23G			Vandenberg SLC-4W		Lockheed Martin
		USA-131 (DMSP 5D2 F14)	US Air Force/NOAA	Sun-synchronous	Meteorology	In orbit	Successful
4 April 19:20	Space Shuttle Columbia			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-83	NASA	Low Earth	Microgravity research	8 April 18:33	Partial Failure
		Spacelab Long Module 1	NASA	Low Earth (Columbia)	Spacelab MSL-1
		EDO Pallet	NASA	Low Earth (Columbia)	Cryogenic mission extension pallet
		Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts Fuel cell failure caused the flight to be aborted. Re-flown as STS-94 later the same year.
6 April 16:04	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Progress M-34	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Logistics	2 July 06:31	Spacecraft failure
		Collided with Mir during rendezvous tests on 25 June, heavily damaging the station and permanently depressurizing the Spektr module.
9 April 08:58	Molniya-M			Plesetsk Site 16/2
		Kosmos 2340 (Oko)	MO RF	Molniya	Early warning	In orbit	Operational
16 April 23:08	Ariane 4 (44LP)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Thaicom 3	Thaicom	Geosynchronous	Communications	2 October 2006	Successful
		BSAT-1A	BSAT	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Thaicom 3 deorbited after suffering severe power degradation.[2]
17 April 13:03	Kosmos-3M			Plesetsk Site 132/1
		Kosmos 2341 (Parus)	MO RF	Low Earth	Navigation	In orbit	Operational
21 April 11:59	Pegasus-XL			Stargazer, Gando		Orbital Sciences
		Minisat-01	INTA	Low Earth	Technology development	26 February 2002	Successful
		Celestis Founders	Celestis	Low Earth	Space burial	20 May 2002	Successful
25 April 05:49	Atlas I			Cape Canaveral LC-36B		International Launch Services
		GOES 10 (GOES-K)	NOAA	Geosynchronous Graveyard (after retirement)	Meteorology	In orbit	Successful
		Final flight of Atlas I, satellite retired and boosted to graveyard orbit on 1 December 2009.[3]
May
5 May 14:55	Delta II (7920-10C)			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 8	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	24 November 2017[5]	Successful
		Iridium 7	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 6	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	23 December 2017[7]	Successful
		Iridium 5	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 4	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
11 May 16:17	Long March 3A			Xichang LC-2
		Zhongxing-6 (Chinasat-6)	Chinasat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
14 May 00:33	Molniya-M			Plesetsk Site 43/4
		Kosmos 2342 (Oko)	MO RF	Molniya	Early warning	In orbit	Operational
15 May 08:07	Space Shuttle Atlantis			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-84	NASA	Low Earth (Mir)	Shuttle-Mir flight	24 May 13:27	Successful
		SpaceHab LDM	NASA/SpaceHab	Low Earth (Atlantis)	Logistics
		Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts
15 May 12:10	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 31/6
		Kosmos 2343	MO RF	Low Earth	Reconnaissance	18 September	Successful
20 May 07:07	Zenit-2			Baikonur Site 45/1
		Tselina-2	VKS	Intended: Low Earth	ELINT	+ 48 seconds	Launch Failure
		Stage 1 engine failure
20 May 22:39	Delta II 7925-9.5			Cape Canaveral LC-17A		Boeing IDS
		Thor-2	Telenor	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
24 May 17:00	Proton-K/DM-2M			Baikonur Site 81/23		International Launch Services
		Telstar 5	Loral Skynet	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
June
3 June 23:20	Ariane 4 (44L)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Inmarsat 3F4	Inmarsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		INSAT 2D	ISRO	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Insat 2D declared a total loss on 4 October 1997.
6 June 16:56	Proton-K/DM-5			Baikonur Site 200/39
		Kosmos 2344 (Araks-N)	MO RF	Medium Earth	Reconnaissance	In orbit	Operational
10 June 12:01	Long March 3			Xichang LC-1
		Feng Yun 2A	CASC	Geosynchronous	Meteorology	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Halted transmitting data in April 1998, resumed transmission but imaging system failed later that year in September.
