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Orbital launches | |
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Total | 6 |
The United States National Space Science Data Center catalogued 157 spacecraft placed into orbit by launches which occurred in 1968. [1] The first crewed Apollo missions occurred in 1968. It was also the year in which Earth lifeforms first left low Earth orbit, during the successful Zond 5 mission to the Moon and the Zond 6 lunar mission which crashed upon return, and the year that humans first left low Earth orbit, during the successful Apollo 8 mission to the Moon.
Date (UTC) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
10 January | Surveyor 7 | Lunar landing | in the debris from Tycho crater |
31 January | Lunar Orbiter 5 | Lunar impact | |
10 April | Luna 14 | Lunar orbit insertion | |
18 September | Zond 5 | Flyby of the Moon; first return to Earth after flight to Moon; first Earth life forms to travel around the Moon (two Russian tortoises) | Closest approach: 1,950 kilometres (1,210 mi) |
14 November | Zond 6 | Flyby of the Moon, with turtles, flies, and bacteria | Closest approach: 2,420 kilometres (1,500 mi) |
24 December | Apollo 8 | Lunar orbit insertion; first humans to travel around the Moon | |
25 December | Apollo 8 | Leaves lunar orbit | Completed 10 orbits |
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
7 January | Atlas-SLV3 Centaur-D | Cape Canaveral SLC-36A | |||||
Surveyor 7 | NASA | Selenocentric | Lunar lander | In orbit | Successful | ||
11 January | Delta E1 | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
Explorer 36 (GEOS-B) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 January | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 199 (Zenit-2 #58) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
17 January | Thor SLV-2A Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-2W | |||||
OPS 1965 Multigroup 3&Setter 1B-2 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 January | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5028 KH-8 4311 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
19 January | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 200 (Tselina O #2) | Low Earth Orbit | SIGNIT | In orbit | Successful | |||
22 January 23:45 | Saturn IB (C-1B) | LC-37B, Cape Canaveral | NASA | ||||
Apollo 5 | NASA | LEO | Test Lunar Module | 12 February 1968 09:59 | successful | ||
Minor malfunction of LM descent stage engine, otherwise successful | |||||||
24 January | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1E | |||||
OPS 5028 KH-4A 1045 | CIA | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
Tivoli 1 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
6 February | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 201 (Zenit-4 #38) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
7 February | Molniya-M / Blok L | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
(Ye-6LS No 112) | Selenocentric | Lunar Orbiter | In orbit | Failure | |||
20 January | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 202 (DS-U2-V #4) | Low Earth Orbit | Ionospheric research | In orbit | Successful | |||
20 January | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 203 (Sfera #1) | Low Earth Orbit | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
2 March | Scout-A | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
OPS 7034 Transit 18 | USN | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Successful | ||
2 March | Proton K / Blok D | Pad 81/23, Baikonur | MOM | ||||
Zond 4 (L1 6) | MOM | Lunar Free-return | Prototype Soyuz 7K-L1P/Zond | In orbit | Successful | ||
4 March | Atlas-SLV3 Agena-D | Cape Canaveral LC-13 | |||||
OGO 5 (EGO 3) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
5 March | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 204 (DS-P1-I #3) | Low Earth Orbit | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | |||
5 March | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 205 (Zenit-2 #59) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
5 March | Scout-B | Wallops | |||||
Explorer 37 (Solrad 9) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
6 March | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
(DS-U1-Ya #1) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Failure | |||
13 March | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5057 KH-8 4312 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
14 March | Vostok-2M | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 206 (Meteor-1 #9) | Low Earth Orbit | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | |||
14 March | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1E | |||||
OPS 4849 KH-4A 1046 | CIA | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
OPS 7076 Lampan 1 / Sampan 2 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 March | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 207 (Zenit-4 #39) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
21 March | Voskhod | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 208 (Zenit-2M #1,Gektor #1) & Nauka-1KS 1L | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
22 March | Tsyklon-2A | Site 90/19, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 209 (US-AO #4) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
3 April | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 210 (Zenit-2 #60) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
4 April 12:00:02 | Saturn V (C-5) | LC-39A, Kennedy | NASA | ||||
Apollo 6 | NASA | Low Earth (achieved) TLI to direct return abort (planned) | Test CSM heat shield at Lunar return speeds. Test S-IVB re-ignition in LEO. | 4 April 1968 21:57:26 | Partial failure | ||
Experienced Pogo oscillation during S-IC first stage ascent. S-IVB failed restart test. | |||||||
6 April | Atlas F | Vandenberg | |||||
