08/15/16, 17:40 UTC, CZ-2D with QSS from JQ 43/603 LEO/S
08/19/16, 04:52 UTC, Delta 4M+4,2 with GSSAP 3-4 from CC 37B to GEO
08/24/16, 22:17 UTC, Ariane 5 ECA with Intelsat 33e/36 from KO 3 to GTO
08/31/16, 18:55 UTC, CZ-4C with Gaofen 10 from TY 9 [FTO]
09/08/16, 11:20 UTC, GSLV Mk 2 with Insat 3DR from SR 2 to GTO
09/08/16, 23:05 UTC, Atlas 5-411 with OSIRIS-REx from CC 41 to HCO
09/13/16, 14:38 UTC, Shavit 2 with Ofeq 11 from PA to LEO/R
09/15/16, 14:04 UTC, CZ-2FT with Tiangong 2 from JQ 43/921 to LEO
09/16/16, 01:43 UTC, Vega with PeruSAT/SkySats from KO ZLV to LEO/S
09/26/16, 03:42 UTC, PSLV with SCATSAT/Multisats from SR 1 to LEO/S

Worldwide Space Launch Box Score
as of 09/26/16
All Orbital Launch Attempts(Failures)
2016:  60(1)
2015:  86(5)
2014:  92(4)
2013:  81(3)
Crewed Launch Attempts(Failures)
2016:  2(0)
2015:  4(0)
2014:  4(0)
2013:  5(0)

Vega Orbits Mapping Satellites

Europe's Vega launch vehicle boosted five mapping satellites, one for Peru and four for Terra Bella, a Google company, into sun synchronous orbits from Kourou Space Center on September 16, 2016. The nearly two hour mission began with a 01:43 UTC liftoff from the ZLV pad on nearly 137 tonnes of solid motor thrust.

Vega's P80 first stage fired for 114 seconds and its Zefire 23 second stage for 104 seconds. After a 21 second coast, the Zefiro 9 third stage fired for 162 seconds, completing the solid motor phase of the ascent. The AVUM storable liquid fourth stage then coasted for 86 seconds before beginning its first, 363 second, 250 kgf burn to reach an initial transfer orbit. Following a nearly 24 minute coast, AVUM fired its RD-843 engine again for 89 seconds to reach a 491 x 508 km x 97.4 deg orbit where SkySat 4, 5, 6, and 7, the Terra Bella satellites, were released. During the next hour, AVUM fired twice more to reach PeruSAT 1's 667 x 684 km x 98.2 deg insertion orbit. After PeruSAT separation, AVUM was expected to finish the mission with a fifth, orbit-reduction burn.

The four Space Systems/Loral-built SkySat satellites, which rode atop the Vega Secondary Payload Adaptor, weighed 110 kg each. They will provide sub-meter resolution mapping images of the Earth. PeruSAT 1, an Airbus Defence and Space AstroBus satellite, weighed 430 kg. PeruSAT-1 is Peru’s first Earth observation satellite.

China Orbits Tiangong 2

China launched its 8.5 tonne Tiangong 2 space lab into orbit from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on September 15, 2016.    The launch, by the second CZ-2FT launch vehicle, took place at 14:04 UTC from the same LC 43/921 pad used for crewed Shenzhou launches.  Tiangong 2, believed to weigh about 8.5 tonnes at launch, entered a low earth orbit about 10 minutes after liftoff.

Tiangong 2 will serve as a small space station for the manned Shenzhou 11spacecraft beginning in October, 2016.  A 30 day crewed mission is planned.  During the mission, an unmanned cargo ship named "Tianzhou" is expected to visit. 

CZ-2FT is an improved CZ-2F equipped with longer strap-on boosters that each carry nearly 3 tonnes more propellant than their predecessors.   The boosters burn for 155 seconds, about 18 seconds longer than the previous boosters, allowing CZ-2FT to boost up to 8.6 tonnes to LEO.  The rocket also uses a 12.7 x 4.2 meter payload fairing in place of the usual CZ-2F Shenzhou spacecraft and its launch escape system.

It was the first Tiangong launch since the first on September 29, 2011.