18 June 14:02	Proton-K/DM2			Baikonur Site 81/23
		Iridium 14	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 12	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	2 September 2018[9]	Successful
		Iridium 9	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	11 March 2003	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 10	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	6 October 2018[11]	Successful
		Iridium 13	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	29 April 2018[13]	Successful
		Iridium 16	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 11	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
25 June 23:44	Ariane 4 (44P)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Intelsat 802	Intelsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
July
1 July 18:02	Space Shuttle Columbia			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-94	NASA	Low Earth	Microgravity research	17 July 10:40	Successful
		Spacelab Long Module 1	NASA	Low Earth (Columbia)	Spacelab MSL-1
		EDO Pallet	NASA	Low Earth (Columbia)	Cryogenic mission extension pallet
		Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts, reflight of STS-83 Final flight of Spacelab Long Module 1
5 July 04:11	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Progress M-35	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Logistics	7 October 17:23	Successful
9 July 13:04	Delta II 7920-10C			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 15	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	14 October 2018[15]	Successful
		Iridium 17	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 20	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 18	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	19 August 2018[17]	Successful
		Iridium 21	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
23 July 03:42	Delta II 7925-9.5			Cape Canaveral LC-17A		Boeing IDS
		USA-132 (GPS IIR-2)	US Air Force	Medium Earth	Navigation	In orbit	Operational
28 July 01:15	Atlas IIAS			Cape Canaveral LC-36B		International Launch Services
		Superbird C	SCC	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
August
1 August 20:20	Pegasus-XL			Stargazer, Vandenberg		Orbital Sciences
		Orbview-2	GeoEye	Low Earth	Earth imaging	In orbit	Operational
5 August 15:35	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Soyuz TM-26	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Mir EO-24	19 February 1998 09:10	Successful
		Crewed orbital flight with two cosmonauts
7 August 14:41	Space Shuttle Discovery			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-85	NASA	Low Earth	Space sciences	19 August 11:08	Successful
		CRISTA-SPAS-2	DLR/NASA	Low Earth	Atmospheric research
		MFD	NASDA	Low Earth (Discovery)	Dextrous RMS demonstration
		Crewed orbital flight with six astronauts CRISTA-SPAS deployed 7 August and retrieved 16 August
8 August 06:46	Ariane 4 (44LP)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		PAS 6	PanAmSat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Spacecraft failure occurred in April 2004
14 August 20:49	Proton-K/DM-2			Baikonur Site 200/39
		Kosmos 2345 (Prognoz)	MO RF	Geosynchronous	Early warning	In orbit	Successful
		Retired on 1 January 1999
19 August 17:50	Long March 3B			Xichang LC-2
		Agila 2	MPSC	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
21 August 00:38	Delta II 7920-10C			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 26	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 25	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	14 May 2018[19]	Successful
		Iridium 24	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	11 May 2019[21]	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 23	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	28 March 2018[23]	Successful
		Iridium 22	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
23 August 06:51	LMLV-1 (Athena I)			Vandenberg SLC-6		Lockheed Martin
		Lewis	NASA	Low Earth	Earth observation	29 September	Spacecraft failure
		Control lost within three days of launch due to RCS design flaw.[24]
25 August 14:39	Delta II 7920-8			Cape Canaveral LC-17A		Boeing IDS
		ACE	NASA	Earth/Sun L1 point	Magnetospheric research	In orbit	Operational
28 August 00:33	Proton-K/DM-2M			Baikonur Site 81/23		International Launch Services
		PAS 5	PanAmSat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
29 August 15:02	Pegasus-XL			Stargazer, Vandenberg		Orbital Sciences
		FORTE	US Air Force	Low Earth	Ionosphere research	In orbit	Operational
September
1 September 14:00	Long March 2C			Taiyuan LC-1		CASC
		Iridium MFS-1	Iridium	Low Earth	Boilerplate spacecraft	In orbit	Successful
		Iridium MFS-2	Iridium	Low Earth	Boilerplate spacecraft	In orbit	Successful
