The most massive artificial objects to reach space include space stations, various upper stages, and discarded Space Shuttle external tanks. Spacecraft may change mass over time such as by use of propellant.
During the Shuttle–Mir program between 1994 and 1998, the complex formed by the docking of a visiting Space Shuttle with Mir would temporarily make it heaviest artificial object in orbit with a combined mass of 250 tonnes (250 long tons ; 280 short tons ) in a 1995 configuration. [1] [2]
Currently the heaviest spacecraft is the International Space Station, nearly double Shuttle-Mir's mass in orbit. It began assembly with a first launch in 1998, however it only attained its full weight in the 2020s, due to its modular nature and gradual additions. Its mass can change significantly depending on what modules are added or removed.
The following are a list of spacecraft with a mass greater than 8,000 kg (17,637 lb), or the top three to any other orbit including a planetary orbit, or the top three of a specific category of vehicle, or the heaviest vehicle from a specific nation. All numbers listed below for satellites use their mass at launch, if not otherwise stated.
Name | Mass | Description | Orbit | State | In service from |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
International Space Station | 450,000 kg (992,080 lb) | Space station Listed mass includes attached vehicles and is estimated by ESA. [3] Completed station mass is 419,725kg [4] [5] | LEO | In service | 1998– (at present size: 2021) |
Starship Ship 28 | 200,000 kg (440,925 lb) [6] | Mass is a rough estimate and includes 100 tons of remaining propellant. [6] Demonstrated it could reach LEO. | Suborbital | Deorbited | 2024 |
Mir | 129,700 kg (285,940 lb) | Soviet / Russian space station | LEO | Deorbited 2001 | 1986–2001 |
Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-117 | 122,683 kg (270,470 lb) | Heaviest flight of the Space Shuttle with S3/S4 truss. | LEO | Retired | 1985–2011 |
Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-115 | 122,397 kg (269,839 lb) | P3/P4 truss, assembly flight 12A | LEO | Retired | 1985–2011 |
Buran | 105,000 kg (231,485 lb) | Soviet reusable orbiter of the Buran programme on flight 1K1. [7] | LEO | Retired | 1988 |
Tiangong | 102,000 kg (224,872 lb) | Chinese space station, with Tianzhou 5 & 6 attached. | LEO | In service | 2021– |
Skylab | 77,111 kg (170,001 lb) | U.S. space station; largest station orbited in one launch | LEO | Deorbited 1979 | 1973–1979 |
Apollo 16 CSM+LM | 52,759 kg (116,314 lb) | Heaviest spacecraft sent to lunar orbit. First mission to land in Lunar Highlands. Command module is on display in Alabama | Moon | Retired | 1972 |
Apollo 12 CSM+LM | 49,915 kg (110,044 lb) | LEM landed at Sinus Medii a small Lunar mare. Command module is on display in Virginia. | Moon | Retired | 1969 |
Artemis 1 Orion CM + ESM | 25,861 kg (57,014 lb) | U.S. crewed spacecraft for entering lunar orbit | Moon | In service | 2022- |
ATV-5 | 20,293 kg (44,738 lb) | European cargo spacecraft on its heaviest flight | LEO | Retired | 2008–2014 |
Salyut 7 | 19,824 kg (43,704 lb) | USSR space station | LEO | Deorbited 1991 | 1982–1991 |
KH-11 | 19,600 kg (43,211 lb) [8] | Electro-optical reconnaissance satellite | SSO | In service | 1976– (current version: 2005–) |
Salyut 1 | 18,425 kg (40,620 lb) | USSR space station | LEO | Deorbited 1971 | 1971–1971 |
TKS | 17,510 kg (38,603 lb) | Soviet crewed spacecraft | LEO | Retired | 1977–1985 |
Proton satellite | 17,000 kg (37,479 lb) | Space research satellite | LEO | Deorbited 1969 | 1965–1969 |
