This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (July 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Space Shuttle Atlantis lands at the Shuttle Landing Facility on 21 July 2011, completing the final mission of the Space Shuttle programme. | |
Orbital launches | |
---|---|
First | 20 January |
Last | 28 December |
Total | 84 |
Successes | 78 |
Failures | 6 |
Catalogued | 80 |
National firsts | |
Satellite | Isle of Man |
Rockets | |
Maiden flights | Zenit-3F Long March 2F/G Atlas V 541 |
Retirements | Space Shuttle Delta II Heavy |
Crewed flights | |
Orbital | 7 |
Total travellers | 28 |
EVAs | 10 |
Timeline of spaceflight← 20102012 → |
Timeline of spaceflight | |
---|---|
1950s | |
1960s | |
1970s | |
1980s | |
1990s | |
2000s | |
2010s | |
2020s | |
The year 2011 saw a number of significant events in spaceflight, including the retirement of NASA's Space Shuttle after its final flight in July 2011, and the launch of China's first space station module, Tiangong-1, in September. A total of 84 orbital launches were conducted over the course of the year, of which 78 were successful. Russia, China and the United States conducted the majority of the year's orbital launches, with 35, 19 and 18 launches respectively; 2011 marked the first year that China conducted more successful launches than the United States. Seven crewed missions were launched into orbit during 2011, carrying a total of 28 astronauts to the International Space Station. Additionally, the Zenit-3F and Long March 2F/G carrier rockets made their maiden flights in 2011, while the Delta II Heavy made its last.
Overview of orbital spaceflight
A total of 84 orbital launches were attempted in 2011, with 78 being reported as successful; 80 launches reached orbit. 35 launches were conducted using Russian and former Soviet rockets, whilst China launched 19 rockets, and the United States launched 18. Europe conducted five launches, India and Japan launched three rockets each, and Iran conducted one launch.
Crewed launches
Seven crewed spaceflights – four Soyuz and three Space Shuttle missions – were launched in 2011, carrying a total of 28 astronauts and cosmonauts into orbit. At the beginning of the year, the Expedition 26 crew was aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The first crewed flight of 2011 was STS-133, the final flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery, which launched from the Kennedy Space Center on 24 February. STS-133 carried Leonardo, the final American pressurised module of the ISS, for installation. Discovery returned to Earth on 9 March.
On 16 March, Expedition 27 began aboard the ISS with the departure of the Soyuz TMA-01M spacecraft, which had been docked since October 2010. On 4 April, Soyuz TMA-21 launched to the space station, delivering a further three crewmembers. On 16 May, Space Shuttle Space Shuttle Endeavour launched to the station on its final mission, STS-134, delivering and installing the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, before returning to Earth on 1 June. Expedition 28 began aboard the ISS on 23 May with the departure of Soyuz TMA-20, which had been launched in December 2010, and landed in the early morning of 24 May. Three more crewmembers were launched to the space station aboard Soyuz TMA-02M on 7 June.
The final Space Shuttle mission, STS-135, began on 8 July with the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis, carrying supplies for the ISS aboard the Raffaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM). After resupplying the space station, Atlantis returned to Earth, landing at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility at 09:57 UTC on 21 July, and concluding thirty years of Space Shuttle operations. Two days before landing, Atlantis deployed PSSC-2, the last satellite to be launched from a Space Shuttle.
On 29 September, China launched its first space station module, Tiangong-1, which was placed into orbit by a Long March 2F/G carrier rocket flying from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre. Although no crewed missions to Tiangong-1 were conducted in 2011, the uncrewed Shenzhou 8 spacecraft, which was launched on 31 October, docked twice with the module to test its systems in preparation for a successful 2012 crewed docking.
ISS Expedition 28 ended, and Expedition 29 began, with the undocking of Soyuz TMA-21 on 16 September. The launch of Soyuz TMA-22 did not take place until 14 November, having been delayed by reliability concerns surrounding the Soyuz rocket after an uncrewed launch failure in August. A week later, Soyuz TMA-02M undocked, beginning Expedition 30, with the Soyuz spacecraft landing on 22 November. The final crewed launch of the year took place on 21 December, when Soyuz TMA-03M was launched to bring a further three crewmembers to the ISS.
Ten spacewalks were conducted in 2011, all of them by ISS or Space Shuttle astronauts. The final spacewalk by a Space Shuttle crew was conducted on 27 May, during the STS-134 mission.
Robotic exploration
Numerous scientific exploration missions were begun in 2011. In March 2011, the MESSENGER probe became the first artificial satellite of the planet Mercury. In July, the Dawn spacecraft became the first artificial satellite of the asteroid 4 Vesta. The Mars Science Laboratory – at the time, the largest Mars rover ever constructed – was launched in November, conducting a successful landing on Mars in August 2012.
Launch failures
Six orbital launches failed in 2011, four of which failed to achieve orbit and the remaining two reached lower orbits than expected. The first failure occurred on 1 February, when a Rokot with a Briz-KM upper stage placed Kosmos 2470 into a useless orbit, from which it could not recover. The failure was later traced to a software problem on the Briz-KM.
The next failure occurred on 4 March, when the payload fairing of a Taurus-XL failed to separate, resulting in the rocket being too heavy to reach orbit. The Glory climate research satellite was lost in the failure, along with the KySat-1, Hermes and Explorer-1 CubeSats. The previous Taurus-XL launch, carrying the Orbiting Carbon Observatory in February 2009, also failed due to the fairing not separating.