2 September 22:21	Ariane 4 (44LP)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Hot Bird 3	Eutelsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Meteosat 7	Eumetsat	Geosynchronous	Meteorology	In orbit	Operational
4 September 12:03	Atlas IIAS			Cape Canaveral LC-36A		International Launch Services
		GE 3	GE Americom	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
14 September 01:36	Proton-K/17S40			Baikonur Site 81/23
		Iridium 29	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 32	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	10 March 2019[26]	Successful
		Iridium 33	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	10 February 2009	Partial Failure
		Iridium 27	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	1 February 2002	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 28	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 30	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	28 September 2017[28]	Successful
		Iridium 31	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	20 December 2018[30]	Successful
		Iridium 33 destroyed in collision with Kosmos 2251[31]
23 September 16:44	Kosmos-3M			Plesetsk Site 132/1
		Kosmos 2346 (Parus)	MO RF	Low Earth	Navigation	In orbit	Operational
		FAISAT-2V	FAI	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
23 September 23:58	Ariane 4 (42L)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Intelsat 803	Intelsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
24 September 21:30	Molniya-M			Plesetsk Site 43/4
		Molniya-1T	MO RF	Molniya	Communications	In orbit	Operational
26 September 02:34	Space Shuttle Atlantis			Kennedy LC-39A		United Space Alliance
		STS-86	NASA	Low Earth (Mir)	Shuttle-Mir flight	6 October 21:55	Successful
		SpaceHab LDM	NASA/SpaceHab	Low Earth (Atlantis)	Logistics
		Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts
27 September 01:23	Delta II 7920-10C			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 19	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	7 April 2018[33]	Successful
		Iridium 37	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	26 May 2018[35]	Successful
		Iridium 36	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 35	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	26 December 2018[37]	Successful
		Iridium 34	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	8 January 2018[39]	Successful
29 September 04:47	PSLV			Sriharikota FLP		ISRO
		IRS-1D	ISRO	Sun-synchronous	Remote sensing	In orbit	Operational
October
5 October 15:08	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Progress M-36	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Logistics	19 December 13:20	Successful
		Sputnik-40	Roskosmos	Low Earth	Amateur communications	21 May 1998	Successful
		X-Mir	DASA	Low Earth (Mir)	Inspect Mir	2 October 1998	Successful
5 October 21:01	Atlas IIAS			Cape Canaveral LC-36B		International Launch Services
		Echostar 3	EchoStar	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
9 October 17:59	Soyuz-U			Plesetsk Site 43/3
		Foton 11	Roskosmos	Low Earth	Microgravity research	23 October	Successful
15 October 08:43	Titan IVB (401)/Centaur			Cape Canaveral LC-40		Lockheed Martin
		Cassini	NASA	Kronocentric Orbit	Saturn orbiter	15 September 2017 10:31	Successful
		Huygens	NASA/ESA	Kronocentric Orbit	Titan lander	14 January 2005 12:43	Successful
		Cassini is the first spacecraft to orbit Saturn and Huygens is the first spacecraft to land on Titan. Huygens released from Cassini on 25 December 2004.
16 October 19:13	Long March 3B			Xichang LC-2
		Apstar 2R	APT	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
22 October 13:13	Pegasus-XL			Stargazer, Wallops Island		Orbital Sciences
		STEP-4	US Air Force	Low Earth		31 March 2001	Successful
24 October 02:32	Titan IVA (403)			Vandenberg SLC-4E		Lockheed Martin
		USA-133 (Lacrosse 3)	NRO	Low Earth	Reconnaissance	In orbit	Operational
25 October 00:46	Atlas IIA			Cape Canaveral LC-36A
		USA-135 (DSCS III F13)	US Air Force	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		FalconSat Gold	USAFA	Geosynchronous transfer	Technology demonstration	27 September 1998	Successful
30 October 13:43	Ariane 5G			Kourou ELA-3		Arianespace
		MAQSAT-H	ESA	Geosynchronous transfer	Boilerplate	In orbit	Successful
		MAQSAT-B	ESA	Geosynchronous transfer	Boilerplate	In orbit	Successful
		TEAMSAT	ESTEC	Geosynchronous transfer	Technology development	In orbit	Operational
		YES	ESTEC	Geosynchronous transfer	Technolovy development	In orbit	Operational
November
2 November 12:25	VLS-1		V01	Alcântara		INPE
		SCD-2A	INPE	Intended: Low Earth	Weather satellite	2 November	Launch Failure
		Maiden flight of VLS-1; First Brazilian orbital launch attempt
6 November 00:30	Delta II 7925-9.5			Cape Canaveral LC-17A		Boeing IDS
		USA-134 (GPS IIA-19)	US Air Force	Medium Earth	Navigation	In orbit	Operational