Compton Gamma Ray Observatory | 16,329 kg (35,999 lb) | Space observatory [9] | LEO | Deorbited 2000 | 1991–2000 |
Lacrosse | 14,500 kg (31,967 lb)- 16,000 kg (35,274 lb) | Radar imaging reconnaissance satellite [10] | SSO | Retired Lacrosse 5 still in orbit | 1988–2005 |
Hubble Space Telescope | 11,110 kg (24,493 lb) | Space observatory [11] | LEO | In service | 1990– |
Jupiter-3 (EchoStar-24) | 9,200 kg (20,283 lb) | Communications satellite | GEO | In service | 2023– |
Tiangong-2 | 8,600 kg (18,960 lb) | Chinese space station | LEO | Deorbited 2019 | 2016–2019 |
Tiangong-1 | 8,506 kg (18,753 lb) | Chinese space station | LEO | Deorbited 2018 | 2011–2016 |
Envisat | 8,211 kg (18,102 lb) | Earth observing satellite [12] [13] Kessler syndrome threat [14] | LEO | In orbit, inoperable | 2002–2012 |
Chang'e 5 | 8,200 kg (18,078 lb) | Chinese lunar sample return | Moon | In service | 2020– |
Shijian-20 | 8,000 kg (17,637 lb) | Communication Technology Test Satellite [15] | GEO | In service | 2019– |
Telstar 19V | 7,075 kg (15,598 lb) | Communications satellite | GEO | In service | 2018– |
TerreStar-1 | 6,910 kg (15,234 lb) | Communications satellite | GEO | In service | 2009– |
EchoStar XXI | 6,871 kg (15,148 lb) | Communications satellite [16] | GEO | In service | 2017– |
UARS | 6,540 kg (14,418 lb) | Earth science [17] | LEO | Deorbited 2011 | 1991–2005 |
James Webb Space Telescope | 6,500 kg (14,330 lb) | Space observatory | Sun-Earth L2 | In service | 2021– |
Phobos 1 | 6,220 kg (13,713 lb) | Soviet Mars Spacecraft that missed its orbital insertion burn | Solar Orbit | Lost contact 1988 | 1988 |
Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer | 5,963 kg (13,146 lb) | Jupiter science probe and Ganymede orbiter with an ETA in 2031. | Solar Orbit on route to Ganymede | In service | 2023– |
Falcon Heavy test flight | 5,900 kg (13,007 lb) | Maiden flight of Falcon Heavy with Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster , COSPAR 2018-017A | Solar Orbit | Lost contact 2018 | 2018 |
Chandra X-ray Obs. | 5,865 kg (12,930 lb) | Space observatory [18] | HEO | In service | 1999– |
GSAT-11 | 5,854 kg (12,906 lb) | Heaviest Indian communications satellite [19] | GEO | In service | 2018– |
Cassini-Huygens | 5,655 kg (12,467 lb) | Saturn orbiter and Titan probe [20] | Saturn | Deorbited 2017 | 1997–2017 |
Venera 15 & 16 | 5,300 kg (11,684 lb) | Venus orbiter | Venus | Retired | 1983–1985 |
Venera 10 | 5,033 kg (11,096 lb) | Venus orbiter & lander | Venus | Last contact 1976 | 1975–1976 |
Tianwen-1 | 5,000 kg (11,023 lb) | Tianwen-1 Mars orbiter, deployable and remote cameras, lander and Zhurong rover | Mars | In service | 2021– |
Terra | 4,864 kg (10,723 lb) | Earth observing satellite | SSO | In service | 1999– |
Mars 2 | 4,650 kg (10,251 lb) | Soviet Mars orbiter and lander | Mars | Retired | 1971–1972 |
ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter | 4,332 kg (9,550 lb) | Mars orbiter (including Schiaparelli EDM lander) [21] | Mars | In service | 2016– |
GSAT-24 | 4,181 kg (9,218 lb) | Indian Communication Satellite | GEO | In service | 2022- |
Chandrayaan-3 | 3900 kg (8,598 lb) | Lunar Lander-rover | Moon | In service | 2023- |
GPS IIIA | 3,880 kg (8,554 lb) | Current GPS satellite series | MEO | In service | 2018– |
Chandrayaan-2 | 3,850 kg (8,487 lb) | Lunar Orbiter-Lander-Rover | Moon | In service | 2019- |
Spektr-R (RadioAstron) | 3,660 kg (8,069 lb) | Space observatory [22] | HEO | In service | 2011– |
Juno | 3,625 kg (7,992 lb) | Jupiter orbiter [23] | Jupiter | In service | 2011– |
