| | |
| Orbital launches | |
|---|---|
| First | 7 January |
| Last | 30 December |
| Total | 82 |
| Successes | 75 |
| Failures | 5 |
| Partial failures | 2 |
| Catalogued | 77 |
| National firsts | |
| Satellite | |
| Space traveller | |
| Rockets | |
| Maiden flights | Athena II Delta II 7326 Delta II 7420 Delta II 7425 Delta III Shtil' |
| Retirements | Atlas II Titan IVA |
| Crewed flights | |
| Orbital | 7 |
| Total travellers | 39 |
This article outlines notable events occurring in 1998 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
| Remarks | |||||||
January | |||||||
| 7 January 02:28 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Selenocentric | Lunar orbiter | 31 July 1999 | Successful | ||
| Maiden flight of Athena II, first orbital launch from Spaceport Florida | |||||||
| 10 January 00:32 | | | | ||||
| | MoD | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 22 January 12:56 | | | | ||||
| | Intended: Low Earth (retrograde) | Reconnaissance | 22 January | Launch Failure | |||
| Second stage failure | |||||||
| 23 January 02:48 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (Mir) | Shuttle-Mir Program | 31 January 16:57 | Successful | ||
| | NASA/SpaceHab | Low Earth (Endeavour) | Logistics | ||||
| Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts | |||||||
| 29 January 16:33 | | | | ||||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Mir EO-25 | 25 August 05:24 | Successful | ||
| Crewed orbital flight with three cosmonauts | |||||||
| 29 January 18:37 | | | | ||||
| | NRO | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| NRO Launch 5 | |||||||
February | |||||||
| 4 February 23:29 | | | | ||||
| | Embratel | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Inmarsat | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 10 February 13:20 | | | | ||||
| | US Navy | Low Earth | Radar altimetry | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Celestis | Low Earth | Space burial | In orbit | Successful | ||
| 14 February 14:34 | | | | ||||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Maiden flight of Delta II 7420 | |||||||
| 17 February 10:34 | | | | ||||
| | Low Earth | Cartography | 2 April | Successful | |||
| 18 February 13:58 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 5 November 2018 [1] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 11 October 2018 [2] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 11 May 2019 [3] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 23 September 2018 [4] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 30 September 2018 [5] | Successful | ||
| 21 February 07:55 | | | | ||||
| | NASDA | Intended: Geosynchronous Actual: Medium Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| Upper stage failure led to lower orbit than planned | |||||||
| 26 February 07:07 | | | | ||||
| | NASA/UC Boulder | Low Earth | Nitric Oxide research | 13 December 2003 | Successful | ||
| | Teledesic | Low Earth | Communications | 9 October 2000 | Successful | ||
| 27 February 22:38 | | | | ||||
| | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 28 February 00:21 | | | | ||||
| | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
March | |||||||
| 14 March 22:45 | | | | ||||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Logistics | 15 May | Successful | ||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Mir attitude control unit | 23 March 2001 05:50 | Successful | ||
| 16 March 21:32 | | | | ||||
| | US Navy | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Final flight of baseline Atlas II | |||||||
| 24 March 01:46 | | | | ||||
| | CNES | Sun-synchronous | Earth Imaging | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 25 March 17:01 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 23 July 2019 [6] | Successful | ||
| 30 March 06:02 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 31 March 2019 [7] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 7 April 2019 [8] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 11 March 2019 [9] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 17 March 2019 [10] | Successful | ||
April | |||||||
| 2 April 02:42 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth | Solar research | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 7 April 02:13 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 7 November 2018 [11] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 1 April 2019 [12] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 19 July 2018 [13] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 23 August 2018 [14] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 2 July 2018 [15] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 6 June 2018 [16] | Successful | ||
| 17 April 18:19 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth | Microgravity research | 3 May 16:09 | Successful | ||