No more launch failures occurred until mid-August when, over the space of a week, three consecutive orbital launches failed. On 17 August, a Proton-M/Briz-M launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, carrying the Ekspress-AM4 communications satellite. In the morning of 18 August, the rocket's upper stage failed to conduct the fourth of five planned burns due to an attitude control system malfunction, leaving the spacecraft in a parking orbit. Later that same day, a Long March 2C launched from Jiuquan carrying the Shijian XI-04 satellite. The second stage vernier engine's mounting suffered a structural failure, resulting in a loss of control, and the rocket failed to reach orbit. Finally, on 24 August, a Soyuz-U carrying the Progress M-12M cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station suffered a third-stage engine failure and also failed to attain orbit.
The final launch failure of 2011 occurred on 23 December, when a Soyuz-2-1b/Fregat carrying the Meridian 5 satellite failed to achieve orbit due to a third-stage malfunction. Debris fell over Novosibirsk Oblast, with one piece hitting a house; however, no casualties were reported.
In November 2011, Russia's Fobos-Grunt Martian sample return probe launched successfully, but experienced a malfunction post-launch and became stranded in orbit. The spacecraft, which was Russia's first attempt at an interplanetary mission since the 1996 Mars 96 mission, disintegrated over the Pacific Ocean on 15 January 2012. China's first Mars probe, Yinghuo-1, which was being carried by the same rocket as Fobos-Grunt, was also lost in the incident.
Orbital launches
Suborbital flights
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) |
Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
22 January 06:10 |
Terrier-Oriole | Wallops Island | MDA | ||||
Aegis Radar Test | MDA | Suborbital | Radar target | 22 January | Successful | ||
Aegis Radar target, not intercepted, Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
28 January 10:46:00 |
Black Brant IX | Poker Flat | NASA | ||||
FIRE | Colorado | Suborbital | Astronomy | 28 January | Spacecraft failure | ||
5 February 08:11:11 |
Black Brant IX | Poker Flat | NASA | ||||
Polar NOx | VPI | Suborbital | Geospace | 5 February | Spacecraft failure | ||
February | Shahab-3 | IRGC | |||||
IGRC | Suborbital | Missile test | February | Successful | |||
Two missiles with a range of 1,900 kilometres were fired into the Indian Ocean prior to 19 February | |||||||
February | Sejjil-2 | IRGC | |||||
IGRC | Suborbital | Missile test | February | Successful | |||
Two missiles with a range of 1,900 kilometres were fired into the Indian Ocean prior to 19 February | |||||||
1 March 21:00 |
UGM-133 Trident II D5 | USS Nevada, Pacific Ocean | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 March | Successful | |||
Demonstration and Shakedown Operation 22 (DASO-22) | |||||||
2 March 13:40 |
Juno | Fort Wingate LC-96 | U.S. Army | ||||
U.S. Army | Suborbital | Target | 2 March | Successful | |||
Target for MIM-104 Patriot PAC-3 MSE test, successfully intercepted | |||||||
9 March | Terrier-Oriole | Kauai | MDA | ||||
ARAV-B | MDA | Suborbital | Radar target | 9 March | Successful | ||
Tracked by STSS satellites | |||||||
11 March | Dhanush | Sea launch from Indian Ocean | DRDO | ||||
DRDO | Suborbital | Target | 11 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
11 March | Prithvi II | Integrated Test Range IC-3 | DRDO | ||||
DRDO | Suborbital | Missile test | 11 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
15 March | Kavoshgar (Zelzal-based) | Semnan Space Center | ISA | ||||
Kavoshgar-4 | ISA | Suborbital | Test flight | 15 March | Successful | ||
Test of biological capsule. Apogee: 120 kilometres (75 mi) | |||||||
16 March | Terrier-Oriole | Kauai | MDA | ||||
ARAV-B | MDA | Suborbital | Radar target | 16 March | Successful | ||
Tracked by both STSS Demo satellites | |||||||
23 March 18:50:00 |
Black Brant IX | White Sands | NASA | ||||
EVE | CU Boulder | Suborbital | SDO calibration | 23 March | Successful | ||
29 March 04:01 |
VSB-30 | Esrange | EuroLaunch | ||||
TEXUS-49 | DLR/ESA | Suborbital | Microgravity | 29 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 268 kilometres (167 mi) | |||||||
15 April 06:52 |
UGM-96 Trident I C4 (LV-2) | FTM-15 | Meck | MDA | |||
MDA | Suborbital | ABM target | 15 April | Successful | |||
15 April 07:03 |
RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 | FTM-15 | USS O'Kane, Pacific Ocean | US Navy | |||
FTM-15 | US Navy | Suborbital | ABM test | 15 April | Successful | ||
First intercept of an IRBM by an SM-3 (FTM-15 Stellar Charon) | |||||||
26 April | R-29RMU Sineva | K-84 Ekaterinburg, Barents Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 26 April | Successful | |||
27 April 08:00:00 |
Black Brant IX | Poker Flat | NASA | ||||
WFF | Suborbital | Test flight | 27 April | Successful | |||
6 May 23:02 |
Tianying 3C | Hainan | CNSA | ||||
Kunpeng-1 | CSSAR | Suborbital | Environment monitoring | 23:09 | Successful | ||
Apogee: 196.6 kilometres (122.2 mi). | |||||||
11 May 18:00 |
Improved Orion | Barreira do Inferno | AEB | ||||
INPE | Suborbital | Microgravity | 11 May | Successful | |||