OV1 13 | USAF | Low Earth | In orbit | Successful | |||
OV1 14 | USAF | Low Earth | In orbit | Successful | |||
7 April | Molniya-M / Blok L | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Luna 14 | Selenocentric | Lunar Orbiter | In orbit | Successful | |||
9 April | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 211 (DS-P1-Yu #12) | Low Earth Orbit | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | |||
14 April | Soyuz | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 212 (Soyuz Test #5) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
15 April | Soyuz | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 213 (Soyuz Test #6) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
17 April | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5105 KH-8 4313 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 April | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 214 (Zenit-4 #40) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 April | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 215 (DS-U1-A #1) | Low Earth Orbit | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | |||
20 April | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 216 (Zenit-2 #61) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
21 April | Molniya-M / Blok ML | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Molniya-1 08 | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
22 April | Proton K / Blok D | Pad 81/23, Baikonur | MOM | ||||
Zond (L1 7) | MOM | Lunar Free-return | Prototype Soyuz 7K-L1P/Zond | In orbit | Failure | ||
24 April | Tsyklon-2A | Site 90/19, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 217 (I2M #1) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
25 April | R-36-0 | Site 162/36, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 218 (OGCh #17) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
26 April | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 219 (DS-U2-D #2) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
1 May | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
OPS 1413 KH-4B 1103 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
7 May | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 220 (Zaliv #2) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
17 May | Scout B | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
ESRO 2B (Iris 2) | ESRO | Low Earth Orbit | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 May | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
Nimbus B | NASA/NOAA | Low Earth | Meteorology | In orbit | Failure | ||
SECOR 10 | US Army | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Failure | ||
23 May | Thor LV-2F Burner 2 | Vandenberg SLC-10W | |||||
OPS 7869 DMSP-4B F1 | Low Earth | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | |||
24 May | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 221 (DS-P1-Yu #13) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
30 May | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 222 (DS-P1-Yu #14) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
1 June | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 223 (Zenit-2 #62) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
4 June | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 224 (Zenit-4 #41) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
4 June | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk Site 132/2 | |||||
Sfera #2 | Low Earth Orbit | Geodesy | In orbit | Failure | |||
5 June | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5138 KH-8 4314 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
11 June | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 225 (DS-U1-Ya #2) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
12 June | Vostok-2M | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 226 (Meteor-1 #10) | Low Earth Orbit | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | |||
13 June 14:03:00 | Titan IIIC | LC-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station | USAF | ||||
OPS 9341 IDCSP 20 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9342 IDCSP 21 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9343 IDCSP 22 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9344 IDCSP 23 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9345 IDCSP 24 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9346 IDCSP 25 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9347 IDCSP 26 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
OPS 9348 IDCSP 27 | USAF | Sub-GSO | Part of the Initial Defense Communications Satellite Program | In orbit | Success | ||
15 June | Kosmos 3 | Plesetsk Site 41/15 | |||||
(Strela-2 #4) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Failure | |||
18 June | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 227 (Zenit-4 #42) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
20 June | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1E | |||||
OPS 5343 KH-4A 1047 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
OPS 5259 Tripos 3/Sousea 2 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
21 June | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 228 (Zenit-2M #2,Gektor #2&Nauka-1KS 2L) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
26 June | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 229 (Zenit-4 #43) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
4 July | Delta J | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
Explorer 38 (RAE A) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
5 July | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 230 (DS-U3-S #2) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
5 July | Molniya-M / Blok ML | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Molniya-1 09 | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
