Orbital Payload Launch Archives

ESA Sending Heroic, Fictional Sheep Aboard Artemis I

NASA says its Artemis I flight set to launch as soon as late August will be an uncrewed lunar fly-by.

The Paris-based European Space Agency would beg to differ. Shaun is leaving the happy confines of Mossy Bottom Farm to lead the flight around the Moon, an agency press release announced.

2017 – U.S. Payload Launch – Snapshot

The U.S. share of global orbital launch activities continued to grow, from 26% in 2016 to 33% in 2017. In 2017, the nation’s launch service providers. . .

2017 – Iran launches Simorgh – Snapshot

In 2017, Iran was the only other nation to attempt an orbital launch. Iran conducted a single test launch of . . .

2017 – Europe Payload Launch – Snapshot

European launch activities in 2017 accounted for 11 SLV launch attempts, the same rate as the previous two years. Although launch numbers remained the same . . .

2017 – Russia Payload Launch – Snapshot

In 2017, Russia conducted 21% of global orbital launch attempts, a negligible increase from 20% in 2016. While its share of launch activities remained almost static, the country’s . . .

2017 – China Payload Launch – Snapshot

China’s share of global orbital launch activity fell from its 2016 high of 26% to 20% for 2017. The nation’s 18 launch attempts moved it down in global launch activity ranking from . . .

2017 – India Payload Launch – Snapshot

India’s global orbital launch activity share and launch rate both declined in 2017. The number of launch attempts by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) fell to . . .

2017 – Japan Payload Launch – Snapshot

Japanese orbital launch attempts set a new launch record for the nation in 2017. Japan attempted seven SLV launches, growing the nation’s global orbital launch activity share from…

2017 – Orbital Launch Reports and Forecasts

The orbital space launch industry continued to evolve during 2017. The overall 2017 global launch attempt number, 91, nearly matched the global space launch industry’s . . .

2016 – Orbital Launch Reports and Forecasts – Snapshot

After many years of conducting launch operations in more or less the same way, the orbital launch industry is experiencing substantial changes on some fronts. In December 2015, one U.S. company was the first to successfully conduct an orbital launch of satellites, then have the space launch vehicle’s (SLV’s) first stage return and land safely on the ground…