| | NASA | Low Earth (Columbia) | Life science research | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (Columbia) | Cryogenic mission duration extension pallet | ||||
| Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts Final flight of Spacelab Long Module No. 2 | |||||||
| 24 April 22:38 | | | | ||||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Globalstar | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 28 April 22:53 | | | | ||||
| | Nilesat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | BSAT | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Nilesat is the first Egyptian satellite | |||||||
| 29 April 04:36 | | | | ||||
| | RVSN | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
May | |||||||
| 2 May 09:16 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 7 May 08:53 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Molniya | Early Warning | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 7 May 23:45 | | | | ||||
| | EchoStar | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 9 May 01:38 | | | | ||||
| | NRO | Geosynchronous | SIGINT | In orbit | Operational | ||
| NROL-6 mission. | |||||||
| 13 May 15:52 | | | | ||||
| | NOAA | Sun-synchronous | Weather satellite | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 14 May 22:12 | | | | ||||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Logistics | 29 October 04:14 | Successful | ||
| 17 May 21:16 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 11 October 2018 [17] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 14 May 2018 [18] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 11 June 2017 [19] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 10 July 2018 [20] | Successful | ||
| 30 May 10:00 | | | | ||||
| | COTSC | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
June | |||||||
| 2 June 22:06 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (Mir) | Shuttle-Mir flight | 12 June 18:00 | Successful | ||
| | NASA/SpaceHab | Low Earth (Discovery) | Logistics | ||||
| | ESA | Low Earth (Discovery) | Particle physics | ||||
| Crewed orbital flight with six astronauts, landing with seven Final Shuttle-Mir flight and first shuttle flight with Super-lightweight Aluminium/Lithium ET | |||||||
| 10 June 00:35 | | | | ||||
| | Telenor | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 15 June 22:58 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| | MO RF | Intended: Medium Earth Actual: Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Partial Failure | ||
| Third stage failure left satellites in lower orbit than planned | |||||||
| 18 June 22:48 | | | | ||||
| | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 24 June 18:29 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 22 October | Successful | ||
| 25 June 14:00 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 12 July 1999 | Successful | ||
July | |||||||
| 1 July 00:48 | | | | ||||
| | MOM | Molniya | Communications | 2 February 2011 | Successful | ||
| 3 July 18:12 | | | | ||||
| | ISAS | Intended: Areocentric Actual: Heliocentric | Mars orbiter | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | ||
| Gravity assist produced less velocity than expected, spacecraft ran out of fuel trying to compensate | |||||||
| 7 July 03:15 | | | | ||||
| | TUB | Low Earth | Communications | 23 April 2002 | Successful | ||
| | TUB | Low Earth | Communications | 21 October 2000 | Successful | ||
| | Makeev | Low Earth | Measure carrier rocket performance | 8 May 2014 | Successful | ||
| Maiden flight of Shtil' and first orbital launch from a submarine | |||||||
| 10 July 06:30 | | | | ||||
| | Low Earth | Remote sensing | In orbit | Operational | |||
| | FACh | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| TMSAT | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
| | Technion | Low Earth | Technology development | In orbit | Operational | ||
| WESTPAC | WPLTN | Low Earth | Laser tracking | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | DLR | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Fasat-Bravo is the first successful Chilean satellite | |||||||
| 18 July 09:20 | | | | ||||
| | SinoSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 28 July 09:15 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Low Earth | SIGINT | In orbit | Operational | ||
August | |||||||
| 2 August 16:24 | | | | ||||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | 22 December 2018 07:12 | Successful | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| The decommissioned Orbcomm B4 satellite disintegrated into 34 pieces in 2018; the cause is under investigation as of January 2019 [21] | |||||||
| 12 August 11:30 | | | | ||||
| | Intended: Geosynchronous | ELINT | 12 August T+40 seconds | Launch Failure | |||
| Final flight of Titan IVA Control lost after guidance system malfunction; Range Safety self-destruct | |||||||
