This article lists orbital and suborbital launches during the first quarter of the year 2026.
For all other spaceflight activities, see 2026 in spaceflight. For launches during the rest of 2026, see List of spaceflight launches in April–June 2026, List of spaceflight launches in July–September 2026, and List of spaceflight launches in October–December 2026.
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | |||
| Remarks | ||||||||
January | ||||||||
| ↓ Upcoming launches ↓ | ||||||||
| 4 January 05:00:00 [1] | | Starlink Group 6-88 | | | ||||
| | SpaceX | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| 5 January [2] | | | | |||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (SSO) | Visible Astronomy | |||||
| | Spire Global | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| | Kepler Communications | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Spire Global | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Mission Designated:"Twilight". | ||||||||
| 8 January 06:55:00 [3] | | Starlink Group 6-96 | | | ||||
| | SpaceX | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| 10 January 04:15:00 [4] [5] [6] | | C62 | | | ||||
| | DRDO | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| | Orbital Paradigm | Low Earth (SSO) | Re-entry Capsule | |||||
| | EON Space Labs | Low Earth (SSO) | Visible Astronomy | |||||
| Return to flight of PSLV after a launch failure on 18 May 2025. | ||||||||
| 10 January [7] | | Starlink Group 6-97 | | | ||||
| | SpaceX | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| 17 January [8] | | | | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Second flight of the Isar Aerospace Spectrum launch vehicle. This launch will carry several cubesats as part of European Space Agency (ESA)'s "Boost!" program. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [9] | | V-005 | | | ||||
| | USSF | Geosynchronous | Space surveillance | |||||
| | USSF | Geosynchronous | Space surveillance | |||||
| | USSF | Geosynchronous | TBA | |||||
| USSF-87 Mission. It will launch two identical Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness satellites, GSSAP-7 and 8, directly to a geosynchronous orbit. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [12] | | Starlink Group 10-36 | | | ||||
| | SpaceX | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| Booster will land within The Bahamas, first operational launch to do so after the trajectory was tested during launch of Starlink Group 10-12 in February 2025. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [13] | | | | |||||
| | AST SpaceMobile | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| BlueBird Block 2 Mission 2. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [14] [15] | | G1 | | | ||||
| | ISRO | Low Earth | Flight test | |||||
| Maiden Flight of HLVM 3, Human rated Version of LVM3. First Gaganyaan flight test. First orbital flight of the Gaganyaan spacecraft and First flight of the LVM3 with an escape tower. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [16] | | "Bridging The Swarm" | | | ||||
| | KASA | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | |||||
| January (TBD) [17] [18] | | NG-3 | | | ||||
| | Blue Origin | TLI to lunar surface | Lunar lander Technology demonstration | |||||
| Blue Moon Pathfinder Mission 1 (MK1-SN001), expected to launch between January and December 2026. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [19] [20] | | | | |||||
| | ASI | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| Third COSMO-SkyMed 2nd Generation satellite. | ||||||||
| January (TBD) [21] | | Y? | | | ||||
| | SUPARCO | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
February | ||||||||
| 1 February 07:30:00 [22] | | F9 | | | ||||
| | CAO | GTO to Geosynchronous | Navigation | |||||
| QZS-7 carries a USSF SĀCHI Space Situational Awareness payload. Quasi-geostationary (slight incline and eccentricity) orbit. | ||||||||
| 5 February 01:09:00 [23] | | | | |||||
| | NASA | Lunar free-return | Crewed lunar flyby | |||||
| ⚀ | DLR | Heliocentric | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | KARI | Heliocentric | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | SSA | Heliocentric | Space Weather | |||||
| ⚀ | CONAE | TBA | TBA | |||||
| First crewed test flight of SLS and Orion. | ||||||||
| 15 February [24] | | | | |||||
| | NASA | Low Earth (ISS) | Expedition 74 / 75 | |||||
| Twelfth operational Crew Dragon mission to the ISS. | ||||||||
| 12 February [25] [26] [27] | | | | |||||
| | Roscosmos | Geosynchronous | Meteorology | |||||
| Last launch of Proton-M in Proton-M/DM-03 Configuration. Future launches using DM-03 upper stage will fly on Angara A5 as Persei/Orion Upper stage from Plesetsk and Vostochny and is the last time the upper stage will fly from Baikonur. | ||||||||
| 25 February 02:00:00 [29] [30] | | F3 | | | ||||
