Space exploration timeline

This is a timeline of space exploration , sorted by the start date of the spaceship or space probe . It contains:

• All spacecraft that have left Earth orbit with the aim of exploring the solar system, including spacecraft that have flown to the moon.
• A certain number of groundbreaking or particularly noteworthy spacecraft that did not leave Earth orbit (e.g. space telescopes).
• First manned spacecraft flights (refers to the first manned flight).

It does not contain :

• The majority of satellites in earth orbit.
• Spacecraft that have crashed before leaving Earth orbit.

The dates entered are start times, the described performances of the spacecraft can have taken place at significantly later times. (For example, the New Horizons spacecraft , which was launched on January 19, 2006, did not reach Pluto until 2015.)

1940s

First photo from space , taken from a height of approx. 105 km from a modified White Sands A4, October 24, 1946

1944

• MW 18014 - 20 June 1944 - the first artificial object that the boundary of the universe exceeds

1946

• V-2 No. October 13 - 24, 1946 - first photograph of the earth from space

1947

• V-2 No. 20 February 20, 1947 - - first living creature in space : rye and cotton seeds, fruit flies

1949

• V-2 No. 47 - June 14, 1949 - first mammal in space , the rhesus monkey Albert II

1950s

Sputnik 1 - the first artificial satellite

1957

• Sputnik 1 - October 4th, 1957 - first artificial satellite
• Sputnik 2 - November 3, 1957 - first living being in orbit , the dog Laika

1958

• Explorer 1 - February 1, 1958 - Earth satellite; first American satellite, discovered the Van Allen Belt
• Vanguard 1 - March 17, 1958 - Earth satellite; oldest satellite still in orbit

1959

• Luna 1 - January 2, 1959 - first flyby of the moon (destination: impact on the moon)
• Pioneer 4 - March 3, 1959 - Moon flyby
• Luna 2 - September 12, 1959 - first impact on the moon
• Luna 3 - October 4th, 1959 - Moon flyby; first photographs of the far side of the moon

1960s

Vostok 1 - first manned spaceship

1960

• Pioneer 5 - March 11, 1960 - Exploration of interplanetary space

1961

• Venera 1 - February 12, 1961 - Flyby of Venus (loss of contact before flyby)
• Vostok 1 - April 12, 1961 - first manned spacecraft , at the same time the first manned orbital flight

1962

Mariner 2 - first flyby of Venus

• Ranger 3 - Jan 26, 1962 - Attempted impact on the moon (missed the moon)
• Mercury Atlas 6 - February 20, 1962 - First orbital flight and first manned flight of the Mercury spacecraft
• Ranger 4 - April 23, 1962 - impact on the moon (hit the far side and did not send data)
• Mariner 2 - August 27, 1962 - first successful planetary mission , first successful flyby of Venus
• Ranger 5 - October 18, 1962 - Attempted impact on the moon (missed the moon)
• Mars 1 - November 1, 1962 - Mars flyby (loss of contact)

1963

• Luna 4 - April 2, 1963 - attempted moon landing (missed the moon)

1964

Mariner 4 - first flyby on Mars

• Ranger 6 - January 30, 1964 - Moon impact (camera malfunction)
• Zond 1 - April 2, 1964 - Flyby of Venus (loss of contact)
• Ranger 7 - July 28, 1964 - Impact on the moon
• Vozhod 1 - October 12, 1964 - First flight of the Vozhod spacecraft
• Mariner 4 - November 28, 1964 - first successful mission to Mars
• Zond 2 - November 30, 1964 - Mars flyby (loss of contact)

1965

• Ranger 8 - February 17, 1965 - impact on the moon
• Ranger 9 - March 21, 1965 - impact on the moon
• Gemini 3 - March 23, 1965 - First flight of the Gemini spacecraft
• Luna 5 - May 9, 1965 - impact on the moon (target: landing)
• Luna 6 - June 8, 1965 - planned moon landing (missed the moon)
• Zond 3 - July 18, 1965 - Moon flyby
• Luna 7 - October 4, 1965 - impact on the moon (destination: landing)
• Venera 2 - November 12, 1965 - Flyby of Venus (loss of contact)
• Venera 3 - November 16, 1965 - Venus landing (loss of contact); first contact with the ground on another planet , first impact on Venus
• Luna 8 - December 3, 1965 - impact on the moon (destination: landing)
• Pioneer 6 - December 16, 1965 - Observing space weather from a solar orbit