| 13 August 09:43 | | | | ||||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Mir EO-26 | 28 February 1999 02:14 | Successful | ||
| Crewed orbital flight with three cosmonauts | |||||||
| 19 August 23:01 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 8 February 2018 [22] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 28 August 2018 [23] | Successful | ||
| 25 August 23:07 | | | | ||||
| | Singapore Telecom/Chunghwa Telecom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 27 August 01:17 | | | | ||||
| | PanAmSat | Intended: Geosynchronous | Communications | 27 August T+75 seconds | Launch Failure | ||
| Maiden flight of Delta III Hydraulic failure in thrust vectoring system led to range safety self-destruct | |||||||
| 30 August 00:31 | | | | ||||
| | SES | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 31 August 03:07 | | | | ||||
| | KCST | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | 31 August | Launch failure | ||
| First North Korean orbital launch attempt, never achieved orbit due to a suspected third stage failure. North Korea considered the launch as successful. | |||||||
September | |||||||
| 8 September 21:13 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 17 July 2018 [24] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 12 August 2018 [25] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 29 November 2000 | Spacecraft Failure | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 22 September 2017 [26] | Spacecraft Failure | ||
| 9 September 20:29 | | | | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | 9 September | Launch Failure | ||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| | Globalstar | Intended: Low Earth | Communications | ||||
| Computer error caused premature second stage cutout | |||||||
| 16 September 06:31 | | | | ||||
| | PanAmSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 23 September 05:06 | | | | ||||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | Orbcomm | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 28 September 23:41 | | | | ||||
| | MOM | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
October | |||||||
| 3 October 10:04 | | | | ||||
| | NRO | Low Earth | Technology research | In orbit | Partial satellite failure | ||
| | NRO | Low Earth | Technology research | In orbit | Satellite failure | ||
| ATeX failed to deploy fully and was jettisoned from STEX on 16 January 1999 to protect the main spacecraft | |||||||
| 5 October 22:51 | | | | ||||
| | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | NSAB | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 9 October 22:50 | | | | ||||
| | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 20 October 07:19 | | | | ||||
| | US Navy | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 21 October 16:37 | | | | ||||
| | ESA | Geosynchronous transfer | Monitor rocket performance | In orbit | Successful | ||
| | ESA | Suborbital | Spacecraft recovery demonstration | 21 October | Successful | ||
| ARD recovered in Pacific Ocean by French Navy | |||||||
| 23 October 00:02 | | | | ||||
| | INPE | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 24 October 21:13 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Heliocentric | Asteroid/Comet probe | In orbit | Successful | ||
| | Alabama | Low Earth | Amateur radio | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Maiden flight of Delta II 7326 Deep Space 1 performed flybys of 1992 KD and 19P/Borrelly | |||||||
| 25 October 04:14 | | | | ||||
| | Roskosmos | Low Earth (Mir) | Logistics | 5 February 1999 11:10 | Successful | ||
| | ACF/AMSAT/RuAF | Low Earth | Amateur radio | 11 January 1999 | Successful | ||
| Sputnik-41 deployed from Mir during an EVA on 10 November | |||||||
| 28 October 22:15 | | | | ||||
| | 1worldspace | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | GE Americom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 29 October 19:19 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth | Microgravity research | 7 November 17:03 | Successful | ||
| | NASA/SpaceHab | Low Earth (Discovery) | Scientific research | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth | Solar observation | ||||
| | US Navy | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Crewed orbital flight with seven astronauts including the first Spanish space traveller (Pedro Duque) and the oldest person to fly in space (John Glenn) PANSAT deployed on 30 October; SPARTAN deployed on 1 November and retrieved on 3 November | |||||||
November | |||||||
| 4 November 05:12 | | | | ||||
| | PanAmSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 6 November 13:37 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 5 October 2018 [27] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 30 December 2000 | Spacecraft failure | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 4 November 2018 [28] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 5 November 2018 [29] | Successful | ||
