List of Long March launches

Last updated

This is a list of launches made by the Long March rocket family. Launch attempts aborted or scrubbed before liftoff, including ones such as the attempt to launch a Long March 2E with Optus B1 on 22 March 1992, where the engines were ignited but shut down on the pad, are not included. Launches made with the related Feng Bao 1 carrier rocket are not included.

Contents



Due to the size of the list, it has been split into several smaller articles:

Launch statistics

Rockets from the Long March family have accumulated a total of 519 launches as of 3 May 2024. Of these, 500 were successful, 10 were failures, and 9 were partial failures. The cumulative success rate is


10
20
30
40
50
60
1970
1975
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020
2025
  •   Failure
  •   Partial failure
  •   Success
  •   Planned [1]

Anomalies and failures

A success is a launch that deploys all payloads into the correct orbit without damage. The launch vehicle may experience an anomaly that does not affect the mission. The payload may experience an anomaly that was not caused by the launch.

  • On 29 November 1994, the Long March 3A successfully deployed Chinasat-5 into geostationary transfer orbit. However, the satellite failed to reach geostationary orbit due to a propellant leak.
  • On 3 November 2016, the Long March 5 experienced an anomaly in the second stage, failing to deploy the stack into the correct geostationary transfer orbit. However, the third stage was able to compensate for the performance shortfall with a longer burn.

A partial failure is a launch that reaches orbit, but at least one payload was not deployed into the correct orbit or suffered damage. [2] After a partial failure, a satellite may operate at reduced functionality or with a reduced lifetime. A common type of partial failure occurs when a satellite is deployed into a lower than intended orbit. The satellite can maneuver with its own propulsion system to reach the correct orbit, but this reduces the fuel available for station-keeping and shortens its operational life. [3]

  • On 29 January 1984, the maiden launch of the Long March 3 failed to reach geostationary transfer orbit.
  • On 28 December 1991, the Long March 3 failed to deploy DFH-2A-4 (ChinaSat 4) into geostationary transfer orbit.
  • On 21 December 1992, the Long March 2E experienced a structural failure of the payload fairing, destroying the Optus B2 communications satellite. The satellite's debris reached the correct orbit.
  • On 28 November 1995, the Long March 2E damaged AsiaSat 2 by subjecting it to excessive forces during the launch. The satellite was unable to broadcast to its full coverage area.
  • On 18 August 1996, the Long March 3 failed to deploy ChinaSat 7 into geostationary transfer orbit.
  • On 31 August 2009, the Long March 3B failed to deploy Palapa-D into geostationary transfer orbit. The satellite reached the intended orbit with its own propulsion system.
  • On 28 December 2016, the Long March 2D failed to deploy the payloads into Sun-synchronous orbit. The primary payloads reached the correct orbit with their own propulsion systems, but the secondary payload had no propulsion system and reentered two months later.
  • On 18 June 2017, the Long March 3B failed to deploy ChinaSat 9A into geostationary transfer orbit. The satellite maneuvered 10 times over a one-month period to reach the correct orbit.
  • On 13 March 2024, the Long March 2C failed to deploy the DRO-A and DRO-B satellites into the planned trans-lunar injection orbit because of a failure of the YZ-1A upper stage. The satellites however remain operational in low Earth orbit.

A failure is a launch that does not deploy it into earth orbit.

  • On 5 November 1974, the Long March 2 lost control during its maiden launch.
  • On 25 January 1995, the Long March 2E experienced another structural failure in the payload fairing, destroying the Apstar 2 communications satellite.
  • On 14 February 1996, the Long March 3B lost its guidance platform and veered off course, hitting a nearby village and killing at least 6 people.
  • On 18 August 2011, the Long March 2C lost attitude control.
  • On 9 December 2013, the Long March 4B experienced an early shutdown of its third stage and failed to reach orbit.
  • On 31 August 2016, the Long March 4C failed to reach orbit.
  • On 2 July 2017, the Long March 5 experienced an anomaly in its first stage and failed to reach orbit.
  • On 22 May 2019, the Long March 4C failed to reach orbit due to a problem with its third stage.
  • On 16 March 2020, the first Long March 7A failed to reach orbit.
  • On 9 April 2020, the Long March 3B failed to reach orbit with the Palapa-N1 (Nusantara Dua) satellite due to third stage failure.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ariane 5</span> European heavy-lift space launch vehicle (1996–2023)

Ariane 5 is a retired European heavy-lift space launch vehicle developed and operated by Arianespace for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was launched from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in French Guiana. It was used to deliver payloads into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), low Earth orbit (LEO) or further into space. The launch vehicle had a streak of 82 consecutive successful launches between 9 April 2003 and 12 December 2017. Since 2014, Ariane 6, a direct successor system, is in development.

The Long March rockets are a family of expendable launch system rockets operated by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. The rockets are named after the Chinese Red Army's 1934–35 Long March military retreat during the Chinese Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Titan IIIC</span> Expendable launch system used by the US Air Force

The Titan IIIC was an expendable launch system used by the United States Air Force from 1965 until 1982. It was the first Titan booster to feature large solid rocket motors and was planned to be used as a launcher for the Dyna-Soar, though the spaceplane was cancelled before it could fly. The majority of the launcher's payloads were DoD satellites, for military communications and early warning, though one flight (ATS-6) was performed by NASA. The Titan IIIC was launched exclusively from Cape Canaveral while its sibling, the Titan IIID, was launched only from Vandenberg AFB.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle</span> Class of Indian medium-lift expendable launch vehicles, developed by ISRO

Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) is a class of expendable launch systems operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). GSLV has been used in fifteen launches since 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spacebus</span> Brand of satellite bus

Spacebus is a satellite bus produced at the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center in France by Thales Alenia Space. Spacebuses are typically used for geostationary communications satellites, and seventy-four have been launched since development started in the 1980s. Spacebus was originally produced by Aérospatiale and later passed to Alcatel Alenia Space. In 2006, it was sold to Thales Group as Thales Alenia Space.