20 May 13:21 |
SpaceLoft XL | Spaceport America | UP Aerospace | ||||
Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 20 May | Successful | ||||
Goddard | Celestis | Suborbital | Space burial | Successful | |||
Apogee: 118.3 kilometres (73.5 mi), successfully recovered. | |||||||
20 May 14:50 |
R-29RMU2.1 Layner | K-84 Ekaterinburg, Barents Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 May | Successful | |||
Maiden flight of Layner missile | |||||||
10 June 11:11:16 |
Terrier-Orion | Wallops Island | NASA | ||||
SubTec IV | GSFC | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 10 June | Successful | ||
22 June 13:35 |
LGM-30G Minuteman III | Vandenberg LF-10 | U.S. Air Force | ||||
U.S. Air Force | Suborbital | Test flight | 22 June | Successful | |||
23 June 10:18:00 |
Terrier-Orion | Wallops Island | NASA | ||||
RockOn | Colorado | Suborbital | Student experiments | 23 June | Successful | ||
28 June 11:55 |
RSM-56 Bulava | K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy, White Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
28 June | Shahab-1 | Iran | IRGC | ||||
IGRC | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
Part of an exercise with 14 missile launches, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
28 June | Shahab-1 | Iran | IGRC | ||||
IRGC | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
Part of an exercise with 14 missile launches, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
28 June | Shahab-2 | Iran | IRGC | ||||
IRGC | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
Part of an exercise with 14 missile launches, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
28 June | Shahab-2 | Iran | IRGC | ||||
IRGC | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
Part of an exercise with 14 missile launches, apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
28 June | Ghadr-1 | Iran | IRGC | ||||
IRGC | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 June | Successful | |||
Part of an exercise with 14 missile launches, apogee: 500 kilometres (310 mi) | |||||||
9 July 02:04 |
SRALT | C-17, Pacific Ocean | MDA | ||||
FTX-17 | MDA | Suborbital | Radar target | 9 July | Successful | ||
Tracked by STSS Demo satellites | |||||||
9 July 09:00:00 |
Black Brant VB | Wallops LA-2 | NASA | ||||
Daytime Dynamo | NASA | Suborbital | Geospace | 9 July | Successful | ||
9 July 09:00:15 |
Terrier-Orion | Wallops LA-2 | NASA | ||||
Daytime Dynamo | NASA | Suborbital | Geospace | 9 July | Successful | ||
11 July 15:35 |
Gradicom II | Chamical | CITEFA | ||||
CITEFA | Suborbital | Test flight | 11 July | Successful | |||
Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi) | |||||||
21 July 07:00 |
Nike-Improved Orion | Esrange | EuroLaunch | ||||
PHOCUS | Stockholm/SSC | Suborbital | Atmospheric | 21 July | Successful | ||
21 July 11:58:00 |
Terrier-Orion | Wallops Island | NASA | ||||
RockSat-X | Wallops Flight Facility | Suborbital | Student experiments | 21 July | Successful | ||
27 July 10:01 |
LGM-30G Minuteman III | Vandenberg LF-04 | U.S. Air Force | ||||
U.S. Air Force | Suborbital | Test flight | 27 July | Launch failure | |||
An anomaly was detected five minutes after launch and the flight was terminated. | |||||||
27 July | R-29RMU Sineva | K-84 Ekaterinburg, Barents Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 27 July | Successful | |||
11 August 14:45 |
Minotaur IV Lite | Vandenberg SLC-8 | Orbital | ||||
HTV-2b | U.S. Air Force | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 11 August | Spacecraft failure | ||
Second flight of the HTV-2, loss of contact approximately 20 minutes after launch at Mach 20. | |||||||
27 August 03:20 |
RSM-56 Bulava | K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy, White Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 27 August | Successful | |||
1 September 13:53 |
Terrier-Oriole | FTM-16 E2 | Kauai | MDA | |||
MDA | Suborbital | ABM target | 1 September | Successful | |||
SM-3 Block 1B target | |||||||
1 September 13:54 |
RIM-161C SM-3 Block 1B | FTM-16 E2 | USS Lake Erie, Pacific Ocean | US Navy | |||
US Navy | Suborbital | ABM test | 1 September | Spacecraft failure | |||
First launch of SM-3 Block 1B, intercept failed | |||||||
3 September 09:46 |
RS-12M Topol | Plesetsk | RVSN | ||||
RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 September | Successful | |||
15 September | Kavoshgar (Zelzal-based) | Semnan | ISA | ||||
Kavoshgar-5 | ISA | Suborbital | Biological | 15 September | Launch failure | ||
First Iranian attempt to launch a monkey into space; failed, resulting in death of the monkey | |||||||
26 September 03:20 |
Prithvi II | Integrated Test Range IC-3 | DRDO | ||||
DRDO | Suborbital | Missile test | 27 September | Successful | |||
27 September 07:08 |
RS-26 Rubezh | Plesetsk | RVSN | ||||
RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 27 September | Launch failure | |||
29 September | R-29RMU2.1 Layner | K-114 Tula, Barents Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 30 September | Successful | |||
30 September 04:02 |
Agni-II | ITR IC-4 | Indian Army | ||||
Indian Army | Suborbital | Missile test | 30 September | Successful | |||
Travelled 2,500 kilometres (1,600 mi) downrange | |||||||