8 November 02:05	Titan IVA (401)/Centaur			Cape Canaveral LC-41		Lockheed Martin
		USA-136 (Trumpet 3)	NRO	Molniya	SIGINT	In orbit	Operational
		NRO Launch 4
9 November 01:34	Delta II 7920-10C			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 43	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	11 February 2018[41]	Successful
		Iridium 41	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	28 July 2018[43]	Successful
		Iridium 40	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	23 September 2018[45]	Successful
		Iridium 39	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 38	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
12 November 17:00	Proton-K/DM-2M			Baikonur Site 200/39
		Kupon	RFCB	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		Onboard computer failed
12 November 21:48	Ariane 4 (44L)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Sirius 2	NSAB	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
		IndoStar-1	Indostar	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Astra 5A (Sirius 2) failed on 16 January 2009
18 November 11:14	Soyuz-U			Plesetsk
		Resurs F-1M	Roskosmos	Low Earth	Remote sensing	13 December	Successful
19 November 19:46	Space Shuttle Columbia			Kennedy LC-39B		United Space Alliance
		STS-87	NASA	Low Earth	Microgravity experiments	5 December 12:20	Successful
		SPARTAN-201	NASA	Low Earth	Microgravity research		Failure
		EDO Pallet	NASA	Low Earth (Columbia)	Cryogenic mission extension pallet		Successful
		Crewed orbital flight with six astronauts Spartan failed to orient itself due to human error during deployment on 21 November; was retrieved on 25 November.
27 November 21:27	H-II			Tanegashima LA-Y1
		TRMM	NASA	Low Earth	Environmental research	16 June 2015 06:55[46]	Successful
		Hikoboshi (ETS-7)	NASDA	Low Earth	Docking test	13 November 2015[47]	Successful
		Orihime (ETS-7)	NASDA	Low Earth	Docking test	13 November 2015[47]	Successful
		The two ETS satellites docked on 7 July 1998[48]
December
2 December 22:52	Ariane 4 (44P)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		JCSAT 5	JSAT	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Equator-S	DLR	Geosynchronous transfer	Magnetospheric research	In orbit	Operational
12 November 17:00	Proton-K/DM-2M			Baikonur Site 81/23		International Launch Services
		Astra 1G	SES	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
8 December 07:16	Long March 2C			Taiyuan LC-1		CASC
		Iridium 42	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 44	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Spacecraft Failure
8 December 23:52	Atlas IIAS			Cape Canaveral LC-36B		International Launch Services
		Galaxy 8i	PanAmSat	Current: Graveyard Operational: Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Successful
		Retired in October 2002
9 December 07:17	Tsyklon-2			Baikonur Site 90/20
		Kosmos 2347 (EORSAT	MO RF	Low Earth	SIGINT	11 December 1999	Successful
15 December 15:40	Soyuz-U			Plesetsk
		Kosmos 2348 (Yantar)	MO RF	Low Earth	Reconnaissance	14 April 1998	Successful
20 December 08:45	Soyuz-U			Baikonur Site 1/5		Roskosmos
		Progress M-37	Roskosmos	Low Earth (Mir)	Logistics	15 March 1998 23:04	Successful
20 December 13:16	Delta II 7920-10C			Vandenberg SLC-2W		Boeing IDS
		Iridium 45	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 46	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Iridium 47	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	1 September 2018[50]	Successful
		Iridium 48	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	5 May 2001	Spacecraft Failure
		Iridium 49	Iridium	Low Earth	Communications	13 February 2018[52]	Successful
22 December 00:16	Ariane 4 (42L)			Kourou ELA-2		Arianespace
		Intelsat 804	Intelsat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Operational
23 December 19:11	Pegasus-XL/HAPS			Stargazer, Wallops Island		Orbital Sciences
		Orbcomm A1	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A2	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A3	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A4	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A5	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A6	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A7	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
		Orbcomm A8	Orbcomm	Low Earth	Communications	In orbit	Operational
24 December 13:32	Start-1			Svobodniy Site 5
		Early Bird 1	EarthWatch	Low Earth	Earth observation	27 July 2000	Successful
24 December 23:19	Proton-K/DM-2M			Baikonur Site 81/23		International Launch Services
		AsiaSat 3	AsiaSat	Geosynchronous	Communications	In orbit	Partial Launch Failure
		Upper stage failure; Performed lunar flyby to reduce orbital inclination and reach operational position.

← Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec →

Suborbital launches

← Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec →

Date and time (UTC)	Rocket		Flight number	Launch site		LSP
		Payload (⚀ = CubeSat)	Operator	Orbit	Function	Decay (UTC)	Outcome
		Remarks
January
15 January	R-29			Submarine, Barents Sea		Russian Navy
			Russian Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	15 January	Successful
17 January 01:17	LGM-30F Minuteman II			Vandenberg LF-03		US Air Force
		IFT-1 (EKV)	US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM target	17 January	Successful
29 January	Storm-2			White Sands LC-32		Orbital Sciences
		MTTV	US Air Force	Suborbital	Target spacecraft	29 January	Failure
		MTD-2	US Air Force	Suborbital	Weapons test
30 January	SR19			C-130, NAS Point Mugu		US Air Force
		AltAir (Have Gold)	US Air Force	Suborbital	Test flight	+28 seconds	Launch Failure
		Accidentally destroyed by range safety
30 January 07:30	S-520			Uchinoura Pad K		ISAS
			ISAS	Suborbital	Technology development	30 January	Successful
30 January 08:42	LGM-30G Minuteman III			Vandenberg LF-26		US Air Force
		FOT GT163GB	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile test	30 January	Successful
31 January 01:55	MR-12			Kapustin Yar		AN RF
		Flaksus-1	APL	Suborbital	Plasma research	31 January	Successful
February
5 February 02:16	MR-12			Kapustin Yar		AN RF
		Flaksus-2	APL	Suborbital	Plasma research	5 February	Successful
7 February	R-17 Scud			Bigen Island, Aur Atoll		US Air Force
		Willow Dune	US Air Force	Suborbital	Target	7 February	Successful
10 February 05:17	Black Brant XII			Poker Flat		NASA
		PHAZE 2	NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere research	10 February	Successful
10 February 06:30	Castor-Orbus			Nevada Test Site LA-26		Sandia
			Sandia	Suborbital	Rocket test	10 February	Successful
11 February 08:36	Black Brant XII			Poker Flat		NASA
		Auroral Turbulance 2	NASA	Suborbital	Auroral/Ionosphere research	11 February	Successful
12 February 21:00	LCLV			Wallops Island		Orbital Sciences
		MDT IV		Suborbital	Target	12 February	Successful
20 February	UGM-96 Trident I			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	20 February	Successful
20 February	UGM-96 Trident I			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	20 February	Successful
20 February	UGM-96 Trident I			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	20 February	Successful
20 February	UGM-96 Trident I			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	20 February	Successful
22 February	Castor 4B			Wake Island		Orbital Sciences
		TCMP II		Suborbital	Re-entry vehicle test	22 February	Successful
23 February	Prithvi			Balasore		DRDO
			DRDO	Suborbital	Missile test	23 February	Successful
23 February 10:06	LCLV			Wallops Island		Orbital Sciences
		MDT III		Suborbital	Target	23 February	Successful
26 February 20:00	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Rocket test	26 February	Successful
March
1 March	Castor 4B			Wake Island		OrbitalSciences
		TCMP II		Suborbital	Re-entry vehicle test	1 March	Successful
6 March	Hera			White Sands LC-94		US Air Force
			US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM Target	6 March	Successful
6 March	THAAD			White Sands		US Air Force
			US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM Interceptor	6 March	Successful
13 March 10:20	Black Brant IX			Poker Flat		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere research	13 March	Successful
18 March 00:16	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	18 March	Successful
18 March	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	18 March	Successful
19 March	R-17 Scud			Bigen Island, Aur Atoll		US Air Force
		Willow Dune	US Air Force	Suborbital	Target	19 March	Successful
25 March 03:15	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy	25 March	Successful
		Studied Hale-Bopp comet
30 March 03:25	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
		EUVS	NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy	30 March	Successful
April
6 April 03:25	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital		6 April	Successful
8 April 03:55	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
		WISP	NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy	8 April	Successful
17 April	R-36M			Baikonur		RVSN
			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	17 April	Successful
28 April 16:42	VS-30			Alcântara		INPE
		AL-VS30-223	DLR	Suborbital	Test rocket	28 April	Successful
30 April	RH-560/300 Mk.II			Sriharikota		ISRO
			ISRO	Suborbital	Test rocket	30 April	Successful
May
2 May 07:30	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	X-ray Astronomy	2 May	Successful
8 May 07:10	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Astronomy	8 May	Successful
8 May 08:01	LGM-118 Peacekeeper			Vandenberg LF-05		US Air Force
		9 re-entry vehicles	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile test	8 May	Successful