Shavit Launches Israeli Spysat

Israel's Shavit-2 rocket launched Ofeq 11, a reconnaissance satellite, into a retrograde low earth orbit from Palmachim Air Base on September 13, 2016. Liftoff took place at 14:38 UTC. Ofeq 11, a 400 kg optical imaging satellite built by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI Ltd), was reported later in the day to have suffered some problems in orbit, but no details were provided.  The launch itself was apparently successful.  A 600 km retrograde orbit was expected.

The launch was jointly carried out by IAI and the Defense Ministry’s Space Administration, which is a part of the Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure.  It was the first Shavit launch since 2014.  It may have been the 11th Shavit launch attempt since 1988.


Atlas 5 Launches OSIRIS-REx

Atlas 5 AV-067, a 411 variant with one solid rocket booster and a 4 meter (14 foot) diameter large payload fairing, launched NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft into solar orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on September 8, 2016. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 41 took place at 23:05 UTC. After two burns by the Centaur stage RL10A-4-2 engine, with the second burn preceded by a 22.5 minute coast and followed by a 15 minute coast, 1,529 kg OSIRIS-REx separated about 55.5 minutes after liftoff.

OSIRIS-REx, which stands for "Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer", is designed to perform a seven year mission to asteroid Bennu, a 492 meter diameter near-Earth asteroid. It will collect samples from Bennu in 2020 and return them to Earth in a return capsule.

It was the 65th Atlas 5 launch and the 4th by a 411 variant.  It was also the 55th consecutive Atlas 5 launch success.  AV-067 was stacked in the SLC 41 VIF in early August and performed a wet dress rehearsal on the pad without a payload during August 25 or 26.

GSLV Orbits Insat 3DR

India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle orbited the Insat 3DR weather satellite from Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota on September 8, 2016. The GSLV Mk 2 variant, flying the GSLV-F05 mission, lifted off from the Second Launch Pad at 11:20 UTC. The 3.5 stage rocket placed 2,211 kg Insat 3DR into a 170 x 35,975 km x 20.6 deg geosynchronous transfer orbit.  Insat 3DR will use its own propulsion system to reach a circular 35,786 km x 0 deg geostationary orbit, positioned at 75 deg East longitude.  

The 3.5 stage, 415 tonne rocket, India's most-powerful operational launcher, rose on about 770 tonnes of thrust generated by its solid motor core and four Vikas 2 powered liquid strap-on boosters. The Vikas 4 powered second stage took over after about 2.5 minutes. At T+4 min 49 sec, the liquid hydrogen fueled "Cryogenic Upper Stage" third stage, powered for the fourth time by an Indian-developed CE-7.5, 7.495 tonne thrust engine, began a 12 minute burn to reach the deployment orbit.

It was the 10th GSLV flight, and the fifth success, including successes during the most-recent three launches.  It was the third success in four launches by GSLV Mk 2, which uses the Indian-developed third stage engine.



Falcon 9 and AMOS 6 Destroyed in Pre Launch Test (9/8/16 Update)

A Falcon 9 rocket and its $200 million AMOS 6 satellite payload were destroyed during a pre-launch propellant loading and hot fire test exercise at Cape Canveral on September 1, 2016.  The test was planned to assure all was ready for a September 3 launch that would have placed 5.5 tonne AMOS 6 in geosynchronous transfer orbit. 

Reports indicate that propellant loading was nearly completed and the test was about eight minutes away when a powerful explosion destroyed the rocket and satellite at about 9:07 AM Eastern Time.  A series of smaller explosions occurred during the following minutes as a fire raged at SLC 40 and a large plume of black smoke drifted across the Florida space center.  It was the largest pad explosion in the history of Cape Canaveral/Kennedy Space Center.

A few hours after the explosion, Elon Musk tweeted that the failure appeared to have begun at the second stage liquid oxygen tank.  SLC 40 was reported to have been heavily damaged, knocking it out of service.  A day after the failure, SpaceX announced that East Coast launch campaigns would move to Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 Pad A, which should be ready to support operations beginning in November.   

The AMOS 6 launch would have been the 29th Falcon launch, and the ninth by a Falcon 9 v1.2 variant.  The AMOS 6 first stage was test fired at McGregor, Texas on August 5, 2016 and arrived at Cape Canaveral some time after August 21.  