Luna 9 - first moon landing

1966

• Luna 9 - January 31, 1966 - first moon landing
• Luna 10 - March 31, 1966 - first lunar orbiter
• Surveyor 1 - May 30, 1966 - Surveyor lunar probe lunar lander
• Explorer 33 - July 1, 1966 - planned lunar orbit (missed lunar orbit)
• Lunar Orbiter 1 - August 10, 1966 - Lunar orbiter
• Pioneer 7 - August 17, 1966 - Observation of space weather from a solar orbit, investigation of Halley's Comet
• Luna 11 - August 24, 1966 - lunar orbiter
• Surveyor 2 - September 20, 1966 - Planned moon landing (impact on the moon)
• Luna 12 - October 22, 1966 - lunar orbiter
• Lunar Orbiter 2 - November 6, 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
• Luna 13 - December 21, 1966 - moon landing

Zond 5 - first flyby of the moon with return to earth

Apollo 8 - first manned lunar orbiter

1967

• Lunar Orbiter 3 - February 4, 1967 - Lunar orbiter
• Surveyor 3 - April 17th, 1967 - Lunar Lander
• Soyuz 1 - April 23, 1967 - First flight of the Soyuz spacecraft
• Lunar Orbiter 4 - May 8, 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
• Venera 4 - June 12, 1967 - first atmospheric Venus probe
• Mariner 5 - June 14, 1967 - Venus flyby
• Surveyor 4 - July 14, 1967 - Attempted moon landing (impact on the moon)
• Explorer 35 (IMP-E) - July 19, 1967 - lunar orbiter
• Lunar Orbiter 5 - August 1, 1967 - Lunar orbiter
• Surveyor 5 - September 8, 1967 - Moon landing
• Surveyor 6 - November 7, 1967 - Moon landing
• Pioneer 8 - December 13, 1967 - Observing space weather from a solar orbit

1968

• Surveyor 7 - January 7, 1968 - Moon landing
• Zond 4 - March 2, 1968 - Test flight
• Luna 14 - April 7, 1968 - Lunar Orbiter
• Zond 5 - September 15, 1968 - first flyby of the moon and return to earth
• Apollo 7 - October 11, 1968 - First manned flight of the Apollo spacecraft
• Pioneer 9 - November 8, 1968 - Observing space weather from a solar orbit
• Orbiting Astronomical Observatory 2 ("Stargazer") - December 7, 1968 - first space telescope (UV radiation)
• Zond 6 - November 10, 1968 - Fly by the moon and return to earth
• Apollo 8 - December 21, 1968 - first manned lunar orbiter

1969

Apollo 11 - first manned moon landing

• Venera 5 - January 5, 1969 - Venus atmospheric probe
• Venera 6 - January 10, 1969 - Venus atmospheric probe
• Mariner 6 - February 25, 1969 - Mars Flyby
• Apollo 9 - March 3, 1969 - first manned flight of the lunar module (test in earth orbit)
• Mariner 7 - March 27, 1969 - Mars flyby
• Apollo 10 - May 18, 1969 - manned lunar orbiter
• Luna 15 - July 13, 1969 - Planned sample return mission to the moon
• Apollo 11 - July 16, 1969 - first manned moon landing and first successful sample return mission
• Zond 7 - August 7, 1969 - Flyby the moon and return to earth
• Apollo 12 - November 14, 1969 - manned moon landing

1970s

1970

• Apollo 13 - April 11, 1970 - Manned Moon Flyby (Landing Canceled)
• Venera 7 - August 17, 1970 - first landing on Venus
• Luna 16 - September 12, 1970 - first unmanned sample return mission
• Zond 8 - October 20, 1970 - Flyby the moon and return to earth
• Luna 17 / Lunokhod 1 - November 10, 1970 - first moon rover
• Uhuru - December 12, 1970 - X-ray satellite , first complete X-ray survey of the sky

Mars 3 - first landing on Mars

1971

• Apollo 14 - January 31, 1971 - manned moon landing
• Salyut 1 - April 19, 1971 - First space station
• Mars 2 - May 19, 1971 - Mars orbiter attempting to land; first serve on Mars
• Mars 3 - May 28, 1971 - Mars orbiter; first landing on Mars (loss of contact after 14.5s) and first atmospheric Mars probe
• Mariner 9 - May 30, 1971 - first Mars orbit (reached orbit before Mars 2 and 3)
• Apollo 15 - July 26, 1971 - manned moon landing; first manned moon rover , first automobile trip on another celestial body
• Luna 18 - September 2, 1971 - planned return of samples from the moon (impact on the moon)
• Luna 19 - September 28, 1971 - lunar orbiter

Pioneer 10 - first flyby of Jupiter

1972

• Luna 20 - February 14, 1972 - Sample return mission to the moon
• Pioneer 10 - March 3rd, 1972 - First flyby of Jupiter
• Venera 8 - March 27, 1972 - Landing on Venus
• Apollo 16 - April 16, 1972 - manned moon landing
• Orbiting Astronomical Observatory 3 - August 21, 1972 - Space Telescope (UV / X-ray)
• Apollo 17 - December 7th 1972 - last manned moon landing