This is a list of the satellites operated by Optus, an Australian telecommunications company. The satellite communications facility is located at Belrose on Sydney's Northern Beaches. Optus' satellites are divided into 4 classes A, B, C and D. As of April 2014 it owns and operates Optus B3, Optus C1, Optus D1, Optus D2 and Optus D3. Optus A1, Optus A2, Optus A3 and Optus B1 satellites have been retired. Optus has the largest network of satellites in Australia and New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palapa</span> Indonesian geostationary communications satellites

Palapa is a series of communications satellites owned by Indosat, an Indonesian telecommunications company. The first satellite was launched in July 1976, at which time Indonesia became the first developing country to operate its own domestic satellite system. The estimated cost for the project was US$1 billion.

Long March 2 rocket family or Chang Zheng 2 rocket family as in Chinese pinyin is an expendable launch system operated by the People's Republic of China. The rockets use the abbreviations LM-2 family for export, and CZ-2 family within China, as "Chang Zheng" means "Long March" in Chinese pinyin. They are part of the larger Long March rocket family. Development and design falls mostly under the auspices of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT).

The Zenit-3SL was an expendable carrier rocket operated by Sea Launch. First flown in 1999, it was launched 36 times, with three failures and one partial failure. It was a member of the Zenit family of rockets, and is built by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau. RKK Energia produced the Block DM-SL upper stage, whilst the payload fairing was produced by Boeing. Launches were conducted from the Ocean Odyssey platform anchored on the equator in the Pacific Ocean, at a point with 154°W longitude, about 370 kilometres east of Kiritimati.

ChinaSat is the brand name of communications satellites operated by China Satellite Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Proton-M</span> Russian heavy lift launcher which uses hypergolic fuel

The Proton-M, (Протон-М) GRAU index 8K82M or 8K82KM, is an expendable Russian heavy-lift launch vehicle derived from the Soviet-developed Proton. It is built by Khrunichev, and launched from sites 81 and 200 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Commercial launches are marketed by International Launch Services (ILS), and generally use Site 200/39. The first Proton-M launch occurred on 7 April 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long March 3B</span> Chinese orbital carrier rocket

The Long March 3B, also known as the CZ-3B and LM-3B, is a Chinese orbital launch vehicle. Introduced in 1996, it is launched from Launch Area 2 and 3 at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan. A three-stage rocket with four strap-on liquid rocket boosters, it is the heaviest variant of the Long March 3 rocket family, and is mainly used to place communications satellites and navigation satellites into geosynchronous orbits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long March 2E</span> Chinese rocket

The Long March 2E, also known as the Chang Zheng 2E, CZ-2E and LM-2E, was a Chinese orbital carrier rocket from the Long March 2 family. The Long March 2E was a three-stage carrier rocket that was designed to launch commercial communications satellites into geosynchronous transfer orbit. Launches took place from launch complex 2 at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center.

The Intelsat VI series of satellites were the 8th generation of geostationary communications satellites for the Intelsat Corporation. Designed and built by Hughes Aircraft Company (HAC) in 1983-1991, there were five VI-series satellites built: 601, 602, 603, 604, and 605.

Paksat-1R is a geosynchronous, communications satellite that was manufactured by China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC) and operated by the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), an executive space authority of the Government of Pakistan.

Orion 3 was an American spacecraft which was intended for use by Orion Network Systems, as a geostationary communications satellite. It was to have been positioned in geostationary orbit at a longitude of 139° East, from where it was to have provided communications services to Asia and Oceania. Due to a malfunction during launch, it was instead delivered to a useless low Earth orbit.

Palapa-D was an Indonesian geostationary communications satellite which was operated by Indosat Ooredoo. It was built by Thales Alenia Space, based on the Spacebus-4000B3 satellite bus, and carries 35 C-band and 5 Ku-band transponders. It was positioned in geostationary orbit at a longitude of 113° East, where it replaced the Palapa-C2 satellite.

SHERPA is a commercial satellite dispenser developed by Andrews Space, a subsidiary of Spaceflight Industries, and was unveiled in 2012. The maiden flight was on 3 December 2018 on a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, and it consisted of two separate unpropelled variants of the dispenser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ariane flight VA241</span> Space launch

Ariane flight VA241 was an Ariane 5 space launch that occurred from the Guiana Space Centre on 25 January 2018 at 22:20 UTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Small Satellite Launch Vehicle</span> Indian small-lift launch vehicle

The Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) is a small-lift launch vehicle developed by ISRO with payload capacity to deliver 500 kg (1,100 lb) to low Earth orbit or 300 kg (660 lb) to Sun-synchronous orbit for launching small satellites, with the capability to support multiple orbital drop-offs. SSLV is made keeping low cost, low turnaround time in mind with launch-on-demand flexibility under minimal infrastructure requirements.

References

  1. Pietrobon, Steven (30 December 2018). "Chinese Launch Manifest". Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  2. Nowakowski, Tomasz (7 December 2015). "Russian Soyuz-2.1v Launch a Partial Failure". Spaceflight Insider. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017. The mission was declared successful shortly after the launch, but the latest media reports indicate that one of the satellites did not separate from the rocket's upper stage and is most likely lost.
  3. Jones, Andrew (19 June 2017). "China confirms partial failure of Zhongxing-9A launch, measures being taken". GBTIMES. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.

Sources