| | Terra Space | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | Space Cubics | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | Hiroo Gakuen | Low Earth (SSO) | Technology demonstration / Educational | |||||
| ⚀ | ArkEdge Space | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TASA | Low Earth (SSO) | Amateur radio | |||||
| February (TBD) [31] | | | | |||||
| | United States Space Force | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | TBA | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | TBA | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | Texas A&M University | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | TBA | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | Auburn University | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| | TBA | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | SOCOM | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | University of Georgia,Athens | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | NMSU | Low Earth | Ionospheric Research | |||||
| STP-S29A mission. | ||||||||
| February (TBD) [32] | | | | |||||
| ▫ | Catalyx Space | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| Maiden flight of Vikram 1. | ||||||||
| February (TBD) [34] | | | | |||||
| | NOAA | Low Earth | Meteorology | |||||
| First satellite in NOAA's Near Earth Orbit Network (NEON) Program. | ||||||||
March | ||||||||
| 22 March 22:59:00 [35] | | | | |||||
| | Roscosmos | Low Earth (ISS) | ISS logistics | |||||
| March (TBD) [36] | | | | |||||
| | Eta Space | Low Earth (SSO) | Propellant depot Technology demonstration | |||||
| March (TBD) [37] [38] | | Transporter-16 | | | ||||
| | Momentus Space | Low Earth (SSO) | Space Tug | |||||
| | Argo Space | Low Earth (SSO) | Space Tug | |||||
| | Galaxeye | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| | PhilSA / UP Diliman / DOST-ASTI | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| | K2 Space | Low Earth (SSO) | Space Tug | |||||
| | Lumir1 | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| | Carbon Mapper / Planet Labs / JPL | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| ⚀ | Care Weather | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | NASA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | University of Colorado Boulder | Low Earth | Magnetospheric research | |||||
| ⚀ | NASA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | NASA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Kuva Space | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | HANCOM | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Dedicated SmallSat Rideshare mission to sun-synchronous orbit, designated Transporter-16. | ||||||||
| March (TBD) [42] [43] [ citation needed ] | | | | |||||
| | Roscosmos | Low Earth | Dummy payload | |||||
| First launch of Irtysh, also known as Soyuz-5. A dummy payload matching a future satellite in weight and size will be launched. | ||||||||
| March (TBD) [44] [45] [ citation needed ] | | | | |||||
| | U.S. Space Force | Geosynchronous | Early warning | |||||
| USSF-57 mission. [46] First satellite of the Next-Generation Overhead Persistent InfraRed (NG-OPIR) constellation, follow-up of SBIRS. | ||||||||
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | |||
| Remarks | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [47] [48] | | N1 | | | ||||
| | ISRO | Low Earth (SSO) | Oceanography | |||||
| | ISRO/Mauritius | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| | Dhruva Space | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Q1 (TBD) [50] | | F17 | | | ||||
| | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Navigation | |||||
| Next generation NaVic satellite. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [51] | | "Kakushin Rising" | | | ||||
| ⚀ | Nagoya University | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | National Institute of Technology, Yonago College | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Future Science Institute | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Aoyama Gakuin University | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Waseda University | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Di-Nikko Engineering Co., Ltd. | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Tokyo Institute of Technology | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Nihon University | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Part of the Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration-4 mission. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [52] | | | | |||||
| | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Technology demonstration | |||||
| Q1 (TBD) [53] | | F18 | | | ||||
| | ISRO | Geosynchronous | Earth observation | |||||
| Q1 (TBD) [54] | | | | |||||
| | Rocket Lab | Low Earth | Flight test | |||||
| Maiden flight of Neutron, lifting off from Launch Complex 3 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. [55] | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [56] | | | | |||||