CZ-4C Launch Apparently Fails

China's attempt to orbit its Gaofen 10 earth observation satellite apparently failed on August 31, 2016.  The three-stage CZ-4C launch reportedly took place from LC 9 at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center at 18:55 UTC.  Photos of debris from the first stage and payload fairing laying in or near their expected impact zones were posted hours later, but the satellite and upper stage were not tracked in orbit, hinting at a possible issue during the flight of one of the upper stages.  China's state-controlled media had not even reported that a launch took place at all some half-day later. 

It was the first orbital launch failure of 2016, and China's first orbital failure since December 2013.  The failure ended a string of 65 consecutive orbital launch successes world-wide since early December 2015.  The previous best such string was 69 consecutive successes spanning the end of 1988 and the beginning of 1989.

Ariane 5 Launches Intelsat Pair

The 57th Ariane 5 ECA, flying the VA232 Arianespace mission, orbited two Intelsat communication satellites from Kourou Space Center on August 24 2016.  Intelsat 33e and Intelsat 36 separated into geosynchronous transfer orbit about a half hour after the 22:17 UTC liftoff from ELA 3. 

Together, the satellites weighed 9,853 kg at liftoff, bettering the previous Ariane 5 GTO payload record set in June.  Intelsat 33e, a 6,600 kg Boeing Space Systems 702MP series satellite, has 20 C, 249 Ku, and 1 Ka band transponders to provide communication services for Europe and Africa.  Intelsat 36, a 3,253 kg Space Systems/Loral 1300 series satellite, will provide service to Africa and South Asia from 68.5 deg East using 34 Ku band transponders.  

It was the fourth Ariane 5 launch of 2016.


Delta 4 Boosts GSSAP Pair

Delta 375, a Delta 4M+4,2 with a four meter diameter second stage and fairing and two GEM-60 strap-on solid motors, launched two Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program satellites into near-geosynchronous orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on August 19, 2016. The 62.8 meter tall rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 37B at 04:52 UTC. The RL 10B-2 powered upper stage likely fired three times during a six hour ascent to complete the mission.

GSSAP is the U.S. Air Force “neighborhood watch” program that uses multiple surveillance satellites to monitor other satellites and debris in geosynchronous or near-geosynchronous orbit. The satellites orbited on this flight were GSSAP 3 and GSSAP 4.

It was the 24th Delta 4 Medium, and the 33rd Delta 4, to fly.

CZ-2D Orbits Quantum Science Satellite

China launched its Quantum Science Satellite, named "Mozi" after a fifth century Chinese scientist, from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on August 15, 2016. The Chang Zheng (CZ) 2D rocket lifted off from the 43/603 pad at 17:40 UTC. The 600+ kg satellite entered a 500 km sun synchronous earth orbit.

"Mozi" will perform quantum entanglement experiments.

It was the 11th DF-5 based CZ launch of the year, matching the world-leading year-to-date R-7 total.  With the flight, China had performed five of the world's last ten orbital launches.

Falcon 9 Orbits JCSAT 16 (8/16/16 Update)

The 28th Falcon 9, and 8th Falcon 9 v1.2, boosted JCSAT 16, for SKY Perfect JSAT, into geosynchronous transfer orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on August 14, 2016. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 40 took place at 05:26 GMT. Thirty two minutes later, after two second-stage burns totalling 410 seconds duration, the 4.6 tonne Space Systems/Loral 1300 series satellite separated into a 184 x 35,912 km x 20.85 deg transfer orbit.

After performing its 153 second boost, the first stage separated from the second stage, reoriented itself, deployed four grid-fins, and, after coasting for several minutes above the atmosphere, reignited three of its Merlin 1D engines for a 23 second reentry burn. The center engine ignited alone for a final landing burn as the stage deployed four legs and landed, about 9 minutes after liftoff, on the converted landing barge "Of Course I Still Love You" positioned about 645 km downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.

It was the sixth Falcon 9 first stage recovered in eleven attempts.

After raising itself to geostationary orbit, JCSAT 16 will initally be positioned at 162 degrees East longitude to stand in for Superbird 8, which was damaged in transit to its planned Ariane 5 launch earlier this year. When Superbird 8 is repaired and launched, JCSAT 16 will move to 150 deg East. The satellite has Ku and Ka band transponders.