15 May 19:16	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
		NCAR/CU-6	NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy/Solar observation	15 May	Successful
21 May 08:27	LGM-30G Minuteman III			Vandenberg LF-04		US Air Force
		FOT GT164GM/SHARP	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile and re-entry vehicle test	21 May	Successful
23 May 21:44	Terrier-Orion			Wallops Island		NASA
		MSX	SMDC	Suborbital	Target	23 May	Successful
29 May 04:56	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Radio astronomy	29 May	Successful
30 May	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	30 May	Successful
June
10 June	UR-100NU			Baikonur		RVSN
			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	10 June	Successful
18 June 14:02	LGM-30G Minuteman III			Vandenberg LF-10		US Air Force
		FOT GT165GM	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile test	18 June	Successful
24 June 03:39	LGM-30F Minuteman II			Vandenberg LF-03		US Air Force
		MSLS IFT-1A	US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM target	24 June	Partial Failure
		Some decoys failed to deploy
24 June 04:00	Payload Launch Vehicle			Meck Island, Kwajalein		Orbital Sciences
		IFT-1A EKV	US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM Test	24 June	Partial Failure
		Poor system performance; Non-destructive flyby
July
8 July 12:25	RT-2PM Topol			Plesetsk Site 158		RVSN
			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	8 July	Successful
9 July	KSR-II			Anhueng		KARI
			KARI	Suborbital	X-ray astronomy/Ionosphere research	9 July	Successful
23 July	R-29			Submarine, Barents Sea		Russian Navy
			Russian Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	23 July	Successful
August
8 August 13:19	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	8 August	Successful
8 August 13:24	Terrier-Orion			Wallops Island		NASA
		COORS	NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere/Aeronomy research	8 August	Failure
8 August 16:29	Black Brant VC			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere/Aeronomy research	8 August	Successful
9 August 13:29	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	9 August	Successful
9 August 22:57	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	9 August	Successful
10 August 13:36	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	10 August	Successful
10 August 21:30	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	10 August	Successful
11 August 13:38	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	11 August	Successful
11 August 13:43	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	11 August	Successful
11 August 18:18	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy	11 August	Successful
11 August 21:34	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	11 August	Successful
12 August 12:10	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	12 August	Successful
12 August 12:15	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	12 August	Successful
12 August 12:26	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	12 August	Successful
12 August 21:41	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	12 August	Successful
13 August 13:50	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	13 August	Successful
13 August 13:55	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	13 August	Successful
13 August 21:40	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital		13 August	Successful
14 August 12:22	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	14 August	Successful
14 August 12:27	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	14 August	Successful
14 August 21:53	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	14 August	Successful
15 August 10:58	Viper			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	15 August	Successful
15 August 20:25	Super Loki			Wallops Island		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	15 August	Successful
September
2 September 07:00	Terrier-Orion			Anna Plains		NASA
		DUNDEE 1	NASA	Suborbital	Target	2 September	Successful
5 September 04:00	Terrier-Orion			Anna Plains		NASA
		DUNDEE 2	NASA	Suborbital	Target	5 September	Successful
10 September 02:00	Terrier-Orion			Anna Plains		NASA
		DUNDEE 3	NASA	Suborbital	Target	10 September	Successful
10 September 14:40	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Test rocket	10 September	Successful
10 September 15:10	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Microgravity research	10 September	Successful
11 September 20:15	Terrier-Orion			Anna Plains		NASA
		DUNDEE 4	NASA	Suborbital	Target	11 September	Successful
17 September 08:01	LGM-118 Peacekeeper			Vandenberg LF-05		US Air Force
		7 re-entry vehicles	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile test	17 September	Successful
19 September 13:00	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere research	19 September	Successful
24 September	Storm-2			White Sands LC-32		US Air Force
		MTTV-4	US Air Force	Suborbital	Target	24 September	Successful