| | KARI | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| The launch of this mission was originally planned with Roscosmos' Angara 1.2 rocket, but the South Korean Ministry of Science cancelled this contract due to sanctions against Russia and signed a launch contract with Arianespace. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [58] | | | | |||||
| | Northrop Grumman / DARPA | Geosynchronous | Satellite servicing | |||||
| | Northrop Grumman | Geosynchronous | Satellite servicing | |||||
| The Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV) will carry DARPA's Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Spacecraft (RSGS) Robotic Payload. [59] It will install three propulsion jet packs, referred to as Mission Extension Pods (MEP), on satellites that are nearing the end of their operational lifespans. Two of the three MEPs will be installed on Optus D3 and an Intelsat satellite. [60] | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [61] [45] | | V-004 | | | ||||
| | U.S. Space Force | Medium Earth | Navigation | |||||
| First GPS mission on Vulcan Centaur. Named after NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [62] [63] | | V-006 | | | ||||
| | USSF/Northrop Grumman | Geosynchronous | Communications/Technology demonstration | |||||
| First WGS launch on Vulcan. On-orbit demonstration mission for the U.S. Space Force's Protected Tactical Satcom (PTS) program. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [62] | | V-007 | | | ||||
| | United States Space Force | Geosynchronous | Technology demonstration | |||||
| | USSF | TBA | TBA | |||||
| USSF-43 Mission. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [65] [ citation needed ] | | V-008/Cert-3/LV-01/Leo-4 | | | ||||
| | Amazon Leo | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| Maiden flight of Vulcan Centaur VC6L Configuration. First launch of the LEO optimized Centaur V upper stage. The launch will also serve as a certification flight for this new configuration for the USSF. First of 38 Vulcan Centaur launches for Amazon's Amazon Leo. Mission Designated "Vulcan Leo Mission #1 (LV-01)" | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [66] | | LV-02 | | | ||||
| | Amazon Leo | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| Second of 38 Vulcan Centaur launches for Amazon's Amazon Leo. Mission Designated "Vulcan Leo Mission #2 (LV-02)" | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [67] | | VA267 | | | ||||
| | Amazon Leo | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| Maiden flight of Ariane 6 in A64 Configuration and First of 18 Ariane 6 launches for Amazon's Amazon Leo. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [68] [69] | | Flight 13 | | | ||||
| | SpaceX | Low Earth | Communications | |||||
| Thirteenth Starship flight test. Flight 13 is expected to be the first orbital flight of Starship, as well as the first to target a tower catch of the upper stage. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [70] | | | | |||||
| | PLD Space | Low Earth | Flight test | |||||
| First flight of Miura 5. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [71] | | | | |||||
| | TBA | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| Q1 (TBD) [72] | | F6 | | | ||||
| | JAXA | Low Earth to Suborbital | Launch vehicle evaluation | |||||
| | Tokyo Institute of Technology | Low Earth | Earth observation Astronomy | |||||
| | Shizuoka University | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | Kyushu Institute of Technology | Low Earth | Astronomy | |||||
| ⚀ | BULL | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | UnseenLabs | Low Earth | SIGINT | |||||
| Maiden flight of H3-30S Variant. PETREL and STARS-X are part of the Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration-3 mission. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [73] | | | | |||||
| ⚀ | ESA | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| ⚀ | ESA | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | |||||
| First Electron launch for European Space Agency (ESA) to deploy the first pair of satellites for a future navigation constellation, Celeste (LEO-PNT) (Low Earth Orbit Positioning, Navigation, and Timing). Rocket Lab will launch two "Pathfinder A" spacecraft, provided by European satellite prime contractors Thales Alenia Space and GMV, to a 510km low Earth orbit. [74] | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [75] [ citation needed ] | | | | |||||
| | Synspective | Low Earth (SSO) | Earth observation | |||||
| Eighth of 16 dedicated launches for Synspective's StriX constellation. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [76] [77] | | L1 | | | ||||
| | ISRO | Low Earth | TBA | |||||
| ⚀ | Manipal Institute of Technology | Low Earth | Earth observation | |||||