10 July | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 231 (Zenit-2 #63) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
11 July | Atlas F | Vandenberg | |||||
OV1 15 (SPADES) | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
OV1 16 (LOADS 1) | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 July | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 232 (Zenit-4 #44) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 July | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 233 (DS-P1-Yu #15) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
30 July | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 234 (Zenit-4 #45) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
6 August | Atlas-SLV3 Agena-D | Cape Canaveral LC-13 | |||||
OPS 2222 Canyon 1 | USAF | Low Earth | SIGNIT | In orbit | Successful | ||
6 August | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5187 KH-8 4315 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
7 August | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
OPS 5955 KH-4B 1104 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
8 August | Scout B | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
Explorer 39 (AD C) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
Explorer 40 (Injun 5) | NASA | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
9 August | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 235 (Zenit-2 #64) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
10 August | Atlas-SLV3 Centaur-D | Cape Canaveral SLC-36A | |||||
ATS 4 | NASA | Geosynchronous | Communications/Meteorology | In orbit | Failure | ||
16 August | Delta N | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
ESSA 7 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
16 August | Atlas-SLV3 Burner-2 | Vandenberg SLC-3E | |||||
Orbiscal 1 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
OV5 8 (ERS 19) | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
Gridsphere 1 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
Gridsphere 2 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
MylarBalloon | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
Rigidsphere | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
LCS 3 | MIT Lincoln Laboratory | Low Earth | Calibration | In orbit | Failure | ||
LIDOS | USAF | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Failure | ||
SECOR 11 | US Army | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Failure | ||
SECOR 12 | US Army | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Failure | ||
Radcat | Low Earth | Calibration | In orbit | Failure | |||
RM 18 & UVR | USAF | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Failure | ||
27 August | Kosmos 3 | Baikonur Site 41/15 | |||||
Kosmos 236 (Strela-2 #5) | Low Earth Orbit | Military communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
27 August | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 237 (Zenit-4 #46) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
28 August | Soyuz | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 238 (Soyuz Test #7) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
5 September | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 239 (Zenit-4 #47) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
10 September | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5247 KH-8 4316 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
14 September | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 240 (Zenit-2 #65) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
14 September | Proton K / Blok D | Pad 81/23, Baikonur | MOM | ||||
Zond 5 (L1 9) | MOM | Lunar Free-return | Prototype Soyuz 7K-L1P/Zond | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 September | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 241 (Zenit-4 #48) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
18 September | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1E | |||||
OPS 0165 KH-4A 1048 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
OPS 8595 Vampan 1 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
19 September | Delta M | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Intelsat III F1 | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Failure | ||
20 September | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 242 (DS-P1-I #4) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
23 September | Voskhod | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 243 (Zenit-2M #3,Gektor #3 & Nauka-2KS 1L) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
26 September | Titan IIIC | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | |||||
LES 6 | USAF | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | |||
OV2 5 | USAF | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | |||
OV5 2 (ERS 21) | USAF | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | |||
OV5 4 (ERS 28) | USAF | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
2 October | R-36-0 | Site 161/35, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 244 (OGCh #20) | Low Earth Orbit | Weapon System Test | In orbit | Successful | |||
3 October | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 245 (DS-P1-Yu #16) | Low Earth Orbit | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | |||
3 October | Scout-B | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
ESRO 1A (Aurorae) | ESRO | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
5 October | Molniya-M / Blok ML | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Molniya-1 10 | Molniya | Communications | In orbit | Successful | |||
5 October | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1W | |||||
OPS 0964 Strawman 1 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
7 October | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 246 (Zenit-4 #49) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