The F9-28 stages were tested at McGregor, Texas in mid-July and arrived at the Cape during the week of July 26. The rocket was rolled out without its payload for a first stage static fire test on August 11.

It was the 50th orbital launch of 2016.  All have been successful.


CZ-4C Launches Gaofen 3

China's Chang Zheng (Long March) 4C orbited the Gaofen 3 earth observation satellite from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center on August 9, 2016. The three-stage rocket lifted off from LC 9 at 22:55 UTC. It successfully boosted the 2,950 kg, CS-L3000B bus satellite into a 735 x 747 km x 98.41 deg sun synchronous orbit.

Gaofen 3 was equipped with a C-band synthetic aperature radar with 1 meter ground resolution. It was developed by the China Academy of Space Technology.

CZ-3B Orbits Comsat

China's Chang Zheng (Long March) 3BE orbited a mobile communications satellite named Tiantong 1, the first of its type, from Xichang Satellite Launch Center on August 5, 2016. Liftoff from Launch Complex 3 took place at 16:22 UTC. The satellite was inserted into a geosynchronous transfer orbit after two burns by the rocket's liquid hydrogen fueled upper stage.

After it raises itself to geostationary orbit, the satellite will provide mobile communications coverage to China, the Middle East, Africa, and the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

It was the ninth DF-5 based CZ launch, and 10th orbital launch by China, of 2016.



Atlas 5 Orbits NROL-61

Atlas 5 AV-065 successfully boosted NROL-61 into geosynchronous transfer orbit for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office on July 28, 2016. The Atlas 5-421 vehicle with two strap-on solid rocket motors and a 4-meter diameter Extra Extended Payload Fairing (XEPF), lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 41 at 12:37 UTC. The rocket's Centaur upper stage performed two burns prior to satellite separation, followed by a third, de-orbit burn.

While the satellite's mission is classified, some analysts believe that NROL-61 is a new generation data relay satellite designed to transfer the massive volumes of data collected by digital imaging spy satellites that reside in low earth orbit from space to ground stations. Previous satellites of this type, which have flown since the mid-1970s, have been identified as Satellite Data System (SDS) and Quasar, operating in both Molniya and geosynchronous orbits.

It was the fourth Atlas 5 launch of the year.

Falcon 9 Launches CRS 9

F9-27 Liftoff from SLC 40

The 27th Falcon 9 orbited the Dragon 11 spacecraft on NASA's CRS 9 International Space Station cargo hauling mission on July 18, 2016. After performing the initial boost, the rocket's first stage performed three-engine boost back and reentry burns and a single-engine landing burn and landed at Cape Canaveral's Landing Zone 1.  It was the fifth first stage to land successfully and the second to fly back and land at Cape Canaveral.

Liftoff took place at 04:45 UTC from SLC 40. Falcon 9 aimed on a northeast azimuth during its nine minute ascent. Dragon was targeted toward a 200 x 360 km x 51.6 deg orbit. The spacecraft carried nearly 2,222 kg of cargo, including the first of two international docking adapters, to allow commercial crew spacecraft dockings, in the unpressurized trunk section. Combined Dragon and cargo mass was about 9.5 tonnes.

During the ascent, the first stage fired for 141 seconds, with stage separation three seconds later.  Stage 2 ignited at 152 seconds to begin its 390 second burn to orbit.   The first stage boost back burn began only 21 seconds after first stage main engine cutoff, after a rapid maneuver to align the stage thrust vector back toward Cape Canaveral.  This three-engine burn lasted more than 50 seconds.  The stage coasted on a sligthly lofted trajectory before beginning its 18-plus second entry burn at the 361 second mark.  458 seconds after liftoff, the final landing burn began and continued for about 31 seconds until the stage settled on its Landing Zone 1 circular concrete pad.   Elon Musk soon reported that the stage appeared to be in good condition.

First Stage Landing at LZ-1

Dragon separated from the second stage at the 577 second mark.  The spacecraft's solar arrays deployed about 1.5 minutes later.  The second stage subsequently performed a reentry burn that targeted a Southern Ocean zone south of Australia.