25 September 00:30	TR-1			Tanegashima LA-T		NASDA
			NASDA	Suborbital	Microgravity research	25 September	Successful
30 September 20:10	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
		HRTS 10	NASA	Suborbital	Solar research	30 September	Successful
October
3 October 07:07	RT-2PM Topol			Plesetsk Site 158		RVSN
			RVSN	Suborbital	Missile test	3 October	Successful
4 October 18:30	Castor-Orbus			Nevada Test Site LA-26		Sandia
			Sandia	Suborbital	Test rocket	4 October	Failure
10 October	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		Royal Navy
			Royal Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	10 October	Successful
10 October	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		Royal Navy
			Royal Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	10 October	Successful
12 October 16:42	VS-30			Andøya		INPE
		AL-VS30-226	DLR	Suborbital	Aeronomy research	12 October	Successful
16 October 19:00	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Solar research	16 October	Successful
November
5 November 20:02	Terrier-Orion			Andøya		NASA
		Combined Sodium and Sporadic Layers	NASA	Suborbital	Ionosphere research	5 November	Successful
5 November 21:01	LGM-118 Peacekeeper			Vandenberg LF-02		US Air Force
		8 re-entry vehicles	US Air Force	Suborbital	Missile test	5 November	Successful
14 November 05:00	Black Brant IX			White Sands		NASA
		SCARI	NASA	Suborbital	Ultraviolet astronomy	14 November	Successful
17 November	Hera			Fort Wingate LC-96		US Air Force
		MTV	US Air Force	Suborbital	ABM Target	17 November	Failure
18 November 19:35	Black Brant IX			White Sands LC-36		NASA
		SERTS-97	NASA	Suborbital	Solar observation	18 November	Successful
19 November	RT-23			Nenoksa		RVSN
			Russian Navy	Suborbital	Test rocket	19 November	Failure
December
2 December 08:42	Black Brant IX			SvalRak		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Plasma research	2 December	Successful
3 December 09:06	Black Brant IX			SvalRak		NASA
			NASA	Suborbital	Plasma research	3 December	Successful
18 December	UGM-133 Trident II			Submarine, Eastern Range		US Navy
			US Navy	Suborbital	Missile test	18 December	Successful

← Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec →

Deep-space rendezvous

Date (GMT)	Spacecraft	Event	Remarks
20 February	Galileo	2nd flyby of Europa
5 April	Galileo	3rd flyby of Ganymede
7 May	Galileo	4th flyby of Ganymede
25 June	Galileo	2nd flyby of Callisto
27 June	NEAR	Flyby of 253 Mathilde	Closest approach: 1,200 kilometres (750 mi)
4 July	Mars Pathfinder	Landed on Mars	Location: Ares Vallis; first Mars rover and rover on another planet
11 September	Mars Global Surveyor	Areocentric orbit injection
17 September	Galileo	3rd flyby of Callisto
6 November	Galileo	3rd flyby of Europa
16 December	Galileo	4th flyby of Europa

EVAs

Start Date/Time	Duration	End Time	Spacecraft	Crew	Function	Remarks
14 February 04:34	6 hours 42 minutes	11:16	STS-82 Discovery	Mark C. Lee Steven Smith	Swapped out the Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph for the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer and replaced the Faint Object Spectrograph with the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. Stowed the GHRS and FOS for return to Earth in the payload bay.[53]	Hubble Space Telescope servicing
15 February 03:25	7 hours 27 minutes	10:52	STS-82 Discovery	Gregory J. Harbaugh Joseph R. Tanner	Replaced a Fine Guidance Sensor and an Engineering and Science Tape Recorder with spare replacement units. Also installed the Optical Control Electronics Enhancement Kit.[54]	Hubble Space Telescope servicing
16 February 02:53	7 hours 11 minutes	10:04	STS-82 Discovery	Mark C. Lee Steven Smith	Replaced a Data Interface Unit with a spare unit and replaced a reel-to-reel tape drive Engineering and Science Tape Recorder with a solid-state digital version. Also replaced one of the four Reaction Wheel Assembly units that help point the telescope at targets.[55]	Hubble Space Telescope servicing
17 February 03:45	6 hours 34 minutes	10:19	STS-82 Discovery	Gregory J. Harbaugh Joseph R. Tanner	Replaced the Solar Array Drive Electronics package with a spare, also replaced the covers of the satellite's magnetometers. Installed thermal blankets over areas of degraded insulation.[56]	Hubble Space Telescope servicing
18 February 03:15	5 hours 17 minutes	08:32	STS-82 Discovery	Mark C. Lee Steven Smith	Installed more thermal insulation on three more areas that had undergone degradation.[57]	Hubble Space Telescope servicing
29 April 05:10	4 hours 59 minutes	10:09	Mir EO-23 Kvant-2	Vasily Tsibliyev Jerry M. Linenger	Installed the Optical Properties Monitor on the exterior of Kristall. Used the Strela crane to move to the Kvant-2 module. At Kvant-2 they retrieved two American experiments, the Partial Impact Experiment and the Mir Sample Experiment, from the Kvant-2 hull, and installed the Benton Radiation Dosimeter on Kvant-2.[58]	First use of the new Orlan-M space suit.