11 October | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 247 (Zenit-2 #66) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
11 October 1968 15:02 | Saturn IB (C-1B) | LC-34, Cape Canaveral | NASA | ||||
Apollo 7 | NASA | LEO | Crewed orbital flight | 22 October 1968 11:11:48 | Successful | ||
First crewed Apollo flight | |||||||
19 October | Tsyklon-2A | Site 90/19, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 248 (I2M #2) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
20 October | Tsyklon-2A | Site 90/20, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 249 (I2P #1) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
23 October | Thor LV-2F Burner 2 | Vandenberg SLC-10W | |||||
OPS 4078 DSMP-4B F2 | Low Earth (SSO) | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | |||
25 October 1968 09:00 | Soyuz (R-7/A-2) | LC-1/5, Baikonur | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 2 | RVSN | LEO | Docking target for Soyuz 3 | 28 October 1968 07:21 | Successful | ||
Soyuz 3 failed to dock | |||||||
26 October 08:34 | Soyuz (R-7/A-2) | LC-31/6 Baikonur | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 3 | RVSN | LEO | Crewed orbital flight | 30 October 1968 07:25:03 | Partial Failure | ||
Failed to dock with Soyuz 2 | |||||||
30 October | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 250 (Tselina-O #3) | Low Earth Orbit | SIGNIT | In orbit | Successful | |||
31 October | Voskhod | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 251 (Zenit-4M #1,Rotor #1) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
1 November | Tsyklon-2A | Site 90/20, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 252 (I2P #2) | Low Earth Orbit | In orbit | Successful | ||||
3 November | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
OPS 1315 KH-4B 1105 | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
6 November | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 5296 KH-8 4317 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
8 November | Delta E1 | Cape Canaveral SLC-17B | |||||
Pioneer 9 | NASA | Heliocentric | Solar Orbiter | In orbit | Successful | ||
TTS 2 | NASA | Low Earth | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
10 November | Proton K / Blok D | Pad 81/23, Baikonur | MOM | ||||
Zond 6 (L1 12) | MOM | Lunar Free-return | Prototype Soyuz 7K-L1P/Zond | In orbit | Successful | ||
13 November | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 253 (Zenit-2 #67) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 November | Proton K | Pad 81/24, Baikonur | MOM | ||||
Proton 4 | MOM | Low Earth | Science | In orbit | Successful | ||
21 November | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 254 (Zenit-4 #50) | GRU | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
29 November | Voskhod | Site 41/1, Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 255 (Zenit-2 #68) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
29 November | Europa 1 | Woomera | |||||
STV 1 | ELDO | Low Earth Orbit | Dummy Payload | In orbit | Failure | ||
30 November | Kosmos 3M | Plesetsk | |||||
Kosmos 256 (Sfera #3) | Low Earth Orbit | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
3 December | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 257 (DS-P1-Yu #17) | Low Earth Orbit | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | |||
4 December | Titan IIIB Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 6518 KH-8 4318 | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Failure | ||
5 December | Delta E1 | Cape Canaveral LC-17B | |||||
HEOS 1 | ESRO | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Successful | ||
7 December | Atlas-SLV3 Agena-D | Cape Canaveral LC-36B | |||||
OAO 2 | Low Earth | UV Astronomy | In orbit | Successful | |||
10 December | Voskhod | Site 31/6, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 258 (Zenit-2 #69) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
12 December | Thorad-SLV2G Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
OPS 4740 KH-4A 1049 | CIA | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
OPS 7684 P-801 1 | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
14 December | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 259 (DS-U2-I #3) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
15 December | Delta N | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
ESSA 8 | ESSA | SSO | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | ||
16 December | Molniya-M / Blok ML | Site 1/5, Baikonur | |||||
Kosmos 260 (Molniya-1 Yu 15L) | Molniya | Technology Demonstration | In orbit | Successful | |||
19 December | Delta M | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Intelsat III F2 | Intelsat | Geosynchronous | In orbit | Successful | |||
19 December | Kosmos 2 | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 261 (DS-U2-GK #1) | Yuzhnoye Design Bureau | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
21 December 12:51 | Saturn V (C-5) | LC-39A, Kennedy | NASA | ||||
Apollo 8 | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed lunar orbiter | 27 December 1968 15:51:42 | Successful | ||
LTA B | NASA | Selenocentric | Mass Model | In orbit | Successful | ||
First crewed mission to the Moon | |||||||
26 December | Kosmos 2 | Kapustin Yar | |||||
Kosmos 262 (DS-U2-GF #1) | Low Earth Orbit | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | |||
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks |
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (April 2011) |
Apollo 8 was the first crewed spacecraft to leave low Earth orbit and the first human spaceflight to reach the Moon. The crew orbited the Moon ten times without landing, and then departed safely back to Earth. These three astronauts—Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders—were the first humans to witness and photograph the far side of the Moon and an Earthrise.