The F9-27 first stage had performed a static firing at SLC 40 on July 16. Both stages had been test fired at McGregor, Texas during June.

It was the year's 10th orbital launch from Cape Canaveral, more than any other launch center this year to date.

Soyuz U Orbits Progress MS-03

One of the final Soyuz U launch vehicles orbited Russia's Progress MS-03 robotic cargo hauler toward the International Space Station from Baikonur Cosmodrome on July 16, 2016. Liftoff from Area 31 Pad 6 took place at 21:41 UTC. It was the second Progress launch of the year and the 45th orbital flight worldwide in 2016.

Progress MS-03 will dock with ISS on July 18 if plans hold. The multi-module spacecraft weighed 7,281 kg at liftoff, including 2,405 kg of cargo.

After the launch, only two more Soyuz U launch vehicles remain. Both should fly by the end of 2017. Soyuz U, which has been in service since 1973, is, with 774 launch attempts to date, the most oft-flown launch vehicle variant in history. The type is being replaced by Soyuz FG and Soyuz 2 variants.



Soyuz Launches ISS Crew

A 2.5 stage Soyuz FG rocket orbited Russia's Soyuz MS-01 spacecraft Baikonur, Kazakhstan with three International Space Station crew on July 7, 2016. Liftoff from Baikonur Cosmodrome Area 1 Pad 5 took place at 01:36 UTC.  The spacecraft entered a 230 x 190 km x 51.6 deg initial orbit.  Onboard the upgraded spacecraft were Russia's Anatoly Ivanishin, Japan's Takuya Onishi, and NASA's Kate Rubins, comprising the Expedition 48/49 crew.

This first example of the Soyuz MS model spacecraft features improved, navigation, communications, and computer systems that were previously introduced on unmanned Progress MS flights. Since it is the inaugural crewed flight, Soyuz MS-01 will take a 34 orbit, 51 hour journey before its schedule ISS rendezvous.

It was 2016's second crewed orbital launch, and was the 10th R-7 launch of the year.


CZ 4B Launch
(June 30, 2016 Update)

China's CZ-4B (Chang Zheng, or Long March) orbited the second Shijian 16 satellite from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on June 29, 2016. Liftoff from LC 43/603 took place at 03:21 UTC. The satellite, announced by China state media to be used for “space environment measurements and technology testing", entered a 595 x 616 km x 75 deg orbit. 

Some Western analysts suspect that Shijian 16 is an electronic intelligence (ELNIT) satellite designed to intercept radio signals.  

Another CZ-4B had orbited the first Shijian-16 satellite in October 2013.

It was the eighth DF-5 based CZ orbital launch, and the ninth orbital launch by China, of the year.

China Debuts CZ-7, Wenchang Launch Site
(June 30, 2016 Update)

CZ-7 Inaugural Liftoff

China's Chang Zheng (Long March) 7 flew successfully on its first try from the country's new Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on June 25, 2016. The liftoff, from Pad 201, the easternmost of two new launch pads at the Center, took place at 12:00 UTC. The launch site, on Hainan Island off China's southern coastline, is China's first sea-side launch site, which allowed the rocket stages to fall into the South China Sea as the vehicle ascended on a southeast azimuth toward orbit.

CZ-7 flew to a 200 x 394 km x 40.8 deg initial orbit with several demonstration payloads, including a 2.6 tonne blunt cone-shaped, scaled-down Next Generation Crew Vehicle that reentered and landed in China after about one day in orbit. Several microsatellites and ballast were also carried within the payload fairing atop a restartable YZ-1A upper stage. Total payload mass was reportedly about 12 tonnes, which would be the heaviest payload orbited since Japan's HTV-5 ISS cargo hauler in August, 2015. 

After entering orbit, the YZ-1A stage, which may use four 408 kgf thrust YF-85 hydrogen peroxide/kerosene engines, appeared to have performed several maneuvers, with objects tracked in orbits with apogees as high as 580 km.   The stage is also believed to have performed the NGCV deorbit burn.

