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Do you participate in spacecraft development? Do you know the status of a particular mission? Please help us to keep this page up to date! (We respect confidentiality of all sources.) Contact: Anatoly Zak |
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For events in 2009 click here
At the beginning of the year, the head of the Russian space agency Anatoly Perminov told RIA Novosti news agency that Russia planned to launch 43 spacecraft during 2010 and 2011. According to Perminov, a total of 16 (Russian) spacecraft had to be manufactured and launched during 2010, while other 27 had to be developed to the extent that would enable their launch during 2011. By the end of 2010, after firing 31 space shots, Russia sent more missions into Earth orbit than United States and China combined. Unfortunately, a multitude of problems pushed liftoffs for a number of new-generation Russian satellites into 2011. In December, a high-profile failure of the Proton rocket have thrown in disarray widely publicized plans to complete Russia's indigenous satellite navigation system and triggered mass media stories about corruption and nepotism within Roskosmos, which were angrily denied by the agency. The fallout from the Proton accident prompted space officials to postpone to the next year, the introduction a brand-new navigation bird, as well as the nation's return to global weather monitoring. The agency explained these delays by the need for additional checks, while according to critics, the move had been caused by sheer panic and achieved nothing, but a weeks-long interruption in preparations for launches. However, the Proton rocket returned to flight on Dec. 27, logging 12 missions during 2010 -- a record not achieved for a decade.
SPACE EXPLORATION IN 2010: THUMBS UP Jan. 11, Killer satellite: China conducted launch of a target missile and the anti-missile interceptor, achieving an apparently successful intercept. An extra room on ISS: In May Space Shuttle delivered the MIM1 Rassvet module to the ISS. May 21: Japan launches Akatsuki (Planet-C) orbiter and the IKAROS solar-sailing probe toward Venus. June 13: Japan's MUSES-C (Hayabusa) spacecraft landed in Woomera, Australia, possibly with soil samples of an asteroid. (As of April 2007) July 10, 18:10 CEST: European Rosetta spacecraft flew at the distance of 3,126 kilometers from asteroid (21) Lutetia. Images confirmed that the asteroid has an elongated body, with its longest side around 130 kilometers. Oct. 1: China launched Chang'e-2 into a 100-kilometer orbit around the Moon to prepare for future lunar landing. (As of May 2009. In March 2009 it was reported to fly in 2011.) Dec. 8, 10:43 EST: The US Falcon 9 rocket launched from Cape Canaveral with an unmanned prototype of the Dragon spacecraft, both developed under a NASA contract by SpaceX. Three hours, 19 minutes, 52 seconds after a liftoff, Dragon successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, some 800 kilometers west of Mexican coast. SPACE EXPLORATION IN 2010: THUMBS DOWN Feb. 1, Cancellation of Constellation: The White House made a proposal to eliminate funding for the Constellation program. Unfortunately, no clear strategy in manned space flight to replace the failed program, leaving NASA in limbo for months. Dec. 6: Japan's Akatsuki (Planet-C) orbiter and the IKAROS solar-sailing probe arrived into vicinity of Venus, however Akatsuki failed to enter Venusian orbit. THE WORLD'S ORBITAL LAUNCH ATTEMPTS IN 2010 (as of November 2, 2017 ):
*W3B satellite failed immediately after launch
The 2010 space launch score card (as of November 2, 2017 ):
*failed missions Canceled/re-assigned around 2010: The launch of Israeli EROS-C remote-sensing satellite from Svobodny/Vostochny on a Start-1 rocket. (Delayed from the second quarter of 2008. The development of the satellite had been abandoned by the beginning of 2010. (67) 2010: Arianespace company to launch Rascom-QAF 1R communications satellite from Kourou, French Guiana, onboard the Ariane-5 or Soyuz launch vehicle. The agreement for the mission was announced on Oct. 22, 2008. By June 2010, the mission was assigned to Ariane-5. First quarter 2011: The Zenit-3SL rocket to launch Intelsat 17 satellite from the Sea Launch platform. (Delayed from the fourth quarter of 2010 and the mission was eventually switched to an Ariane-5 mission scheduled for launch in November 2010.) 2009-2011: Up to five launches of the Proton rocket for ICO Global Communications (Holdings) Limited (ICO) within Dual Launch Study Agreement with ILS International Launch Services (ILS). The contract also called for ILS to design and propose a dual launch capability for ICO's Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites. The agreement announced on May 24, 2007. However the contract was canceled around 2010, as a result of the company's bankruptcy. 2010: A Proton/Briz-M to launch a S2M dedicated mobile television satellite for the Middle East and Africa region from Baikonur. The contract for the mission was announced on Feb. 26, 2008. However, S2M failed to secure investors for the project and went out of business, canceling the contract. For missions in 2011 click here This page was compiled by Anatoly Zak and S. Günes Last update: November 2, 2017 |
A second version of the European Cryosat satellite was originally scheduled for launch in 2009 to replace CryoSat-1 lost in the Rockot launcher mishap. Click to enlarge. Copyright © 2009 Anatoly Zak
The Gonets-M low-orbital communications satellite. Click to enlarge. Copyright © 2009 Anatoly Zak
The return capsule of Japan's MUSES-C (Hayabusa) spacecraft landed in Woomera, Australia, on June 13 with tiny fragments of soil from an asteroid. Copyright © 2010 Anatoly Zak
Japanese Planet-C (Akatsuki) spacecraft was launched successfully on May 21, but failed to enter orbit around Venus on Dec. 6. Copyright © 2010 Anatoly Zak
On Dec. 3, the X-37B space plane (Orbital Test Vehicle-1, OTV-1) glided to the runway at Vandenberg AFB, California, after a seemingly successful first mission in the Earth orbit launched by an expendable rocket on April 22. The exact purpose or usefulness of the project remained unclear at the time. Credit: US Air Force
An unmanned prototype of the Dragon crew capsule splashes down following a successful orbital flight in December 2010. Credit: SpaceX.
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