Mariner 10 - first flyby of Mercury

1973

• Luna 21 / Lunokhod 2 - January 8, 1973 - Moon Rover
• Pioneer 11 - April 5, 1973 - Jupiter flyby and first Saturn flyby
• Skylab - May 14, 1973 - First American space station
• Explorer 49 (RAE-B) - June 10, 1973 - Lunar Orbiter / Radio Astronomy
• Mars 4 - July 21, 1973 - Mars flyby (planned Mars orbiter)
• Mars 5 - July 25, 1973 - Mars orbiter
• Mars 6 - August 5, 1973 - Mars orbiter with planned landing (impact on Mars)
• Mars 7 - August 9, 1973 - Mars flyby with planned landing (missed Mars)
• Mariner 10 - November 4, 1973 - Flyby of Venus and first flyby of Mercury

1974

• Luna 22 - June 2, 1974 - lunar orbiter
• Salyut 3 - June 24, 1974 - Russian space station
• ANS - August 30, 1974 - Space Telescope (UV and X-rays), discovered extrasolar X-ray flashes
• Luna 23 - October 28, 1974 - Planned sample return mission to the moon (impact on the moon)
• Helios-A - December 10, 1974 - Exploring the Sun
• Salyut 4 - December 26, 1974 - Russian space station

1975

• Venera 9 - June 8, 1975 - first Venus orbiter and lander; first recordings of the surface of Venus
• Venera 10 - June 14, 1975 - Venus orbiters and lands
• COS-B - August 9, 1975 - Space Telescope (Gamma Radiation)
• Viking 1 - August 20, 1975 - Mars orbiter and lander; first successful Mars landing and first close-ups of the surface of Mars
• Viking 2 - September 9, 1975 - Mars orbiters and lander

1976

Voyager 2 - first flyby of Uranus and Neptune

• Helios-B - January 15, 1976 - exploration of the sun, closest approach to the sun (0.29 AU)
• Salyut 5 - June 22, 1976 - Russian space station
• Luna 24 - August 9, 1976 - sample return mission to the moon

1977

• HEAO-1 - August 12, 1977 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Voyager 2 - August 20, 1977 - Jupiter and Saturn flyby; first flyby of Uranus and Neptune
• Voyager 1 - September 5, 1977 - Jupiter and Saturn flyby; furthest man-made object , in January 2019 approx. 144.28 AU
• Salyut 6 - September 29, 1977 - Russian space station

1978

• International Ultraviolet Explorer - January 26, 1978 - Space Telescope (UV Radiation)
• Pioneer Venus 1 - May 20, 1978 - Venus Orbiter
• Pioneer Venus 2 - August 8, 1978 - Venus atmospheric probe
• ISEE-3 - August 12, 1978 - exploration of the solar wind ; then expanded Mission International Cometary Explorer with flyby of Comet 21P / Giacobini-Zinner and Comet Halley - first flyby of a comet
• Venera 11 - September 9, 1978 - Flyby and landing on Venus
• Venera 12 - September 14, 1978 - Flyby and landing on Venus
• HEAO-2 - November 13, 1978 - first high-resolution X-ray telescope

1980s

1981

• STS-1 - April 12, 1981 - Space Shuttle maiden flight
• Venera 13 - October 30, 1981 - Flyby and landing on Venus
• Venera 14 - November 4, 1981 - Flyby and landing on Venus

1983

• - Infrared Astronomical Satellite - January 23, 1983 - Space Telescope (infrared radiation)
• - Tenma (Astro-B) - space telescope (X-rays)
• Astron - March 23, 1983 - Space Telescope (UV and X-rays)
• Exosat - May 26, 1983 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Venera 15 - June 2, 1983 - Venus orbiter
• Venera 16 - June 7, 1983 - Venus orbiter

Giotto - Comet Halley flyby

1984

• Vega 1 - December 15, 1984 - flyby and landing on Venus, first Venus balloon ; extended mission to Comet Halley
• Vega 2 - December 21, 1984 - flyby and landing on Venus, Venus balloon; extended mission to Comet Halley

1985

• Sakigake - January 7, 1985 - Halley flyby
• Giotto - July 2, 1985 - Halley flyby
• Suisei (Planet-A) - August 18, 1985 - Halley flyby

Galileo - Mission to Jupiter

1986

• Mir - February 20, 1986 - first modular space station (completion 1996)

1987

• Ginga (Astro-C) - February 5, 1987 - Space Telescope (X-ray)