The Apollo program, also known as Project Apollo, was the United States human spaceflight program carried out by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which succeeded in preparing and landing the first men on the Moon from 1968 to 1972. It was first conceived in 1960 during President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration as a three-person spacecraft to follow the one-person Project Mercury, which put the first Americans in space. Apollo was later dedicated to President John F. Kennedy's national goal for the 1960s of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" in an address to Congress on May 25, 1961. It was the third US human spaceflight program to fly, preceded by the two-person Project Gemini conceived in 1961 to extend spaceflight capability in support of Apollo.
Apollo 7 was the first crewed flight in NASA's Apollo program, and saw the resumption of human spaceflight by the agency after the fire that had killed the three Apollo 1 astronauts during a launch rehearsal test on January 27, 1967. The Apollo 7 crew was commanded by Walter M. Schirra, with command module pilot Donn F. Eisele and lunar module pilot R. Walter Cunningham.
The Space Race was a 20th-century competition between two Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between the two nations following World War II and had its peak with the more particular Moon Race to land on the Moon between the US moonshot and Soviet moonshot programs. The technological advantage demonstrated by spaceflight achievement was seen as necessary for national security and became part of the symbolism and ideology of the time. The Space Race brought pioneering launches of artificial satellites, robotic space probes to the Moon, Venus, and Mars, and human spaceflight in low Earth orbit and ultimately to the Moon.
A trans-lunar injection (TLI) is a propulsive maneuver, which is used to send a spacecraft to the Moon. Typical lunar transfer trajectories approximate Hohmann transfers, although low-energy transfers have also been used in some cases, as with the Hiten probe. For short duration missions without significant perturbations from sources outside the Earth-Moon system, a fast Hohmann transfer is typically more practical.
Luna 6, or E-6 No.7 was an uncrewed Soviet spacecraft which was intended to perform a landing on the Moon as part of the Luna program. Due to the failure of a mid-course correction manoeuvre, Luna 6 failed to land, instead flying past the Moon at a distance of 160,000 kilometres (99,000 mi).
Zond was the name given to two distinct series of Soviet robotic spacecraft launched between 1964 and 1970. The first series, based on the 3MV planetary probe, was intended to gather information about nearby planets.
Zond 5 was a spacecraft of the Soviet Zond program. In September 1968 it became the first spaceship to travel to and circle the Moon in a circumlunar trajectory, the first Moon mission to include animals, and the first to return safely to Earth. Zond 5 carried the first terrestrial organisms to the vicinity of the Moon, including two tortoises, fruit fly eggs, and plants. The Russian tortoises underwent biological changes during the flight, but it was concluded that the changes were primarily due to starvation and that they were little affected by space travel.
Zond 6 was a formal member of the Soviet Zond program, and an unpiloted version of the Soyuz 7K-L1 crewed Moon-flyby spacecraft. It was launched on a lunar flyby mission on November 10, 1968, from a parent satellite (68-101B) in Earth parking orbit. The spacecraft carried a biological payload of turtles, flies, and bacteria. It also carried scientific probes including cosmic ray, micrometeoroid detectors, and photographic equipment.