5 October 05:56 |
SRALT | FTT-12 | C-17, Pacific Ocean | MDA | |||
U.S. Army / MDA | Suborbital | ABM target | 5 October | Successful | |||
Intercepted by THAAD missile | |||||||
5 October 05:56 |
R-17 Elbrus | FTT-12 | MLP, Barking Sands | U.S. Army | |||
U.S. Army / MDA | Suborbital | ABM target | 5 October | Successful | |||
Intercepted by THAAD missile | |||||||
5 October 06:00 |
THAAD | FTT-12 | Barking Sands | U.S. Army | |||
U.S. Army / MDA | Suborbital | ABM test | 5 October | Successful | |||
Intercepted target missile | |||||||
5 October 06:00 |
THAAD | FTT-12 | Barking Sands | U.S. Army | |||
U.S. Army / MDA | Suborbital | ABM test | 5 October | Successful | |||
Intercepted target missile | |||||||
8 October 10:25:01 |
Black Brant IX | White Sands | NASA | ||||
PICTURE | Boston | Suborbital | Astronomy | 8 October | Spacecraft failure | ||
11 October 21:15:00 |
Terrier-Orion | Andøya | NASA | ||||
CHAMPS | Colorado | Suborbital | Geospace | 11 October | Successful | ||
13 October 13:50:00 |
Terrier-Orion | Andøya | NASA | ||||
CHAMPS | Colorado | Suborbital | Geospace | 13 October | Successful | ||
28 October 03:40 |
RSM-56 Bulava | K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy, White Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 October | Successful | |||
2 November 07:50 |
Jericho III | Palmachim | Israeli Air Force | ||||
Israeli Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 2 November | Successful | |||
3 November 06:45 |
RS-12M Topol | Plesetsk | RVSN | ||||
RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 November | Successful | |||
6 November 07:00 |
Black Brant IX | White Sands | NASA | ||||
XQC F5 | Wisconsin | Suborbital | Astronomy | 6 November | Successful | ||
15 November 03:30 |
Agni IV | Integrated Test Range IC-4 | DRDO | ||||
Indian Army | Suborbital | Missile test | 15 November | Successful | |||
17 November 11:30 |
UGM-27 Polaris (STARS) | Barking Sands LC-42 | U.S. Air Force | ||||
AHW Flight 1A | U.S. Army | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 17 November | Successful | ||
25 November 23:00 |
Improved Orion | Barreira do Inferno | AEB | ||||
INPE | Suborbital | Microgravity | 25 November | Successful | |||
27 November 09:10 |
VSB-30 | Esrange | EuroLaunch | ||||
/ TEXUS-48 | DLR/ESA | Suborbital | Microgravity | 27 November | Successful | ||
2 December 22:00 |
VS-30 | Barreira do Inferno | AEB | ||||
Brasil-Alemanha | INPE | Suborbital | Microgravity | 2 December | Successful | ||
3 December 07:21:31 |
VS-30/Improved Orion | Ny-Ålesund | Andøya | ||||
ICI-3 (CanoRock 4) | Oslo/Andøya | Suborbital | Atmospheric | 3 December | Successful | ||
10 December 10:30:00 |
Black Brant IX | White Sands | NASA | ||||
Colorado | Suborbital | Astronomy | 10 December | Successful | |||
19 December 14:48 |
S-310 | Uchinoura | JAXA | ||||
JAXA/TPU/TU | Suborbital | Ionospheric | 19 December | Successful | |||
19 December | MN-300 | Kapustin Yar | Roshydromet | ||||
MR-30 | Roshydromet | Suborbital | Meteorology Test flight |
19 December | Successful | ||
Maiden flight of MN-300 | |||||||
23 December | RSM-56 Bulava | K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy, White Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 December | Successful | |||
23 December | RSM-56 Bulava | K-535 Yuri Dolgorukiy, White Sea | VMF | ||||
VMF | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 December | Successful | |||
27 December 12:00 |
RS-18 UR-100N | Baikonur | RVSN | ||||
RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 27 December | Successful | |||
? | UGM-133 Trident II D5 | USS ?, Pacific Ocean | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | ? | Successful | |||
Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test 44 | |||||||
? | UGM-133 Trident II D5 | USS ?, Pacific Ocean | US Navy | ||||
US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | ? | Launch failure | |||
Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test 44 ? |
Deep space rendezvous
Date (UTC) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
9 January | Mars Express | Flyby of Phobos | Closest approach: 100 kilometres (62 mi). Mars Express made a total of 8 flybys of Phobos at a distance of less than 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) between 20 December and 16 January. |
9 January | Artemis P1 | Spacecraft left LL2 orbit and joined Artemis P2 in LL1 orbit | |
11 January | Cassini | 3rd flyby of Rhea | Closest approach: 76 kilometres (47 mi) |
15 February | Stardust (NExT) | Flyby of Tempel 1 | Closest approach: 181 kilometres (112 mi). Observed changes since Deep Impact flyby and imaged crater created by Deep Impact impactor, as well as new terrain. |
18 February | Cassini | 74th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 3,651 kilometres (2,269 mi) |
18 March | MESSENGER | Hermocentric orbit injection | First artificial satellite of Mercury; elliptical orbit with a periapsis of 200 kilometers (120 mi) and an apoapsis of 15,000 km (9,300 mi). |
19 April | Cassini | 75th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 10,053 kilometres (6,247 mi) |
8 May | Cassini | 76th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 1,873 kilometres (1,164 mi) |