1988

• Phobos 1 - July 7, 1988 - planned Mars orbiter / Phobos country (loss of contact)
• Phobos 2 - July 12, 1988 - planned Mars orbiter / Phobos lander (loss of contact)

1989

• Magellan - May 4, 1989 - Venus orbiter
• Hipparcos - Aug 8, 1989 - Space Telescope
• Galileo - October 18, 1989 - Flyby of Venus, first flyby of an asteroid , discovery of the first double asteroid , first Jupiter orbiter and first Jupiter atmosphere probe
• Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) - November 18, 1989 - Background radiation exploration
• Granat - December 1, 1989 - X-ray observatory

1990s

Hubble Space Telescope

1990

• Hiten - Jan 24, 1990 - Lunar Orbiter
• - April 24, 1990 - Hubble Space Telescope
• Rosat - June 1, 1990 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Ulysses - October 6, 1990 - polar solar orbiter

1991

• Compton Gamma Ray Observatory - April 5, 1991 - Space Telescope (Gamma Rays)
• Yohkoh (Solar-A) - August 30, 1991 - Exploration of the sun

1992

• Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer - June 7, 1992 - Space Telescope (UV radiation)
• Mars Observer - September 25, 1992 - planned Mars orbit (loss of contact)

1993

• ASCA (Asuka, Astro-D) - February 20, 1993 - Space Telescope (X-ray)

1994

• Clementine - Jan 25, 1994 - Lunar Orbit (scheduled flyby of an asteroid)
• Wind - November 1, 1994 - Solar wind research

Mars Pathfinder - landing on Mars and the first Mars rover

1995

• Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) - November 17, 1995 - Space Telescope (infrared radiation)
• SOHO - December 2, 1995 - Exploring the sun
• Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer - December 30, 1995 - Space Telescope (X-rays)

1996

• Near Shoemaker - February 17, 1996 - Eros orbiter , first flyby of a near-Earth asteroid , first asteroid orbiter and first landing on an asteroid
• BeppoSAX - April 30, 1996 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Mars Global Surveyor - November 7, 1996 - Mars orbiter
• Mars Pathfinder - December 4, 1996 - Landing on Mars and first planetary rover

Cassini-Huygens - first Saturn orbiter and first landing on Titan

1997

• ACE - August 25, 1997 - Solar wind and space weather exploration from a solar orbit
• Cassini-Huygens - October 15, 1997 - first Saturn orbit and first landing on a moon of the outer planets
• Asiasat 3 December 24, 1997 - Moon flyby , first private flight to the moon

ISS

1998

• Lunar Prospector - January 7, 1998 - Lunar orbiter
• Nozomi - July 3, 1998 - planned Mars orbit (missed Mars orbit)
• Deep Space 1 - October 24, 1998 - Fly by an asteroid and a comet
• - November 20, 1998 - International Space Station
• Mars Climate Orbiter - December 11, 1998 - planned Mars orbiter (missed Mars orbit )

1999

• Mars Polar Lander / Deep Space 2 - January 3, 1999 - planned Mars landing / penetration (loss of contact)
• Stardust - February 7, 1999 - first comet return mission , returned January 15, 2006
• FUSE - June 24, 1999 - Space Telescope (UV radiation)
• Chandra - July 23, 1999 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• XMM-Newton - December 10, 1999 - Space Telescope (X-ray)

2000s

2001

• 2001 Mars Odyssey - April 7, 2001 - Mars orbiter
• Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) - June 30, 2001 - Background radiation research
• Genesis - August 8, 2001 - first samples of the solar wind

2002

• Rhessi - February 5, 2002 - Space telescope (X-rays and gamma rays from the sun)
• Integral - October 17, 2002 - Space Telescope (Gamma Radiation)

Mars Express / Beagle 2 - ESA's first planetary mission

2003

• Galaxy Evolution Explorer - April 28, 2003 - Space Telescope (UV radiation)
• Hayabusa (Muses-C) - May 9, 2003 - Asteroid lander and first sample return mission to an asteroid
• Mars Express / Beagle 2 - June 1, 2003 - Mars Orbiter / Lander (Landing Failed)
• Mars Exploration Rover - June 10th / 7th July 2003 - two Mars rovers ("Spirit" and "Opportunity")
• MOST - June 30, 2003 - Space Telescope
• Spitzer Space Telescope - August 25, 2003 - Space Telescope (Infrared Radiation)
• Smart-1 - September 27, 2003 - lunar orbiter
• Shenzhou 5 - October 15, 2003 - Shenzhou spaceship's first manned flight

Messenger - first Mercury orbiter

2004

• Rosetta / Philae - March 2, 2004 - first comet orbiter and first landing on a comet (landing in November 2014)
• SpaceShipOne - June 21, 2004 - first private space flight
• Messenger - August 3, 2004 - first Mercury orbiter
• Swift - November 20, 2004 - Research into gamma-ray bursts