| 20 November 05:12 | | | | ||||
| | NASA/Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS module | In orbit | Operational | ||
| First launch of the International Space Station programme | |||||||
| 22 November 23:54 | | | | ||||
| | Telenor | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
December | |||||||
| 4 December 08:35 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS assembly | 16 December 04:53 | Successful | ||
| | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS module | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS component | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS component | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | CONAE | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 25 October 1999 | Successful | ||
| | US Air Force | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 21 November 1999 | Successful | ||
| Crewed orbital flight with six astronauts First crewed flight to the International Space Station SAC-A deployed on 14 December and MightySat on 15 December | |||||||
| 6 December 00:43 | | | | ||||
| | Satmex | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 6 December 00:57 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Low Earth | Astronomy | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 10 December 11:57 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | SSC | Low Earth | Aurora research | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 11 December 18:45 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Intended: Areocentric Actual: Heliocentric | Mars orbiter | 23 September 1999 | Spacecraft failure | ||
| Maiden flight of Delta II 7425 MCO crashed into Mars during orbital inserition due to error in unit conversions between Metric and Imperial | |||||||
| 19 December 11:39 | | | | ||||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 22 October 2018 [30] | Successful | ||
| | Iridium | Low Earth | Communications | 22 October 2018 [31] | Successful | ||
| 22 December 01:08 | | | | ||||
| | PanAmSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 24 December 20:02 | | | | ||||
| | MO RF | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
| 30 December 18:35 | | | | ||||
| | MOM | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | MOM | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
| | MOM | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
| Remarks | |||||||
January | |||||||
| 16 January 03:25 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | ABM target | 16 January | Successful | ||
| 16 January 03:46 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | ABM interceptor | 16 January | Successful | ||
| 25 January 08:35 | | | | ||||
| | ISAS | Suborbital | Ozone/Aeronomy research | 25 January | Successful | ||
| 26 January 12:26 | | | | ||||
| | SSC/DLR | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 26 January | Successful | ||
| 31 January 04:30 | | | | ||||
| | ISAS | Suborbital | Solar observation | 31 January | Successful | ||
| 31 January 23:43 | | | | ||||
| | DLR | Suborbital | Aeronomy research | 31 January | Successful | ||
February | |||||||
| 5 February 08:30 | | | | ||||
| ISAS | Suborbital | Plasma research | 5 February | Successful | |||
| 7 February 07:40 | | | | ||||
| | SSC | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 7 February | Successful | ||
| 10 February | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 February | Successful | |||
| 10 February | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 February | Successful | |||
| 10 February | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 February | Successful | |||
| 10 February | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 February | Successful | |||
| 11 February 09:42 | | | | ||||
| | DLR | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 11 February | Successful | ||
| 19 February | | | | ||||
| Russian Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 19 February | Successful | |||
| 19 February | | | | ||||
| Russian Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 19 February | Successful | |||
| 20 February 00:09 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 20 February | Successful | ||
| 20 February 00:37 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 20 February | Successful | ||
| 20 February 08:23 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 February | Failure | ||
| 25 February 03:17 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 25 February | Successful | ||
| 25 February 07:43 | | | | ||||
| NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 25 February | Successful | |||
| 25 February 07:50 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 25 February | Successful | ||
March | |||||||