8 June | Chang'e 2 | Departed lunar orbit | Travelled to L2 Lagrangian point, which it reached in August 2011. |
20 June | Cassini | 77th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 1,359 kilometres (844 mi) |
27 June | Artemis P1 | Lunar orbit insertion | Initial orbital parameters were: apogee 3,543 kilometres (2,202 mi), perigee 27,000 kilometres (17,000 mi). Over the following three months, the orbit was lowered to an apogee of 97 kilometres (60 mi) and a perigee of 18,000 kilometres (11,000 mi), with an inclination of 20 degrees; retrograde orbit. |
16 July | Dawn | Vestiocentric orbit injection | First artificial satellite of 4 Vesta. Initial orbit was 16,000 kilometres (9,900 mi) high and was reduced to 2,700 kilometres (1,700 mi) until 11 August. |
17 July | Artemis P2 | Lunar orbit insertion | Initial orbital parameters were similar to Artemis P1. Over the following three months the orbit was lowered to an apogee of 97 kilometres (60 mi) and a perigee of 18,000 kilometres (11,000 mi), with an inclination of 20 degrees; prograde orbit. |
25 August | Cassini | Second-closest flyby of Hyperion | Closest approach: 25,000 kilometres (16,000 mi) |
12 September | Cassini | 78th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 5,821 kilometres (3,617 mi) |
16 September | Cassini | Flyby of Hyperion | Closest approach: 58,000 kilometres (36,000 mi) |
1 October | Cassini | 14th flyby of Enceladus | Closest approach: 99 kilometres (62 mi) |
19 October | Cassini | 15th flyby of Enceladus | Closest approach: 1,231 kilometres (765 mi) |
6 November | Cassini | 16th flyby of Enceladus | Closest approach: 496 kilometres (308 mi) |
12 December | Cassini | 3rd flyby of Dione | Closest approach: 99 kilometres (62 mi) |
13 December | Cassini | 79th flyby of Titan | Closest approach: 3,586 kilometres (2,228 mi) |
31 December | GRAIL-A | Lunar orbit insertion | Twin satellite Grail-B's insertion occurred a day later, on 1 January 2012. |
EVAs
Start Date/Time | Duration | End Time | Spacecraft | Crew | Remarks | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
21 January 10:05 |
5 hours 23 minutes |
15:49 | Expedition 26 ISS Pirs |
Dmitri Kondratyev Oleg Skripochka |
Prepared the ISS Poisk module for future dockings. | |
16 February 13:15 |
6 hours 23 minutes |
18:15 | Expedition 26 ISS Pirs |
Dmitri Kondratyev Oleg Skripochka |
Installed a radio antenna, deployed a nanosatellite, installed two experiments and retrieved two exposure panels on a third experiment. | |
28 February 15:46 |
6 hours 34 minutes |
22:20 | STS-133 ISS Quest |
Stephen Bowen Alvin Drew |
Removed a failed coolant pump and routed a power extension cable. | |
2 March 15:41 |
6 hours 14 minutes |
21:55 | STS-133 ISS Quest |
Stephen Bowen Alvin Drew |
Removed or repaired thermal insulation, swapped out an attachment bracket on the Columbus module, installed a camera assembly on Dextre and installed a light on a cargo cart. | |
20 May 07:10 |
6 hours 19 minutes |
13:29 | STS-134 ISS Quest |
Andrew Feustel Gregory Chamitoff |
Completed installation of a new set of MISSE experiments, started installing a new wireless video system, installed an ammonia jumper, a new light on the CETA cart on the S3 truss segment, and a cover on the starboard SARJ. | |
22 May 06:05 |
8 hours 07 minutes |
14:12 | STS-134 ISS Quest |
Andrew Feustel Michael Fincke |
Hooked up a jumper to transfer ammonia to the Port 6 PVTCS, lubricated the SARJ and one of the "hands" on Dextre, and installed a stowage beam on the S1 truss. | |
25 May 05:43 |
6 hours 54 minutes |
12:37 | STS-134 ISS Quest |
Andrew Feustel Michael Fincke |
Installed PDGF (except for data cable), routed power cables from Unity to Zarya, finished installation of wireless video system, took pictures of Zarya's thrusters and captured infrared video of an experiment in ELC 3. | |
27 May 04:15 |
7 hours 24 minutes |
11:39 | STS-134 ISS Quest |
Gregory Chamitoff Mike Fincke |
Installed OBSS on S1 truss, removed the EFGF and replaced it with a spare PDGF, and released some torque on the bolts that were holding the spare arm for Dextre down against ELC 3. Final shuttle spacewalk. | |
12 July 13:22 |
6 hours 31 minutes |
19:53 | Expedition 28 ISS Quest |
Ronald Garan Michael Fossum |
Moved a failed cooling pump from the station to the shuttle Atlantis, transferred a robotic refuelling apparatus from the shuttle to the ISS, installed a materials science experiment on the station's truss, serviced a robot arm attachment fitting, installed a thermal cover over the unused docking port PMA-3, and fixed a protruding wire on a grapple fixture on the Zarya module. | |
3 August 14:51 |
6 hours 22 minutes |
21:22 | Expedition 28 ISS Pirs |
Sergei Volkov Aleksandr Samokutyayev |
Launched Kedr satellite, installed BIORISK experiment outside Pirs, and installed laser communication equipment to transmit scientific data from the Russian Orbital Segment. |
Orbital launch statistics
By country
For the purposes of this section, the yearly tally of orbital launches by country assigns each flight to the country of origin of the rocket, not to the launch services provider or the spaceport. For example, Soyuz launches by Arianespace in Kourou are counted under Russia because Soyuz-2 is a Russian rocket.
Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures |
Remarks | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
China | 19 | 18 | 1 | 0 | ||
Europe | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | ||
India | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
Iran | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
Russia | 29 | 25 | 4 | 0 | Includes two European Soyuz launches from Kourou, French Guiana by Arianespace. Fobos-Grunt launched successfully, but failed while on its parking orbit. | |
Ukraine | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | Includes one Zenit from Sea Launch and one from Land Launch. | |
United States | 18 | 17 | 1 | 0 | ||
World | 84 | 78 | 6 | 0 |
By rocket
5 10 15 20 Ariane Atlas Delta H-II Long March Minotaur PSLV R-7 Shuttle UR Zenit Others- Ariane 5
- Atlas V
- Delta II
- Delta IV
- Delta IV Heavy
- H-IIA
- H-IIB
- Long March 2
- Long March 3
- Long March 4
- Minotaur I
- Minotaur IV
- Taurus
- PSLV
- Soyuz-U
- Soyuz-FG
- Soyuz-2 (Russia)
- Soyuz ST (Europe)
- Space Shuttle
- Proton-K
- Proton-M
- Rokot
- Zenit-2M
- Zenit-3F
- Zenit-3SL/SLB
- Others
By family
Family | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariane | Europe | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas | United States | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta | United States | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
H-II | Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March | China | 19 | 18 | 1 | 0 | |
Minotaur | United States | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
PSLV | India | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
R-7 | Russia | 19 | 17 | 2 | 0 | |
R-36 | Ukraine | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Safir | Iran | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Space Shuttle | United States | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
Universal Rocket | Russia | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | |
Zenit | Ukraine | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
By type
Rocket | Country | Family | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariane 5 | Europe | Ariane | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V | United States | Atlas | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta II | United States | Delta | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta IV | United States | Delta | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Dnepr | Ukraine | R-36 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
H-IIA | Japan | H-II | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
H-IIB | Japan | H-II | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 2 | China | Long March | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | |
Long March 3 | China | Long March | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 4 | China | Long March | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Minotaur I | United States | Minotaur | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Minotaur IV | United States | Minotaur | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV | India | PSLV | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Proton | Russia | Universal Rocket | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | |
Safir | Iran | Safir | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz | Russia | R-7 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | |
Soyuz-2 | Russia | R-7 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | |
Space Shuttle | United States | Space Shuttle | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
UR-100 | Russia | Universal Rocket | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Taurus | United States | Minotaur | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Zenit | Ukraine | Zenit | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
By configuration
Rocket | Country | Type | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariane 5 ECA | Europe | Ariane 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Ariane 5 ES | Europe | Ariane 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V 401 | United States | Atlas V | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V 411 | United States | Atlas V | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V 501 | United States | Atlas V | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V 541 | United States | Atlas V | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V 551 | United States | Atlas V | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta II 7320 | United States | Delta II | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta II 7920 | United States | Delta II | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta II 7920H | United States | Delta II | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
Delta IV Medium+ (4,2) | United States | Delta IV | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta IV Heavy | United States | Delta IV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Dnepr | Ukraine | Dnepr | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
H-IIA 202 | Japan | H-IIA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
H-IIB | Japan | H-IIB | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 2C | China | Long March 2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
Long March 2D | China | Long March 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 2F | China | Long March 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 2F/G | China | Long March 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Maiden flight |
Long March 3A | China | Long March 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 3B | China | Long March 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 3C | China | Long March 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 4B | China | Long March 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Minotaur I | United States | Minotaur I | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Minotaur IV+ | United States | Minotaur IV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV-G | India | PSLV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV-CA | India | PSLV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV-XL | India | PSLV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Proton-M / Briz-M | Russia | Proton | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | |
Rokot / Briz-KM | Russia | UR-100 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Safir-B | Iran | Safir | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz-2.1a / Fregat-M | Russia | Soyuz-2 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz ST-A / Fregat | Russia | Soyuz-2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz-2.1b / Fregat-M | Russia | Soyuz-2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
Soyuz ST-B / Fregat-MT | Russia | Soyuz-2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz-FG | Russia | Soyuz | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz-U | Russia | Soyuz | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | |
Space Shuttle | United States | Space Shuttle | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
Taurus-XL | United States | Taurus | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Zenit-2M | Ukraine | Zenit | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Zenit-3F | Ukraine | Zenit | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Maiden flight |
Zenit-3SL | Ukraine | Zenit | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Zenit-3SLB | Ukraine | Zenit | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
By spaceport
5 10 15 20 25 30 China France India International waters Iran Japan Kazakhstan Russia United States- Jiuquan
- Taiyuan
- Xichang
- Kourou
- Satish Dhawan
- Ocean Odyssey
- Semnan
- Tanegashima
- Baikonur
- Dombarovsky
- Plesetsk
- Cape Canaveral
- Kennedy
- Kodiak
- MARS
- Vandenberg
Site | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baikonur | Kazakhstan | 25 | 23 | 2 | 0 | |
Cape Canaveral | United States | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
Dombarovsky | Russia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Kourou | France | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
Jiuquan | China | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | |
Kennedy Space Center | United States | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Kodiak | United States | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
MARS | United States | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Ocean Odyssey | International waters | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Plesetsk | Russia | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | |
Satish Dhawan | India | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Semnan | Iran | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Tanegashima | Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Taiyuan | China | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Vandenberg | United States | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | |
Xichang | China | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 84 | 78 | 6 | 0 |
By orbit
10 20 30 40 Transatmospheric Low Earth Medium Earth Geosynchronous / transfer High Earth Heliocentric- Transatmospheric
- Low Earth
- Low Earth (ISS)
- Low Earth (SSO)
- Low Earth (retrograde)
- Medium Earth
- Geosychronous
(transfer) - Inclined GSO
- High Earth
- Heliocentric
Orbital regime | Launches | Successes | Failures | Accidentally achieved |
Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Transatmospheric | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Low Earth | 44 | 40 | 4 | 0 | 14 to ISS, 1 to Tiangong-1 |
Medium Earth / Molniya | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | |
Geosynchronous / GTO | 27 | 26 | 1 | 1 | |
High Earth / Lunar transfer | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Heliocentric / Planetary transfer | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 84 | 78 | 6 | 1 |
See also
References
- 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 from the original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved 13 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.
- "Space Calendar". NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
- "Space Information Center". JAXA.
- "Хроника освоения космоса" [Chronicle of space exploration]. CosmoWorld (in Russian).
Spaceflight portal
Footnotes
- "China Now Tops U.S. in Space Launches". Wired. 16 April 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
- ^ "Nasa's Curiosity rover successfully lands on Mars". BBC. 6 August 2012.
- "Phobos-Grunt: Failed probe likely to return late Sunday". BBC. 15 January 2012.
- "Phobos-Grunt: Failed Russian Mars Probe Falls to Earth". ABC News. 15 January 2012.