2005

• Deep Impact - January 12, 2005 - first impact on a comet
• Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - Aug 12, 2005 - Mars Orbiter
• Astro-E2 - July 10, 2005 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Venus Express - November 9, 2005 - Venus Orbiter

New Horizons - first flyby of Pluto and Charon

2006

• New Horizons - January 19, 2006 - first flyby of Pluto , Charon, and a Kuiper belt object (Pluto flyby on July 14, 2015)
• Astro-F - February 21, 2006 - Space Telescope (infrared radiation)
• Hinode - September 22, 2006 - Solar orbiter
• Stereo - October 26, 2006 - two probes, solar orbiter
• Corot - December 2, 2006 - Space Telescope

2007

• Agile - April 23, 2007 - Research into gamma-ray bursts
• Phoenix - Aug 4, 2007 - Landing on Mars
• Kaguya - September 14, 2007 - Lunar Orbiters
• Dawn - September 27, 2007 - Orbiter around the dwarf planet Ceres and the asteroid Vesta
• Chang'e-1 - October 24, 2007 - Lunar orbit, first Chinese space probe and lunar probe

2008

• Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope - June 11, 2008 - Space Telescope (gamma rays)
• Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) - October 19, 2008 - Heli-hull observation instrument
• Chandrayaan-1 - October 22, 2008 - Lunar orbiter and impactor, first Indian spacecraft and lunar mission

2009

• Kepler - March 7, 2009 - Space Telescope (Search for extrasolar planets )
• Herschel Space Telescope - May 14, 2009 - Space Telescope (Infrared Radiation)
• Planck Space Telescope - May 14, 2009 - Space Telescope (research into background radiation)
• Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter / LCROSS - June 18, 2009 - Lunar orbiter and impactor
• Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer - December 14, 2009 - Space Telescope (Infrared Radiation)

2010s

2010

• Solar Dynamics Observatory - February 11, 2010 - Space Observatory (solar observation)
• Akatsuki - May 20, 2010 - Venus Orbit (entered orbit on second attempt in December 2015)
• Ikaros - May 20, 2010 - first interplanetary solar glider flight (to Venus)
• Picard - June 15, 2010 - Solar Research
• Chang'e-2 - October 1, 2010 - Lunar orbit, flyby of asteroid (4179) Toutatis

2011

Curiosity - Mars rover

• RadioAstron (Spektr-R) - July 18, 2011 - Space Telescope
• Juno - August 5, 2011 - Jupiter's orbiter
• Grail - September 10, 2011 - two lunar orbiters
• Tiangong 1 (Project 921-2) - September 29, 2011 - first Chinese space station
• Mars Science Laboratory with Curiosity Rover - November 26, 2011 - Mars Rover

2012

• NuStar - June 13, 2012 - Space Telescope (X-ray)

2013

Mangalyaan - first Indian Mars orbiter

• Iris - June 27, 2013 - Space Telescope (exploring the sun)
• Ladee - September 6, 2013 - Moon orbiter
• Hisaki - September 14, 2013 - Space Telescope (exploring planetary atmospheres)
• Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) - November 5, 2013 - Mars orbiter , first Indian mission to Mars
• Maven - November 18, 2013 - Mars orbiter
• Chang'e-3 - December 1, 2013 - first Chinese lunar lander, with a rover
• Gaia - December 19, 2013 - Space Telescope

2014

• Chang'e 5-T1 - October 23, 2014 - lunar orbiter with Earth re-entry capsule; Test flight for the Chang'e 5 mission
• Hayabusa 2 / MASCOT - December 3, 2014 - Landing and sample retrieval from the asteroid (162173) Ryugu
• Procyon - December 3, 2014 - Started with Hayabusa 2; Planned flyby of asteroid 185 851 _{2000 DP} (target not reached due to engine problem )

2015

• DSCOVR - February 11, 2015 - Solar Research
• Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission - March 13, 2015 - Research into the magnetic fields between the earth and the sun
• Astrosat - September 28, 2015 - Space Telescope (UV radiation)
• Dampe (Wukong) - December 17, 2015 - Space Telescope ( cosmic rays )

2016

• Hitomi - February 17, 2016 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter and Lander EDM "Schiaparelli" - March 14, 2016 - Mars orbiter and lander
• Osiris-Rex - September 8, 2016 - Sample return mission to the Bennu asteroid
• Tiangong 2 - September 15, 2016 - Chinese Space Station

2017

• Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (Huiyan) - June 15, 2017 - Space Telescope (X-ray)

