![]() | This timeline of spaceflight may require cleanup to ensure consistency with other timeline of spaceflight articles. See Wikipedia:WikiProject Spaceflight/Timeline of spaceflight working group for guidelines on how to improve the article. Details |
![]() Launch of Shenzhou 5, the first Chinese human spaceflight mission, this mission has made China the 3rd country to have independent human spaceflight capability after the USSR and the US. | |
Orbital launches | |
---|---|
First | 11 January |
Last | 29 December |
Total | 63 |
Successes | 60 |
Failures | 3 |
Partial failures | 0 |
Catalogued | 61 |
National firsts | |
Satellite | ![]() ![]() |
Space traveller | ![]() ![]() |
Rockets | |
Maiden flights | Atlas V 521 Delta II Heavy Delta IV Medium Strela |
Retirements | Ariane 4 44L Ariane 5G Space Shuttle Columbia Titan 23G |
Crewed flights | |
Orbital | 4 |
Total travellers | 13 |
This article outlines notable events occurring in 2003 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 | |||||||
6 January 14:19 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Low Earth | Technology development | In orbit | Operational | ||
13 January 00:45 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth | Oceanography | 30 August 2010 09:00 [2] | Partial spacecraft failure | ||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth | Astrophysics | In orbit | Operational | ||
Laser reliability issues limited ICESat operations. ICESat deactivated in February 2010 following failure of last laser in October 2009. | |||||||
16 January 20:39 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth | Research | 1 February 13:59 | Failure | ||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth (Columbia) | Microgravity and Earth science research | ||||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth (Columbia) | Cryogenic mission duration extension pallet | ||||
Crewed orbital flight with 7 astronauts, including the first Israeli space traveler Final flight of Space Shuttle Columbia, disintegrated during re-entry resulting in loss of crew and vehicle. | |||||||
25 January 20:13 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth | investigate total solar irradiance | In orbit | Operational | ||
29 January 18:06 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | US Air Force | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
XSS-10 deactivated 30 January 2003 | |||||||
February | |||||||
2 February 12:59 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Logistics | 27 August | Successful | ||
ISS flight 10P | |||||||
15 February 07:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
Final flight of Ariane 4 44L | |||||||
March | |||||||
11 March 00:59 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
Maiden flight of Delta IV Medium | |||||||
28 March 01:27 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Japanese Government | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 18 July 2014 | Successful | ||
![]() | Japanese Government | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 26 July 2012 | Partial spacecraft failure | ||
IGS-1B lost power in 2007, and concluded operations after just over half of its design life [3] | |||||||
31 March 22:09 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
April | |||||||
2 April 01:53 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | VKS | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
8 April 14:43 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
9 April 22:52 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | PanAmSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
12 April 00:47 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | AsiaSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
26 April 03:53 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS Expedition 7 | 28 October | Successful | ||
Crewed orbital flight with 2 cosmonauts | |||||||
24 April 04:23 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | VKS | Geosynchronous | Missile warning | In orbit | Operational | ||
28 April 12:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Low Earth | Ultraviolet astronomy | In orbit | Operational | ||
May | |||||||
8 May 11:28 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
9 May 04:29 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | ISAS | Heliocentric | Asteroid sample-return probe | 13 June 2010 | Partial spacecraft failure | ||
![]() | ISAS | Heliocentric | Asteroid lander | In orbit | Spacecraft failure | ||
Explored asteroid 1998 SF36 | |||||||
13 May 22:10 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | Hellas-Sat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
First Greek satellite | |||||||
24 May 16:34 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Geosynchronous | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | |||
June | |||||||
2 June 17:45 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | ESA | Areocentric | Mars probe | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() ![]() | ESA | Heliocentric | Mars lander | 25 December 2003 | Spacecraft failure | ||
Maiden flight of Soyuz-FG/Fregat Beagle 2 failed to contact Earth after landing on Mars | |||||||
4 June 19:23 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | MO RF | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | |||
6 June 22:15 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | SES Americom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
8 June 10:34 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Logistics Earth observation | 3 October | Successful | ||
ISS flight 11P | |||||||
10 June 13:55 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Thuraya | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
10 June 17:58 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars rover | 4 January 2004 | Operational | ||
![]() | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars lander | 4 January 2004 | Successful | ||
11 June 22:38 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Optus/Australian Government | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | BSAT | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
19 June 20:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | VKS | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
26 June 18:55 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Orbview | Low Earth | Imaging | 3 March 2011 | Satellite failure | ||
Ceased operations on 4 March 2007 after camera malfunction | |||||||
30 June 14:15 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | 18 December 2011 | Successful | ||||
DTUSat | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | Space telescope | In orbit | Operational | |||
Cute-I | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Stanford University | Low Earth | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | ||