- "Elektro-L". RussianSpaceWeb.com. 20 January 2011. Archived from the original on 30 November 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
- "Largest-Ever Rocket, With Secret Payload, Launched On West Coast". CBS Radio. 20 January 2011. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
- "United Launch Alliance Launches First West Coast Delta IV Heavy Mission". United Launch Alliance. Archived from the original on 9 June 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
- "Launch Result of H-IIB Launch Vehicle No. 2 with KOUNOTORI2 (HTV2) Onboard". JAXA. 22 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2011.
- "Japan's rocket delivering supplies". The Gazette. Tokyo. Associated Press. 23 January 2011. p. P6. Archived from the original on 20 May 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- "ARISSat-1/KEDR Amateur Radio Satellite Deorbits". Spacedaily.com. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- Военный спутник, запущенный на "Рокоте", скорее всего, утрачен (in Russian). RIA Novosti. 1 February 2011. Archived from the original on 4 February 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
- "GEO IK 2". N2YO.com. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- "Vandenberg launches Minotaur I". 30th Space Wing Public Affairs. Archived from the original on 19 February 2011. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
- "Mission Update – Ariane 5 opens a busy year of Arianespace missions with the milestone launch of another Automated Transfer Vehicle for Europe". Arianespace. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
- ^ Bergin, Chris (11 February 2009). "Downstream shuttle planning: CLFs, AMS noted, MAF working on extra ETs". NASASpaceFlight.com. Archived from the original on 16 February 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2009.
- "Спутник "Глонасс-К" вывели из состава орбитальной группировки" ["Glonass-K" satellite removed from orbital constellation]. TASS (in Russian). 12 November 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- "Preparations underway for X-37B landing" Archived 2 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Vandenberg.af.mil, 30 May 2012. Retrieved: 1 June 2012.
- "X-37B lands this morning at Vandenberg AFB". Santa Maria Times. 16 June 2012.
- "Launch Of New ISS mission Slated For April 5". Space-travel.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Plan of Russian space launches". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- ":::: United Launch Alliance, LLC ::::". Ulalaunch.com. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Calendar of Events: Indian PSLV-C16 Launch of Resourcesat-2, X-Sat, Youthsat | SpaceRef – Your Space Reference". SpaceRef. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "PSLV to be launched around April 10". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 6 March 2011. Archived from the original on 2 April 2011.
- "ISRO to launch PSLV-C16 with RESOURCESAT-2, two other satellites on Apr 20 | NetIndian". Netindian.in. 9 April 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Mission Update – Ariane 5 launch with Yahsat Y1A and Intelsat New Dawn: Launch countdown interrupted". Arianespace. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Final Countdown Is Underway For Second Ariane 5 Flight Of 2011". Space-travel.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Mission Update – Ariane 5's launch with Yahsat Y1A and Intelsat New Dawn is set for April 22". Arianespace. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "The Ariane 5 mission with Yahsat Y1A and Intelsat New Dawn is "go" for its March 30 liftoff". Arianespace. 28 March 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
- "Mission Update – Maintaining the pace: a second Ariane 5 arrives in French Guiana for launch in 2011". Arianespace. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
- "Russia launches fourth Meridian spacecraft". russianspaceweb.com. Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
- "Inquiry Finds Cable Clip to Blame For Telstar 14R Deployment Failure". SpaceNews.com. 19 August 2011. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Commercial Launch | Telstar 14R | Proton Rocket | Mission Control | International Launch Services". Ilslaunch.com. 21 May 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Mission Update – The upcoming Ariane 5 mission with GSAT-8 and ST-2 is given its "go" for launch". Arianespace. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Two Ariane 5 And One Soyuz Flights Are Now Being Prepared". Space-travel.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "Long March 3B launches with ChinaSat-10". NASASpaceFlight.com. 20 June 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
- Stephen Clark (27 June 2011). "Soyuz rocket lifts off with Russian spy satellite". spaceflightnow.com. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- "ORS 1 (USA 231)". N2YO.com. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- "Long March 2C launches Shi Jian-11 for China". NASASpaceFlight.com. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- "中国成功发射第二颗中继卫星"天链一号02星"——中新网". Chinanews.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "China launches new data relay satellite". Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
- "CORRECTING and REPLACING – UPDATE: Globalstar Satellites Now Scheduled for Launch on July 13th". Retrieved 12 July 2011.
- "Soyuz delivers six satellites for Globalstar's constellation on an Arianespace-Starsem mission from Baikonur Cosmodrome". Retrieved 13 July 2011.
- "Федеральное Космическое Агентство (Роскосмос)| Новости". Roscosmos.ru. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "China launches ninth orbiter for indigenous global navigation system". Xinhua News Agency. Archived from the original on 19 November 2011. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
- Barbosa, Rui (29 July 2011). "China make it two in a week via successful Shi Jian 11-02 launch". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
- Graham, William (5 August 2011). "ULA Atlas V launches NASA's Juno on a path to Jupiter". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
- "Mission Update – A weather-related postponement for the Ariane 5 launch with ASTRA 1N and BSAT-3c/JCSAT-110R". Arianespace. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "China debuts partnership with Pakistan – Long March launches Paksat-1R". NASASpaceFlight.com. 11 August 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "China's surge continues with HaiYang-2A launch via Long March 4B". NASASpaceFlight.com. 15 August 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Dnepr launches with Ukraine's Sich-2 and several passengers". NASASpaceFlight.com. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Express-AM4 Launch Failure Inter-Agency Commission Concludes Investigations". International Launch Services. 30 August 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
- "FAILURE: Russia's Ekspress-AM4 is lost as Proton-M Briz-M fails". NASASpaceFlight.com. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Malfunction at devices connection blamed for orbiter launch failures". Xinhua News Agency. 6 September 2011. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
- Barbosa, Rui (18 August 2011). "China's third launch in a week proves too much as Long March 2C fails". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
- Zak, Anatoly (7 October 2011). "Russian cargo ship fails to reach orbit". RussianSpaceWeb.com. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
- Harding, Pete (24 August 2011). "Russia's Progress M-12M launches toward ISS – fails to achieve orbit". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- "Nasa – Grail". Nasa.gov. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- ^ Graham, William; Bergin, Chris (17 December 2012). "GRAIL mission ends with Lunar impact and the honoring of a hero". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- "China return to flight with Long March 3B/E launch of ChinaSat-1A". NASASpaceFlight.com. 18 September 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
- 情報収集衛星光学4号機が運用終了. jwing.net (in Japanese). WING Aviation Press. 7 September 2018. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
- "China launches new communication satellite". News.xinhuanet.com. 19 September 2011. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- Chiles, Cody (1 April 2018). "JFSCC tracks Tiangong-1's reentry over the Pacific Ocean". Vandenberg Air Force Base (Press release). Retrieved 22 November 2019.