Viking 1 | 3,530 kg (7,782 lb) | USA Mars orbiter and lander | Mars | Retired | 1975–1982 |
Magellan (spacecraft) | 3,449 kg (7,604 lb) | Venus orbiter from USA | Venus | Deorbited 1994 | 1989–1994 |
Herschel | 3,400 kg (7,496 lb) | Space observatory | Sun-Earth L2 | Retired | 2009–2013 |
Galileo | 2,562 kg (5,648 lb) | Jupiter orbiter and probe [24] | Jupiter | Deorbited 2003 | 1989–2003 |
MAVEN | 2,454 kg (5,410 lb) | Mars orbiter [25] | Mars | In service | 2013– |
Apollo 10 LM AS "Snoopy" | 2,169 kg (4,782 lb) | Snoopy's assent stage was sent into orbit around the Sun. [26] [27] Dry mass of the assent stage is listed. | Solar Orbit | Retired | 1969 |
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter | 1,846 kg (4,070 lb) | Lunar orbiter [28] | Moon | In service | 2009– |
Lucy (spacecraft) | 1,550 kg (3,417 lb) | Asteroid space probe launched by USA | Solar Orbit | In service | 2021– |
Astrosat | 1,513 kg (3,336 lb) | Space observatory from India | LEO | In service | 2015– |
Mars Orbiter Mission | 1,337.2 kg (2,948 lb) | India's first Mars mission | Mars | Retired | 2013–2022 |
Venus Express | 1,270 kg (2,800 lb) | Venus orbiter from ESA | Venus | Deorbited 2015 | 2005–2014 |
MESSENGER | 1,093 kg (2,410 lb) | Mercury orbiter [29] | Mercury | Deorbited 2015 | 2011–2015 |
Voyager 1 / Voyager 2 | 815 kg (1,797 lb) | Outer planets / interstellar space [30] | Solar Escape | In service | 1977– |
New Horizons | 465 kg (1,025 lb) | Pluto/Kuiper belt probe [31] | Solar Escape | In service | 2006– |
Malligyong-1 | 300 kg (661 lb) | Heaviest North Korean reconnaissance satellite, 21 Nov 2023 launch [32] [33] | SSO | In service | 2023– |
Capstone | 25 kg (55 lb) | Lunar Orbiter | Moon | In service | 2022– |
MarCO | 13.5 kg (30 lb) each | Mars Flyby | Mars | Lost contact 2019 | 2018–2019 |
List of spacecraft families (by mass) with 3 or more flights into space and over 7000kg.
Name | Mass | Description | Orbit | State | In service from |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starship | 200,000 kg (440,925 lb) [6] | Mass includes 100 tons of payload or remaining propellant. [6] Mass is a ruff estimate. Ship 28 flew a long Suborbital flight, however it demonstrated it can reach LEO. | LEO | In development | 2020–2024 |
Space Shuttle orbiter | 122,683 kg (270,470 lb) | Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-117, the heaviest flight of the Space Shuttle. | LEO | Retired | 1981–2011 |
Apollo CSM | 28,800 kg (63,493 lb) | U.S. crewed spacecraft for entering lunar orbit | Moon | Retired | 1968–1975 (Block II) |
Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle | 26,520 kg (58,467 lb) | U.S. crewed spacecraft for entering lunar orbit | Moon | In service | 2022- |
ATV | 20,293 kg (44,738 lb) | European cargo spacecraft on its heaviest flight | LEO | Retired | 2008–2014 |
Apollo Lunar Module | 16,400 kg (36,156 lb) | U.S. crewed lunar lander | Moon | Retired | 1968–1972 |
Tianzhou | 14,000 kg (30,865 lb) | Chinese automated cargo spacecraft | LEO | In service | 2017– |
Crew Dragon | 12,519 kg (27,600 lb) | SpaceX crewed spacecraft | LEO | In service | 2019– |
Soyuz | 7,080 kg (15,609 lb) | Russian crewed spacecraft (latest revision used for mass) | LEO | In service | 1967– (variants) 2016– (Soyuz MS) |
The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station assembled and maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies: NASA, Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), CSA (Canada), and their contractors. ISS is the largest space station ever built. Its primary purpose is performing microgravity and space environment experiments.