AAU-Cubesat | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Can X-1 | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Cubesat XI | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Cubesat XII | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Cubesat XIII | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Cubesat XIV | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
July | |||||||
8 July 04:18 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars rover | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars lander | In orbit | Successful | ||
Maiden flight of Delta II Heavy | |||||||
17 July 23:45 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | Cablevision | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
Maiden flight of Atlas V 521 | |||||||
August | |||||||
8 August 03:31 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | EchoStar | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
12 August 14:20 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 9 December | Failure | |||
Film capsule failed to deorbit | |||||||
13 August 02:09 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | CSA | Low Earth | Atmospheric research | In orbit | Operational | ||
19 August 10:50 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
22 August 16:30 | ![]() | V03 | ![]() | ![]() | |||
![]() | INPE | Intended: Low Earth | Launch vehicle evaluation | Never left ground | Precluded | ||
![]() | INPE | Intended: Low Earth | Never left ground | ||||
Solid rocket booster ignition 3 days before the launch resulted in the catastrophic explosion, destroying the launch pad and killing 21 people. VLS-1 never had a new attempt and its development was extinguished in 2016. | |||||||
25 August 05:35 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NASA | Heliocentric | Infrared astronomy | In orbit | Operational | ||
29 August 01:47 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | Logistics | 28 January 2004 | Successful | ||
ISS flight 12P | |||||||
29 August 23:13 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
September | |||||||
9 September 04:29 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NRO | Geosynchronous | ELINT | In orbit | Operational | ||
NROL-26 mission. | |||||||
16 September | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Intended: Low Earth | Microsat | 16 September | Launch failure | |||
Fourth stage failed to ignite | |||||||
27 September 06:11 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Larets | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
Rubin-4-DSI | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
NigeriaSat-1 is the first Nigerian satellite | |||||||
27 September 23:14 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Eutelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Successful [4] | ||
![]() | ESA | Selenocentric | Lunar probe | 27 September 2006 05:42:22 | Successful | ||
Final flight of Ariane 5G | |||||||
October | |||||||
1 October 04:02 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() ![]() | PanAmSat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | operational | ||
15 October 01:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | CMSA | Low Earth | 15 October 22:53 | Successful | |||
![]() | CMSA | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 30 May 2004 | Successful | ||
Crewed orbital flight with 1 astronaut (Yang Liwei), first Chinese space traveller and indigenous crewed spaceflight | |||||||
17 October 04:54 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | ISRO | Low Earth | Earth observation | In orbit | Operational | ||
18 October 05:38 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Roskosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS Expedition 8 | 30 April 2004 | Successful | ||
Crewed orbital flight with 3 cosmonauts | |||||||
18 October 16:17 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Low Earth | Weather satellite | In orbit | Operational | ||
Final flight of Titan 23G | |||||||
21 October 03:16 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | CAAC/INPE | Low Earth | Earth resources | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | CAS | Low Earth | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
30 October 13:43 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | In orbit | Operational | ||||
November | |||||||
3 November 07:20 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | SAST | Low Earth | Imaging | 18 December | Successful | ||
14 November 16:34 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | |||
24 November 06:22 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Gazprom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | Gazprom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
29 November 04:33 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Japanese Government | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | T+60 seconds | Launch failure | ||
![]() | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | |||||
SRB failed to separate. Destroyed by RSO. | |||||||
December | |||||||
2 December 10:04 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | NRO | Low Earth | Naval SIGINT | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | NRO | Low Earth | Naval SIGINT | In orbit | Operational | ||
NRO launch 18 | |||||||
5 December 06:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | Low Earth | Boilerplate | In orbit | Successful | |||
Maiden flight of Strela rocket | |||||||
10 December 17:42 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | KNITs | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | KNITs | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
![]() | KNITs | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
18 December 02:30 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Navy | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
21 December 08:05 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | US Air Force | Medium Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Operational | ||
27 December 21:30 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() ![]() | ||||
![]() | Spacecom | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
28 December 20:37 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() | RSCC | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Operational | ||
29 December 19:06 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
![]() ![]() | CNSA/ESA | High Earth (High-eccentricity) | Magnetosphere research | 14 October 2007 | Successful |
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
January | |||||||
9 January 03:17 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
IDRDL | Suborbital | Missile test | 9 January | Successful | |||
March | |||||||
26 March 06:00 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
IDRDL | Suborbital | Missile test | 26 March | Successful | |||