2018

Parker Solar Probe - closest approach to the sun

• Tess - April 18, 2018 - Space Telescope (Search for extrasolar planets)
• InSight - May 5, 2018 - Landing on Mars, possibly the first record of seismic activity on Mars ("Mars quake")
• Mars Cube One - May 5, 2018 - two communication satellites for InSight, first interplanetary CubeSat deployment, flyby on Mars
• Queqiao - May 20, 2018 - Lunar orbiter, communications satellite for Chang'e-4
• Parker Solar Probe - August 12, 2018 - Solar orbiter, closest approach to the sun (0.04 AU )
• BepiColombo - October 20, 2018 - Mercury orbiter
• Chang'e 4 - December 7, 2018 - Moon landing with rover

2019

• Beresheet - February 22, 2019 - Planned moon landing (impact on the moon), first private spacecraft , first Israeli spacecraft and lunar mission
• Spektr-RG - July 13, 2019 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Chandrayaan-2 - July 22, 2019 - lunar orbiter and rover, planned moon landing (impact on the moon)
• Cheops - December 18, 2019 - Space Telescope (search for extrasolar planets)

2020s

2020

Mars helicopter

• Solar Orbiter - February 10, 2020 - Solar Orbiter , Solar Research
• SpX-DM2 - May 30, 2020 - First manned flight of the Crew Dragon spacecraft
• al-Amal - July 19, 2020 - Mars orbit, first spacecraft and mission to Mars of the United Arab Emirates
• Tianwen-1 - July 23 - Mars orbiters, landers and rovers, search for water on Mars
• Mars 2020 Rover Mission - July 30, 2020 - Mars Rover ; planned first helicopter flight on another celestial body

Scheduled missions

2020

Landing of a New Shepard

• Chang'e 5 - December 2020 - sample return mission to the moon
• Gecam - late 2020 - two satellites with gamma flash detectors
• (private) 2020 at the earliest - New Shepard's first manned flight
• Aditya-L1 - by the end of 2020 at the earliest - solar observatory at the L1 point of the earth's orbit

2021

James Webb Space Telescope

• Boe-CFT - first manned flight of the CST-100 Starliner spacecraft
• IXPE - May 2021 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Chandrayaan-3 - 1st half of 2021 - moon lander with rover
• James Webb Space Telescope - approx. Mid-2021 - Infrared space telescope with 6.5 m mirror
• Peregrine Mission One - July 2021 - CLPS moonlander with rover
• Dart - July 2021 to February 2022 - Impact on one of the asteroids (65803) Didymos to deflect the orbits of both asteroids, planned first asteroid deflection mission
• IM-1 - October 2021 - Landing of the CLPS moon lander "Nova-C" in Oceanus Procellarum
• Luna 25 - October 2021 - Lunar Lander, South Pole Region
• Lucy - November 2021 - Flyby of various asteroids belonging to the Jupiter Trojans group
• SVOM - 4th Quarter 2021 - Investigation of gamma-ray flashes
• (private) Genesis - 4th quarter 2021 - Mondlander, Beresheet successor
• Artemis 1 - 4th quarter 2021 - unmanned orbit around the moon with the Orion spacecraft; Deployment of various Cubesats, including the following space probes:
  • CuSP - solar orbiter , solar wind study
  • LunaH-Map - lunar orbiter, investigation of water ice deposits
  • Lunar Flashlight - lunar orbiter, investigation of water ice deposits
  • Lunar IceCube - lunar orbiter, investigation of water ice deposits
  • LunIR - lunar flyby probe
  • Near-Earth Asteroid Scout - Solar sail flyby of an asteroid
  • Omotenashi - lunar orbiter and lander, radiation measurements
• End of 2021 - first manned flight of the Gaganyaan spacecraft , planned first manned Indian space flight
• Yang Wang-1 - space telescope
• (private) Hakuto-R 1 - Moon Lander , planned first Japanese moon landing

2022

• XRism - Early 2022 - Space Observatory (X- Rays )
• Slim - early 2022 - moon lander
• Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer - June 2022 - Probe to Jupiter and its moons
• Euclid - June 2022 - Space Telescope
• Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter - July 2022 - Lunar orbit, planned first South Korean spacecraft and lunar mission
• Psyche - August 2022 - Orbiter around the asteroid Psyche , start together with:
  • Escapade - two probes for studying the Martian atmosphere
  • Janus - exploring binary asteroids
• ExoMars Rover - August – October 2022 - Marslander with Rover
• Artemis 2 - September 2022 or April 2023 - the first manned flight of the Orion spacecraft, manned lunar orbiter
• Terex-1 - Mars Lander
• XL-1 - 4th Quarter 2022 - Lunar Lander
• (private) LSAS - 4th quarter 2020 - moon lander
• Einstein Probe - End of 2022 - Space Telescope (X-ray)
• Aso-S - solar observatory
• Destiny ⁺ - Flyby the asteroid (3200) Phaethon