| First operational SSLV mission following three developmental flights. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [79] [80] | | | | |||||
| ⚀ | Phantom Space / TWA | Low Earth | Meteorology | |||||
| First pair of satellites for Tropical Weather Analytics' (TWA) Hurricane Hunter Satellite Constellation. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [81] | | | | |||||
| | ISA / Weizmann Institute of Science | Geosynchronous | Ultraviolet astronomy | |||||
| Q1 (TBD) [82] | | Y1 | | | ||||
| | TBA | Low Earth (SSO) | TBA | |||||
| Maiden flight of Ceres-2. | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [83] | | Y1 | | | ||||
| | Space Pioneer | Low Earth (SSO) | Flight test | |||||
| Maiden flight of the Tianlong-3 launch vehicle. [84] [85] | ||||||||
| Q1 (TBD) [86] | | | | |||||
| | CAS | Low Earth | Flight test | |||||
| Maiden launch of Kinetica 2. First launch of the Qingzhou spacecraft. | ||||||||
For flights after 31 March, see List of spaceflight launches in April–June 2026 | ||||||||
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
| Remarks | |||||||
| 25 January [87] | | | | ||||
| | Virginia Tech | Suborbital | Geospace science | ||||
| 25 January [87] | | | | ||||
| | Goddard Space Flight Center | Suborbital | |||||
| Black and Diffuse Aurora Science Surveyor (BADASS). | |||||||
| January (TBD) [88] [89] [90] | | Flight 12 | | | |||
| | SpaceX | Suborbital | Vehicle evaluation | ||||
| Twelfth Starship flight test. Flight 12 will feature the first use of Block 3 vehicles, as well as being the first launch from Starbase's second launch pad. It will repeat the same flight profile as the previous flights, with the ship falling slightly short of reaching orbit. | |||||||
| January (TBD) [91] | | | | ||||
| | CNES | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | ||||
| 2 February [87] | | | | ||||
| | Penn State University | Suborbital | X-ray astronomy | ||||
| Off-Plane Grating Rocket Experiment (OGRE). | |||||||
| 10 February [87] | | | | ||||
| | Dartmouth College | Suborbital | Auroral science | ||||
| First of two launches. [92] | |||||||
| 10 February [87] | | | | ||||
| | Dartmouth College | Suborbital | Auroral science | ||||
| Second of two launches. [92] | |||||||
| February (TBD) [93] | | | | ||||
| | KTH | Suborbital | Thermospheric research | ||||
| 1 March [87] | | | | ||||
| | United States Naval Research Laboratory | Suborbital | Solar observation | ||||
| 23 March [87] | | | | ||||
| | Wallops Flight Facility | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | ||||
| March (TBD) [91] | | | | ||||
| | DLR / SNSA | Suborbital | Education | ||||
| March (TBD) [91] | | | | ||||
| | DLR / SNSA | Suborbital | Education | ||||
| March (TBD) [96] | | V02 | | | |||
| | ESA | Suborbital | Hipersonic glider | ||||
| TBD [97] [98] | | | | ||||
| | Department of Aerospace Science and Technology | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | ||||
| TBD [99] | | | | ||||
| | OPUS Aerospace | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | ||||
| TBD [100] | | | | ||||
| | SUAS Aerospace | Suborbital | |||||
| Pathfinder is Ireland's first commercial rocket launch. | |||||||
| TBD [101] [102] | | | | ||||
| | Perigee Aerospace | Low Earth | Flight Test | ||||
| Suborbital test flight of the Blue Whale 1 orbital launch vehicle. | |||||||
| TBD [103] [104] | | | | ||||
| TBA | Equatorial Space | Suborbital | Microgravity research | ||||
| Maiden flight of Dorado. | |||||||
| TBD [105] [106] | | | | ||||
| | T-Minus Engineering | Suborbital | Test flight | ||||
| First launch from the North Sea spaceport. Part of the EOS Demo #1 launch campaign. | |||||||
| TBD [107] [108] | | Duqm-2 | | | |||
| ⚀ | JUPITER | Suborbital | Earth observation / Education | ||||
| ⚀ | SIGHT Space | Suborbital | Record data during flight | ||||
| TBD [87] | | | NASA | ||||
| | University of Colorado | Suborbital | Astronomy | ||||
| TBD [91] | | S1X-5/M17 | | | |||
| | SSC | Suborbital | Microgravity research | ||||
| SubOrbital Express Microgravity flight opportunity 17. | |||||||
| TBD [91] | | | | ||||
| | DLR / ESA | Suborbital | Microgravity research | ||||
We're currently building two demonstration satellites that will launch in early 2023 and plan to expand to a fully operational constellation of many satellites by 2025.
Rocket Lab has been the sole launch provider for Synspective's StriX constellation to date, successfully deploying four StriX satellites across four dedicated Electron launches. In addition to the 10 new dedicated launches signed today, another two launches for Synspective have already been booked and are scheduled for launch this year from Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand. The launches in the new deal will take place across 2025 – 2027.
Following are the space programmes & missions planned in the year 2024. [...] One SSLV mission, to launch a technology demonstration Satellite (EOS-08).