| 3 March 22:33 | | | | ||||
| | SSC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 3 March | Successful | ||
| 6 March 21:26 | | | | ||||
| | SSC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 3 March | Successful | ||
| 7 March 01:33 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 7 March | Successful | ||
| 7 March | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 March | Successful | |||
| 7 March | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 March | Successful | |||
| 10 March | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 March | Successful | |||
| 10 March | | | | ||||
| US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 March | Successful | |||
| 11 March 23:39 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 11 March | Successful | ||
| 21 March | | | | ||||
| INPE | Suborbital | Test sounding rocket | 21 March | Successful | |||
| 25 March 01:45 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 25 March | Successful | ||
April | |||||||
| 6 April | | | | ||||
| PAF | Suborbital | Missile test | 6 April | Successful | |||
| Maiden flight of Ghauri | |||||||
| 6 April | | | | ||||
| ISRO | Suborbital | Aeronomy research | 6 April | Successful | |||
| 15 April | | | | ||||
| RVSN/ISC Kosmotras | Suborbital | Missile test | 15 April | Successful | |||
| Part of Dnepr development programme | |||||||
| 17 April 18:05 | | | | ||||
| | BMDO | Suborbital | Technology development | 17 April | Successful | ||
| 18 April 04:00 | | | | ||||
| NASA | Suborbital | Ultraviolet astronomy | 18 April | Successful | |||
| 18 April 07:30 | | | | ||||
| NASA | Suborbital | Ultraviolet astronomy | 18 April | Successful | |||
| 28 April 12:10 | | | | ||||
| | CSA | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 28 April | Successful | ||
| First and only launch conducted by Akjuit Aerospace. Final launch from the SpacePort Canada (Churchill Rocket Research Range) site. | |||||||
May | |||||||
| 7 May 10:30 | | | | ||||
| US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 May | Successful | |||
| 12 May 11:22 | | | | ||||
| US Air Force | Suborbital | ABM Target | 12 May | Successful | |||
| 12 May 11:25 | | | | ||||
| US Air Force | Suborbital | ABM Interceptor | 12 May | Failure | |||
| 22 May 06:22 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Infrared astronomy | 22 May | Successful | ||
June | |||||||
| 3 June 19:57 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 June | Successful | ||
| 11 June 01:00 | | | | ||||
| KARI | Suborbital | Ionosphere research X-ray astronomy | 11 June | Successful | |||
| 16 June 14:19 | | | | ||||
| NASA | Suborbital | Test sounding rocket | 16 June | Successful | |||
| 24 June 08:01 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 24 June | Successful | ||
| 24 June 12:46 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 24 June | Successful | ||
July | |||||||
| 22 July | | | | ||||
| Suborbital | Missile test | 22 July | Failure | ||||
| Maiden flight of Shahab-3 | |||||||
August | |||||||
| 15 August 05:30 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | X-ray astronomy | 15 August | Successful | ||
| 21 August | | | | ||||
| Russian Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 21 August | Successful | |||
September | |||||||
| 16 September 11:10 | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 16 September | Successful | |||
| 18 September 08:01 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Missile test | 18 September | Successful | ||
| 18 September 15:00 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Hypersonic dynamics test | 18 September | Successful | ||
| 21 September 14:51 | | | | ||||
| | ISRO/DLR | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 21 September | Successful | ||
| 24 September 12:50 | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Target | 24 September | Successful | ||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Weapons test | 24 September | Successful | ||
| 28 September 15:11 | | | | ||||
| | ISRO/DLR | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 28 September | Successful | ||
October | |||||||
| 7 October 12:00 | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 October | Successful | |||
| 22 October 12:53 | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 22 October | Failure | |||
| Self-destruct activated after rocket went off course | |||||||
November | |||||||
| 2 November 18:20 | | | | ||||
| | NASA | Suborbital | Ultraviolet solar observation | 2 November | Successful | ||
| 6 November 01:32 | | | | ||||
| US Air Force | Suborbital | Rocket test | 6 November | Successful | |||
| First launch from Kodiak Island | |||||||
| 18 November 15:40 | | | | ||||
| NASA | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 18 November | Successful | |||
| 18 November 23:00 | | | | ||||