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program name was Space Transportation System (STS), taken from a 1969 plan for a system of reusable spacecraft where it was the only item funded for development.
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station is an artificial satellite. Stations must have docking ports to allow other spacecraft to dock to transfer crew and supplies. The purpose of maintaining an orbital outpost varies depending on the program. Space stations have most often been launched for scientific purposes, but military launches have also occurred.
Mir was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. Mir was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to 1996. It had a greater mass than any previous spacecraft. At the time it was the largest artificial satellite in orbit, succeeded by the International Space Station (ISS) after Mir's orbit decayed. The station served as a microgravity research laboratory in which crews conducted experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology, and spacecraft systems with a goal of developing technologies required for permanent occupation of space.
Human spaceflight programs have been conducted, started, or planned by multiple countries and companies. Until the 21st century, human spaceflight programs were sponsored exclusively by governments, through either the military or civilian space agencies. With the launch of the privately funded SpaceShipOne in 2004, a new category of human spaceflight programs – commercial human spaceflight – arrived. By the end of 2022, three countries and one private company (SpaceX) had successfully launched humans to Earth orbit, and two private companies had launched humans on a suborbital trajectory.
STS-105 was a mission of the Space Shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station, launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, 10 August 2001. This mission was Discovery's final mission until STS-114, because Discovery was grounded for a refit, and then all Shuttles were grounded in the wake of the Columbia disaster. The refit included an update of the flight deck to the glass cockpit layout, which was already installed on Atlantis and Columbia.
The U.S. Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) is a network of American communications satellites and ground stations used by NASA for space communications. The system was designed to replace an existing network of ground stations that had supported all of NASA's crewed flight missions. The prime design goal was to increase the time spacecraft were in communication with the ground and improve the amount of data that could be transferred. Many Tracking and Data Relay Satellites were launched in the 1980s and 1990s with the Space Shuttle and made use of the Inertial Upper Stage, a two-stage solid rocket booster developed for the shuttle. Other TDRS were launched by Atlas IIa and Atlas V rockets.
The Shuttle–Mir program was a collaborative 11-mission space program between Russia and the United States that involved American Space Shuttles visiting the Russian space station Mir, Russian cosmonauts flying on the Shuttle, and an American astronaut flying aboard a Soyuz spacecraft to engage in long-duration expeditions aboard Mir.
A space rendezvous is a set of orbital maneuvers during which two spacecraft, one of which is often a space station, arrive at the same orbit and approach to a very close distance. Rendezvous requires a precise match of the orbital velocities and position vectors of the two spacecraft, allowing them to remain at a constant distance through orbital station-keeping. Rendezvous may or may not be followed by docking or berthing, procedures which bring the spacecraft into physical contact and create a link between them.
Spaceflight began in the 20th century following theoretical and practical breakthroughs by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Robert H. Goddard, and Hermann Oberth, each of whom published works proposing rockets as the means for spaceflight. The first successful large-scale rocket programs were initiated in Nazi Germany by Wernher von Braun. The Soviet Union took the lead in the post-war Space Race, launching the first satellite, the first animal, the first human and the first woman into orbit. The United States caught up with, and then passed, their Soviet rivals during the mid-1960s, landing the first men on the Moon in 1969. In the same period, France, the United Kingdom, Japan and China were concurrently developing more limited launch capabilities.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to space exploration.
This article outlines notable events occurring in 1996 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.
This article outlines notable events occurring in 1995 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.
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