22 August 11:14	3 hours 16 minutes	14:30	Mir EO-24 Transfer compartment of DOS-7	Anatoly Solovyev Pavel Vinogradov	Reconnected power cabling to the Spektr solar arrays, thus restoring part of the power lost in the collision. Although the spacewalkers were able to recover equipment and supplies from the module, they were not able to find the puncture hole.[59]	Internal EVA to inspect the damaged Spektr module
6 September 01:07	6 hours	07:07	Mir EO-24 Kvant-2	Anatoly Solovyev /Michael Foale	Solovyev rode the Strela crane operated by Foale on the base block to Spektr to inspect for damage. Although an extensive documentation and search of Spektr, he was unable to find the hole. Before he returned to the airlock, Foale collected the radiation dosimeter installed outside earlier.[60]	Foale became the first person to conduct EVAs in both American and Russian spacesuits.[61]
1 October 17:29	5 hours 1 minute	22:30	STS-86 Mir Atlantis	Scott E. Parazynski Vladimir Titov	Retrieved the four Mir Environmental Effects Packages from the docking module surface. Also installed the Solar Array Cap to the docking module, to be used to plug the hole in the Spektr module on a future EVA. To close out the EVA, the spacewalkers tested the Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue jet packs.[62]
20 October 09:40	6 hours 38 minutes	16:18	Mir EO-24 Transfer compartment of DOS-7	Anatoly Solovyev Pavel Vinogradov	Attempted to install three control cables between the solar array servo motors to the special adapter plate that seals Spektr from the rest of Mir. After cleaning up some of the debris and loose items in Spektr, Solovyev was able to connect the three cables to the servos. But even after an effort that extended into the "emergency oxygen supply" of the Orlan space suits, Solovyev was only able to connect two of the cables to the adapter plate.[63]	Internal EVA to repair the damaged Spektr module
3 November 03:32	6 hours 4 minutes	09:36	Mir EO-24 Kvant-2	Anatoly Solovyev Pavel Vinogradov	Released a minispunik (mini-satellite) into orbit. The spacewalkers then dismantled the old solar panel MSB-4 on Kvant-1. They stowed the panel on the outside of the base block.[64]
6 November 00:12	6 hours 12 minutes	06:24	Mir EO-24 Kvant-2	Anatoly Solovyev Pavel Vinogradov	Installed a new solar array on Kvant-1 to replace the panel removed on their previous spacewalk.[65]
25 November 00:02	7 hours 43 minutes	07:45	STS-87 Columbia	Winston E. Scott Takao Doi	Captured the Spartan satellite by hand and secured it in the payload bay. Then the spacewalking team set up and tested a crane that will be used to construct the International Space Station.[66]	Doi became the first Japanese spacewalker.
3 December 09:09	4 hours 59 minutes	14:09	STS-87 Columbia	Winston E. Scott Takao Doi	Conducted more testing and evaluation of the crane in the payload bay. They repeated many of the same crane motion tests with smaller objects than in the earlier EVA. During the EVA a small free-flying video camera was deployed to record the work.[67]