U.S. Strategic Command's (USSTRATCOM) Joint Force Space Component Command (JFSCC), through the Joint Space Operations Center (JSpOC), confirmed Tiangong-1 reentered the Earth's atmosphere over the southern Pacific Ocean at approximately 5:16 p.m. (PST) April 1, 2018.
- "SES'Quetzsat-1 Satellite Scheduled For Launch". Webwire.com. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "MEGHA-TROPIQUES: Announcement of Opportunity" (PDF). Indian Space Research Organisation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
- "MT1 Controlled Re-entry Successful and impacted on the Pacific Ocean". ISRO. 7 March 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
- "Europe launches two Galileo satellites". Bloomberg. 21 October 2011.
- "Europe's first Galileo satellites lift off". BBC. 21 October 2011.
- "Russian Proton-M launches three Glonass-M GPS satellites". NASASpaceFlight.com. 4 November 2011.
- "PolyU preparing for a Sino-Russian interplanetary space mission". Aviation & Aerospace. Domain-B. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
- "Launch of Phobos-Grunt". Anatoly Zak. RussianSpaceWeb.com. 13 November 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
- "China launches remote-sensing satellite". Xinhua News. 9 November 2011. Archived from the original on 12 November 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
- "TX 1". N2YO.com. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- "Russia delays next manned space flight to ISS". BBC. 29 August 2011. Retrieved 29 August 2011.
- "China sends two satellites into space". Xinhua News. 20 November 2011. Archived from the original on 22 November 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
- "China launches remote-sensing satellite Yaogan XIII". Xinhua News. 30 November 2011. Archived from the original on 3 December 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
- "China launches 10th satellite for independent navigation system". Xinhua news. 2 December 2011. Archived from the original on 5 December 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
- Rui C. Barbosa (19 December 2011). "Chinese Long March 3B/E launches NigComSat-1R". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- Harding, Pete (1 July 2012). "Soyuz TMA-03M undocks from ISS and returns to Earth". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
- ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "S: Suborbital launches (apogee 80+ km)". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ "Blue Book" (PDF). NASA Sounding Rockets Program Office. December 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- "GMS: Riding on a Sounding Rocket". Goddard Media Studios. NASA. 5 July 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
- "TEXUS 49 successfully launched". Swedish Space Corporation. 29 March 2011. Archived from the original on 2 May 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- "Sea-based Missile Defense Flight Test Results in Successful Intercept". Mda.mil. 15 April 2011. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "China launches rocket to monitor space environment". News.xinhuanet.com. 7 May 2011. Archived from the original on 10 May 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "科技网 -《科技日报》- "子午工程":天鹰送鲲鹏展翅太空". Stdaily.com. 8 May 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- "PHOCUS rocket successfully launched | 2011 | SSC". Ssc.se. 21 July 2011. Archived from the original on 17 September 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
- ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "A: Atmospheric launches (apogee 0–50 km)". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- "India Tests Nuclear Capable Missile « VOA Breaking News". Blogs.voanews.com. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Agni-II missile test-fired as part of user trial by Army". The Indian Express. 30 September 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- France, Agence. "India tests long-range nuclear-capable missile | Missiles & Bombs News at DefenceTalk". Defencetalk.com. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- "Start | DLR". dlr.de. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
- "Flew through the aurora: a successful flight over Svalbard with the ICI-3 research rocket". University of Oslo. 3 December 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2011.
- "Blue Book" (PDF). NASA Sounding Rockets Program Office. January 2012. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
- "S-310-40号機 打上げ結果について" (in Japanese). Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. 20 December 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- "2011 Saturn Tour Highlights". NASA. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
- Cowen, Ron (17 March 2011). "MESSENGER eases into Mercury's orbit". Science News. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- "Chang'e 2 reaches liberation point 2". Xinhua. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
- Amos, Jonathan (17 July 2011). "Dawn probe orbits asteroid Vesta". BBC.
- "Cassini Closes in on Saturn's Tumbling Moon Hyperion". nasa.gov. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- "Crew Completes First Expedition 22 Spacewalk". NASA. 15 January 2010. Archived from the original on 17 January 2010. Retrieved 15 January 2010.
- "Astronauts complete final shuttle space-walk at ISS". BBC News. 28 May 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
- "New attempt to contact Phobos-Grunt fails" Archived 4 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Voice of Russia. 2 December 2011.
Timeline of spaceflight | |
---|---|
1950s | |
1960s | |
1970s | |
1980s | |
1990s | |
2000s | |
2010s | |
2020s | |
2011 in space | ||
---|---|---|
2012 » | ||
Space probe launches |
| |
Selected NEOs | ||
Exoplanets |
| |
Discoveries | ||
Novae | ||
Comets | ||
Space exploration | ||
← 2010Orbital launches in 20112012 → | |
---|---|
January | |
February | |
March | |
April | |
May | |
June | |
July | |
August | |
September | |
October | |
November | |
December | |
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). |