Europe clipper

2023

• Sphere X - September 2023 or 1st Quarter 2024 - Space Telescope (Near Infrared Spectrum)
• Hera - October 2023 - Darts follow-up mission to the double asteroid (65803) Didymos
• CLPS moon landing in the South Pole region with the NASA rover "Viper"
• (private) Hakuto-R 2 - moon landing and rover
• Shukrayaan-1 - Venus orbiter , planned first Indian Venus mission
• Chang'e 6 - sample return mission to the moon (2023/2024)

2024

• MMX - September 2024 - Mars orbiter and sample return mission to Phobos and Deimos
• Imap - 4th quarter 2024 - Solar orbiter at the L1 point of the earth's orbit, investigation of the heliosphere
• Artemis 3 - October 2024 - manned landing in the lunar south pole region
• Luna 26 (Luna Resurs Orbiter) - November 2024 - Moon orbiter

2025

• Europa Clipper - September 2025 - Jupiter's orbiter, exploring the moon Europa
• Spectral UV (World Space Observatory) - space telescope (UV radiation)
• First manned flight of the spacecraft Federazija / Orel
• Luna 27 (Luna-Resurs Lander) - moon lander

Dragonfly - landing on Titan

2026

• Dragonfly - April 2026 - Landing of a quadcopter on Saturn's moon Titan in the mid-2030s
• Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (formerly WFirst) - infrared space telescope
• Plato - Space Telescope (search for extrasolar planets)

2028

• Ariel - Space Telescope (Search for extrasolar planets)
• Comet Interceptor - probe to a comet or interstellar object

Mission proposals

The following information is based mainly on announcements in the press. These are concept studies and projects without secured funding. All years indicate the earliest possible starting time; the likelihood of postponements is high.

Starship - planned first private spaceship for manned interplanetary missions

2022

• another CLPS moon landing
• Zheng He - Asteroid Return Mission (469219) Kamoʻoalewa ; Onward flight to the comet (7968) Elst-Pizarro
• (private) Mission to the Moon - Moon Lander and Rover
• (private) Unmanned moon landing with the Starship
• (partially private) Mars probe, possibly with 1–2 follow-up missions

2023

• another CLPS moon landing
• Rideshare flight to the moon with Ariane 64
• (private) Dear Moon - manned orbit around the moon with the Starship

2024

• Several lunar probes by 2024
• Chang'e 7 - lunar orbiter, lander, rover and aircraft; Cooperation with the Russian Luna-26 mission
• two CLPS moon landings
• (private) Blue Moon - Moon Lander from Blue Origin
• Mangalyaan-2 Mars Orbiter
• Lunar polar exploration
• Terex-2 - Mars orbiter
• Exploration of the heliopause - two probes into the outer solar system
• (private) Manned moon landing with the Starship

2025

• two CLPS moon landings
• NEOSM - space telescope for monitoring near-Earth asteroids
• Discovery program : No. 15 and 16. At least one of the following missions is to be carried out; the decision on this should be made in 2021:
  • Davinci + probe for studying the atmosphere of Venus
  • Io Volcano Observer - flyby probe to Jupiter's moon Io , geological surveys
  • Trident - probe to the Neptune moon Triton
  • Veritas - Venus orbiter
• Artemis 4 - manned moon landing

2026

• Heracles - lunar lander and rover; Sample return mission to the Schrödinger crater
• two CLPS moon landings
• Mars Sample Return (sample return from Mars)
• Artemis 5 - manned moon landing
• Venera-D - Venus orbiter and lander (starting period 2026-2031)

2027

• Luna 28 - sample return mission to the moon
• Spektr-M - space telescope (infrared radiation), international cooperation aimed
• two CLPS moon landings
• Artemis 6 - manned moon landing
• Europa Lander - landing on Jupiter's moon Europa , looking for signs of biological activity (target date 2025, expected in 2027 at the earliest)

2028

• Exoworlds - "Exploration Outside the Solar System"
• two CLPS moon landings
• Artemis 7 or 8 - manned moon landing

2029

• Mars Sample Return (sample return from Mars)
• Manned lunar orbiter

2030-2034

• Manned moon landing (2030)
• Exploration of the heliopause - nuclear-powered polar probe into the outer solar system (2030)
• Manned lunar missions (from 2030)
• Establishment of a space station (around 2030)
• Athena - X-ray Space Telescope (2031)
• One of the following mission concepts is to be selected in 2021:
  • Theseus - Investigation of gamma-ray flashes (2032)
  • Spica - Infrared Space Telescope (2032)
  • Envision - Venus probe (2032)
• NASA manned missions to Mars (from 2033)
• LISA - Gravitational Wave Interferometer (2034)

