Launch
Payload Launch
2014 – India Launch, Payload
India conducted ## orbital launch attempts in 2014, all of which were successful. The vehicle used for ## of the launches was the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which deployed ## PNT satellites into inclined geosynchronous orbits, and ## French imagery satellite into polar orbit. The ## launch, which carried a communications satellite into geostationary orbit, used India’s bigger Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).
2014 – Japan Launch, Payload
Japan successfully conducted ## orbital launches in 2014, placing a variety of payloads into orbit for domestic customers. Japan’s launch rate continues its climb from a low of ## in 2012 and ## in 2013. For all of the launches in 2014, Japan’s vehicle of choice was the H-IIA, launching out of Tanegashima Space Center in Japan.
2014 – Europe Launch, Payload
Europe conducted ## orbital launch attempts in 2014, all of which were successful. Europe’s Ariane 5 heavy-lift vehicle carried most of the payloads, which deployed positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) satellites as well as the fifth Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), Georges Lemaitre, carrying cargo and fuel to the ISS.
2014 – China Launch, Payload
China’s 2014 rate of ## launch attempts surpassed its 2013 total by ##. China’s launch vehicle family of choice was the Long March, and all ## of China’s launches were successful as they deployed a variety of military and civil spacecraft. One of China’s newest launch vehicles was previously expected to undertake its first flight in 2014.
2014 – Russia Launch, Payload
Russia retained its position as the world’s most prolific orbital launch provider in 2014, a position it has maintained since 2004. Russia’s launch tempo in 2014 was the same as in 2013, with ## launch attempts, all of which were successful except for one Proton Space Launch Vehicle (SLV) with a Russian communications satellite aboard. Launch success does not always correspond to mission success, as in August 2014 when the Fregat upper stage of a Soyuz ST failed to position its two Galileo PNT satellites in the correct orbit. As of the end of 2014, the satellites’ operator, ESA, was still evaluating whether the satellites might be usable in altered orbits.
2014 – U.S. Launch, Payload
The United States attempted to launch ## rockets in 2014, all but ## of which were successful. United Launch Alliance (ULA) provided the majority of U.S. orbital launches in 2014. ULA launches deployed payloads for the military and civil government. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) awarded ULA three contracts in 2013, in which ULA would provide ## launch vehicle booster cores from 2013 through 2017.
2014 – Orbital Launch Reports and Forecasts
The table below shows each spacefaring nation’s space launch vehicle platforms active in the current year. Launch tracking and launch system information relies on various primary and government sources. The current year’s launch reliability shows the number of successful launches over the number of total launches for the year.
2013 – Suborbital Payload Launch
One of the pioneers of commercial suborbital flights, Armadillo Aerospace, announced that it was suspending operations in early August 2013 due to funding issues. Founded by noted video game designer John Carmack, Armadillo Aerospace steadily developed and tested a series of ever-improving vertical take-off, reusable rocket-powered vehicles.
2013 – Other Countries, Launch, Payload
South Korea conducted ## successful orbital launch in 2013. After suffering two previous launch failures of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV)-1, arguments arose between the Russian manufacturers of the vehicle’s first stage and the South Korean manufacturers of the second stage over the responsibility for the vehicle’s failures.
2013 – India Launch, Payload
India conducted ## successful orbital launches in 2013, all using its indigenously designed Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The ## flight, in February 2013, carried a French oceanography satellite along with a selection of microsatellites. The ## flight took place in July 2013, lofting an Indian navigation satellite into orbit.