April | |||||||
29 April 05:50 | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||||
IDRDL | Suborbital | Missile test | 29 April | Successful | |||
December | |||||||
24 December | ![]() | Sounding Rocket III | ![]() | ![]() | |||
![]() | NSPO | Suborbital | Ionospheric research | 24 December T+508 seconds | Successful | ||
Apogee: 265 km (165 mi) [5] |
Date (GMT) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
19 June | Nozomi | 3rd flyby of the Earth | |
21 September | Galileo | Deorbited into the Jovian atmosphere | |
9 December | Nozomi | Flyby of Mars | Damaged by solar flares |
24 December | Beagle 2 | Crashed at Isidis Planitia, Mars | |
24 December | Mars Express | Areocentric orbit injection |
Start Date/Time | Duration | End Time | Spacecraft | Crew | Function | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 January 12:50 | 6 hours 51 minutes | 19:41 | Expedition 6 ISS Quest | ![]() ![]() | Released the remaining launch locks on the P1 radiator assembly, removed debris on a sealing ring of Unity's docking port, and tested an ammonia reservoir on the station's P6 truss. [6] | |
8 April 12:40 | 6 hours 26 minutes | 19:06 | Expedition 6 ISS Quest | ![]() ![]() | Reconfigured cables on the S0 (S-Zero), S1 and P1 trusses, replaced a Power Control Module on the Mobile Transporter, installed Spool Positioning Devices on Destiny, and reinstalled a thermal cover on an S1 Radiator Beam Valve Module. [6] |
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.
Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
![]() | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | |
![]() | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
![]() | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
![]() | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
![]() | 21 | 21 | 0 | 0 | |
![]() | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
![]() | 23 | 22 | 1 | 0 | |
World | 64 | 60 | 4 | 0 |
Family | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariane | ![]() | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas | ![]() | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta | ![]() | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | |
GSLV | ![]() | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
H-II | ![]() | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Kaituozhe | ![]() | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Long March | ![]() | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
Mu | ![]() | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Pegasus | ![]() | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV | ![]() | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
R-7 | ![]() | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | |
R-14 | ![]() | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Space Shuttle | ![]() | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Columbia disintegrated on reentry |
Titan | ![]() | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Universal Rocket | ![]() | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
Zenit | ![]() | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Rocket | Country | Family | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariane 4 | ![]() | Ariane | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
Ariane 5 | ![]() | Ariane | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas II | ![]() | Atlas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas III | ![]() | Atlas | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas V | ![]() | Atlas | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta II | ![]() | Delta | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta IV | ![]() | Delta | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
GSLV | ![]() | GSLV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
H-IIA | ![]() | H-II | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Kaituozhe-1 | ![]() | Kaituozhe | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Kosmos | ![]() | R-12/R-14 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 2 | ![]() | Long March | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 3 | ![]() | Long March | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Long March 4 | ![]() | Long March | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Molniya | ![]() | R-7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
M-V | ![]() | Mu | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Pegasus | ![]() | Pegasus | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
PSLV | ![]() | PSLV | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Proton | ![]() | Universal Rocket | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Soyuz | ![]() | R-7 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
Space Shuttle | ![]() | Space Shuttle | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Titan II | ![]() | Titan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Final flight |
Titan IV | ![]() | Titan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
UR-100 | ![]() | Universal Rocket | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Zenit | ![]() | Zenit | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Site | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alcântara | ![]() | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Baikonur | ![]() | 14 | 14 | 0 | 0 | |
Cape Canaveral | ![]() | 16 | 16 | 0 | 0 | Two launches used Stargazer aircraft |
Jiuquan | ![]() | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Kennedy | ![]() | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Kourou | ![]() | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Ocean Odyssey | ![]() | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Plesetsk | ![]() | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
Satish Dhawan | ![]() | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
Taiyuan | ![]() | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Tanegashima | ![]() | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Uchinoura | ![]() | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Vandenberg | ![]() | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | Two launches used Stargazer aircraft |
Xichang | ![]() | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 64 | 60 | 4 | 0 |
Orbital regime | Launches | Successes | Failures | Accidentally achieved | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Transatmospheric | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Low Earth | 29 | 26 | 3 | 0 | 5 to ISS |
Medium Earth / Molniya | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | |
Geosynchronous / GTO | 23 | 23 | 0 | 0 | |
High Earth / Lunar transfer | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Heliocentric / Planetary transfer | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 64 | 61 | 3 | 0 |