2035-2039

Luvoir - proposed space telescope

• A selection between the following telescope concepts is to be made in 2020:
  • Lynx - X-ray space telescope with 3 or 6 m mirror, Chandra successor (2035)
  • Habex - space telescope with 4 m mirror and 72 m parasol for the search for earth-like planets, first direct photography of exoplanets (2035)
  • Origins Space Telescope (OST) - Infrared space telescope with 9 m mirror (2035)
  • Luvoir ("Hubble 2.0") - broad spectrum space observatory with 15 or 8 m mirror (2039)

gallery

The date of the event is indicated in each case.

• 

  Luna 1
  first flyby of the moon (1959)

• 

  Soyuz 4 and Soyuz 5
  First coupling of two manned spaceships (1969)

• 

  Apollo 11
  first manned moon landing and first samples brought to earth from the moon (1969)

• 

  Lunochod 1
  first moon rover (1970)

• 

  Mariner 9
  First Mars Orbiter (1971)

• 

  Apollo 16
  first automobile trip on another celestial body (1972)

• 

  Helios 2
  Closest Approach to the Sun (1976)

• 

  Viking 1
  first soft landing on Mars (1976)

• 

  Pioneer 11
  First Saturn Flyby (1979)

• 

  International Cometary Explorer
  First Comet Flyby (1985)

• 

  Galileo
  First flyby of an asteroid
  Discovery of the first asteroid moon
  First Jupiter orbiter (1993/94)

• 

  NEAR Shoemaker
  First asteroid orbiter
  First landing on an asteroid (2000/2001)

• 

  Genesis
  First sampling of the solar wind (2001-2004)

• 

  Huygens
  first landing on Titan (2005)

• 

  Deep Impact
  First Impact on a Comet (2005)

• 

  Voyager 1
  First man-made object in interstellar space (2012)

See also

• List of visited bodies in the solar system
• History of space travel

Web links

• NASA Lunar & Planetary Science
• ESA Science & Technology: Missions
• Soviet Lunar, Martian, Venusian and Terrestrial Space Image Catalog

Individual evidence

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6. ↑ ^{a b c d} SMSR Integrated Master Schedule (PDF, 1 MB). NASA, April 27, 2020.
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40. ↑ Zhenghe - A mission to a near-Earth asteroid and a comet Main Belt. (PDF) 2019, accessed April 28, 2019 . 
41. ↑ Artemis Source Selection Statement, NextSTEP-2 Appendix H: Human Landing System Broad Agency Announcement (PDF, 1 MB). NASA, April 28, 2020.
42. ↑ ^{a b} Darrell Etherington: SpaceX wants to land Starship on the Moon before 2022, then do cargo runs for 2024 human landing . Techcrunsh, October 25, 2019.
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44. ↑ Caleb Hebry: Arianespace targets 2023 for lunar Ariane 6 rideshare mission. In: Spacenews. October 22, 2019, accessed October 23, 2019 . 
45. ↑ Meet SpaceX's Starship Hopper. In: space.com. March 29, 2019, accessed April 26, 2019 . 
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49. ↑ Mission Mangal real and reel characters: Akshay Kumar plays Naresh Dhawan and here's the entire list. In: Times Now. August 15, 2019, accessed on August 21, 2019 (the start date should be similar to MMX, since there are always only short windows with an artificial transfer orbit to Mars). 
50. ↑ Episode 90 - An update on ISRO's activities with S Somanath and R Umamaheshwaran . Astrotalk UK, accessed October 29, 2019.
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53. ↑ Stephen Clark: NASA to proceed with asteroid surveillance mission. In: Spaceflight Now. October 2, 2019, accessed October 3, 2019 . 
54. ↑ NASA Selects Four Possible Missions to Study the Secrets of the Solar System . NASA press release dated February 13, 2020.
55. ↑ Shannon Hall: Venus is Earth's evil twin - and space agencies can no longer resist its pull. In: Nature . June 5, 2019, accessed June 11, 2019 . 
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57. ↑ Anatoly Zak: ISS partners consider ambitious lunar sample return mission. In: planetary.org. March 29, 2018. Retrieved April 28, 2018 . 
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59. ^ Status Report of the Venera-D Joint Science Definition Team. (PDF) December 2017, accessed April 28, 2018 . 
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61. ↑ US Firm Suspends Component Supplying to Russia's Space Research Program, Japan Steps In . Sputnik News, August 18, 2019.
62. ↑ Anatoly Zak: Spektr-M observatory takes shape , accessed on September 19, 2019.
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