The Zond 7 spacecraft, part of the Soviet Zond program, was launched towards the Moon on a Proton-K D rocket on August 7, 1969. Its mission was to support studies of the Moon and circunlunar space, to obtain color photography of Earth and the Moon from varying distances, and to flight test the spacecraft systems. It was an unpiloted version of the Soyuz 7K-L1, a crewed Moon-flyby spacecraft.
Zond 8, also known as L-1 No.14, was the last in the series of circumlunar spacecraft, a member of the Soviet Zond program, designed to rehearse a piloted circumlunar flight, an uncrewed version of Soyuz 7K-L1 crewed circumlunar flight spacecraft. The project was initiated in 1965 to compete with the Americans in the race to the Moon but lost its importance once three astronauts orbited the Moon on the Apollo 8 mission in December 1968.
Zond 4, part of the Soviet Zond program and an uncrewed version of Soyuz 7K-L1 crewed Moon-flyby spacecraft, was one of the first Soviet experiments towards crewed circumlunar spaceflight. It was launched to test the spaceworthiness of the new capsule and to gather data about flights in circumterrestrial space. It was the first Soviet spacecraft to possess a computer, the 34 kg Argon 11.
The Soviet-crewed lunar programs were a series of programs pursued by the Soviet Union to land humans on the Moon, in competition with the United States Apollo program. The Soviet government publicly denied participating in such a competition, but secretly pursued two programs in the 1960s: crewed lunar flyby missions using Soyuz 7K-L1 (Zond) spacecraft launched with the Proton-K rocket, and a crewed lunar landing using Soyuz 7K-LOK and LK spacecraft launched with the N1 rocket. Following the dual American successes of the first crewed lunar orbit on 24–25 December 1968 and the first Moon landing on July 20, 1969, and a series of catastrophic N1 failures, both Soviet programs were eventually brought to an end. The Proton-based Zond program was canceled in 1970, and the N1-L3 program was de facto terminated in 1974 and officially canceled in 1976. Details of both Soviet programs were kept secret until 1990 when the government allowed them to be published under the policy of glasnost.
A Moon landing or lunar landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon, including both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was Luna 2 in 1959.
In astronomy and spaceflight, a lunar orbit is an orbit of an object around Earth's Moon. In general these orbits are not circular. When farthest from the Moon a spacecraft is said to be at apolune, apocynthion, or aposelene. When closest to the Moon it is said to be at perilune, pericynthion, or periselene. These derive from names or epithets of the moon goddess.
The Soyuz 7K-L1 "Zond" spacecraft was designed to launch cosmonauts from the Earth to circle the Moon without going into lunar orbit in the context of the Soviet crewed Moon-flyby program in the Moon race. It was based on the Soyuz 7K-OK. Several modifications reduced vehicle mass and increased circumlunar capability. The most notable modifications were the replacement of the orbital module with a support cone and a high-gain parabolic antenna, the removal of a reserve parachute, and the addition of the gyro platform and star navigation sensors for the far space navigation. The spacecraft was capable of carrying two cosmonauts. At the start of flight testing, there were serious reliability problems with the new Proton rocket, the 7K-L1, and the Soyuz 7K-OK that the L1 was based on.
Kosmos 146, also known as L-1 No. 2P, was a Soviet test spacecraft precursor to the Zond series, launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome aboard a Proton K rocket.
Zond program was a Soviet robotic spacecraft program launched between 1964 and 1970, using two spacecraft series, one for interplanetary exploration, and the other for lunar exploration.
Soyuz 7K-L1E was a Soviet uncrewed modified Soyuz 7K-L1 spacecraft. Also called a dummy Soyuz 7K-LOK. Two were built, one Soyuz 7K-L1E was successfully launched into Low Earth Orbit on Proton rocket and is known as Kosmos 382. The other Soyuz 7K-L1E was placed on a N1 rocket, which failed at launch. The Soyuz spacecraft was first used in 1967 as the main crewed spacecraft and is still in use. Many Soyuz variations have been built and the Soyuz 7K-L1E was an uncrewed variation.