| NASDA | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 18 November | Successful | |||
| 20 November | | | | ||||
| | US Air Force | Suborbital | Target vehicle | 20 November | Successful | ||
| 24 November 09:53 | | | | ||||
| ESA | Suborbital | Scientific research | 24 November | Successful | |||
December | |||||||
| 3 December 11:04 | | | | ||||
| | DLR | Suborbital | Microgravity research | 3 December | Successful | ||
| 8 December 11:25 | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 8 December | Successful | |||
| 9 December 10:20 | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Test flight | 9 December | Successful | |||
| 10 December | | | | ||||
| RVSN | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 December | Successful | |||
| 15 December | | Sounding Rocket I | | | |||
| NSPO | Suborbital | Test flight | 15 December | Successful | |||
| Apogee: ~280 km (174 mi) | |||||||
| Date (GMT) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 January | Lunar Prospector | Selenocentric orbit injection | |
| 23 January | NEAR | Flyby of the Earth | Closest approach: 540 kilometres (340 mi) |
| 10 February | Galileo | 5th flyby of Europa | |
| 29 March | Galileo | 6th flyby of Europa | |
| 26 April | Cassini | 1st flyby of Venus | Gravity assist |
| 13 May | AsiaSat 3/HGS 1 comsat | 1st flyby of the Moon | First use of moon's gravity for a recovery mission; Closest approach: 6,200 kilometres (3,900 mi) |
| 31 May | Galileo | 7th flyby of Europa | |
| 1 June | AsiaSat 3/HGS 1 | 2nd flyby of the Moon | Closest approach: 34,300 kilometres (21,300 mi) |
| 21 July | Galileo | 8th flyby of Europa | |
| 26 September | Galileo | 9th flyby of Europa | |
| 22 November | Galileo | 10th flyby of Europa | |
| 20 December | Nozomi | 1st flyby of the Earth | |
| 23 December | NEAR | Flyby of 433 Eros | Closest approach: 3,827 kilometres (2,378 mi) |
| Start date/time | Duration | End time | Spacecraft | Crew | Function | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 January 23:08 | 3 hours 6 minutes | 9 January 02:14 | Mir EO-24 | | Repaired the damaged airlock sealing system, used the Strela boom to move across Mir and recover an American optical monitoring experiment. Checked the integrity of cable connects to several antennas. [32] | |
| 14 January 21:12 | 3 hours 52 minutes | 15 January 01:04 | Mir EO-24 | | Continued to make more repairs to the airlock hatch on Kvant-2 and used a handheld photo-reflectometer to inspect the exterior surface of the station. [33] | |
| 1 April 13:35 | 6 hours 40 minutes | 20:15 | Mir EO-25 | | Installed a set of handrails and one of two-foot restraints on the outside of the Spektr module in preparation for the repair of the damaged solar array. [34] | |
| 6 April 13:35 | 4 hours 15 minutes | 17:50 | Mir EO-25 | | Begin repair of the damaged Spektr solar panel. After installing a splint on the frayed panel, the spacewalkers had to quickly return to the airlock to handle a problem with station attitude control. [35] | |
| 11 April 09:55 | 6 Hours 25 minutes | 16:20 | Mir EO-25 | | Jettisoned the external thruster engine (VDU) that had been located at the top of the Sofora boom and recover an experiment from the Rapana structure. [36] | Dismantling of the Rapana structure was not completed. [37] |
| 17 April 07:40 | 6 Hours 33 minutes | 14:13 | Mir EO-25 | | Removed two structures and secured them to exterior surfaces and repositioned the new thrust engine (VDU) for future use. [37] | |
| 22 April 05:34 | 6 Hours 21 minutes | 11:55 | Mir EO-25 | | Completed installation of the new VDU thruster unit on top of the Sofora boom. [38] | |
| 15 September 20:00 | 30 minutes | 20:30 | Mir EO-26 | | Internal spacewalk in the depressurised Spektr module to connect electrical and control cables to the solar array servo motor. [39] | |
| 10 November 19:24 | 5 hours 54 minutes | 11 November 01:18 | Mir EO-26 | | Deployed Sputnik-41, deployed a French "meteorite trap" intended to catch some dust from the upcoming Leonids meteor shower. [40] | |
| 7 December 22:10 | 7 hours 21 minutes | 8 December 05:31 | STS-88 ISS Endeavour | | Connected computer and electrical cables between the Unity node, the two mating adapters attached to either end of Unity, and the Zarya Functional Cargo Block (FGB). [41] | First ISS assembly EVA |
| 9 December 20:33 | 7 hours 2 minutes | 10 December 03:35 | STS-88 ISS Endeavour | | Installed two box-like antennas on the outside of the Unity module that are part of the S-band early communications system. [42] | |
| 12 December 20:33 | 6 hours 59 minutes | 13 December 03:32 | STS-88 ISS Endeavour | | Checked on an insulation cover on a cable connection on the lower Pressurized Mating Adapter (PMA-2) to make sure it was fully installed, attached EVA tools on the side of Unity's upper mating adapter (PMA-1) in preparation for future EVAs, and inspected Orbiter Space Vision System targets on Unity. [43] | |