CZ-7 is the second of China’s Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology's (CALT) new family of launchers to enter service, following the smaller CZ-6 in September 2015. CZ-7 uses a 3.35 meter diameter core stage powered by two 122.5 tonne thrust YF-100 RP/LOX staged combustion engines. Four 2.25 meter diameter strap-on boosters, each powered by one YF-100, augment the core to produce a total of 734.1 tonnes (1.618 million pounds) of thrust at liftoff. Four 18 tonne thrust YF-115 RP/LOX staged combustion engines power the 3.35 meter diameter second stage. The rocket weighs about 594 tonnes at liftoff and stands about 53.1 meters tall.


CZ-7 Rollout on June 22, 2016, Pad 101 in Background (CZ-7 Diverged to East (Left), Toward Pad 201).

The 2.5 stage CZ-7 version can lift 13.5 tonnes to 200 x 400 km x 42 deg or 5.5 tonnes to a 700 km sun synchronous orbit. A liquid hydrogen third stage could be added in the future to lift payloads to GTO.

The CZ-7 core stage will serve as a strap-on booster for China's next, biggest-ever rocket, CZ-5, which may debut later this year. CZ-5 will have a 5 meter diameter liquid hydrogen fueled core stage and will be able to lift 25 tonnes to LEO, making it among the world's most powerful orbital launchers.

CZ-5 will fly from Pad 101, the west pad at Wenchang. The Center features two vertical assembly buildings, one for CZ-7 and one for CZ-5, which are located about 2.7 km north of the sea-side pads. Stacked launch vehicles move on rail-based mobile transporters from the VAB to the pad. A complete CZ-7 Ground Test Vehicle was assembled at Wenchang during early 2015 and moved to Pad 201 to check out the new site.

Atlas 5 Launches MUOS 5

AV-063, an Atlas 5-551, the most powerful Atlas 5 version, boosted the U.S. Navy's MUOS 5 (Mobile User Objective System) communications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit from Cape Canaveral on June 24, 2016. The 2.5 stage rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 41 at 14:30 UTC to begin its 2 hour 53 minute 17 second mission.

During the flight, the liquid hydrogen fueled Centaur stage performed three burns. The first placed the vehicle into a low parking orbit. The second, which began at T+20:27, boosted the stage and satellite into a 194 x 34,447 km x 26 deg transfer orbit. After a 2.5 hour coast to apogee, Centaur ignited a third time to boost itself into a 3,841 by 35,706 km x 19.1 deg insertion orbit.

MUOS 5 is the fifth and final first generation MUOS satellite. The first was launched in 2012. It and all subsequent MUOS satellites were orbited by Atlas 5-551 rockets. Lockheed Martin assembled the 6,740 kg A2100M series satellites. MUOS provides video, voice, and data communications to mobile terminals using UHF and WCDMA communications systems.

AV-063 was the first Atlas 5 launch since a faulty RD-180 Mixture Ratio Control Valve (MRCV) nearly doomed the the OA-6 Cygnus mission during March, 2016. The problem caused a shift to an improper fuel/oxidizer mix during the final minute of the first stage flight, causing LOX to be depleted six seconds before the planned RD-180 shutdown. The Centaur stage burned more than 60 seconds longer than planned to compensate for the error, but nearly ran out of propellant while doing so. A subsequent investigation pinpointed the MRCV problem and identified a solution. The MUOS 5 flight was delayed for several weeks while the investigation was underway.



PSLV Launches Cartosat 2

PSLV-C34, Indian Space Research Organization's 36th PSLV, orbited the 727.5 kg Cartosat 2 earth observation satellite and 19 co-passenger satellites that together weighed 560 kg from Sriharikota, India on June 22, 2016. Liftoff from the Second Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan space Center took place at 03:55 UTC. The 4.5 stage PSLV-XL rocket boosted its payloads into a 505 km x 97.48 deg sun synchronous orbit during a 25.5 minute mission.

Cartosat 2 will provide remote sensing services using its panchromatic and multispectral cameras.

It was the year's 40 orbital launch, which have taken place with no failures.

Ariane 5 Launches Two Comsats

Ariane 5 ECA L584 launched two communication satellites into orbit from Kourou Space Center on June 18, 2016. Echostar 18 and BRIsat reached geosynchronous transfer orbit about 30 minutes after the 21:38 UTC liftoff from ELA 3. The VA230 Arianespace mission took place after a weather scrub the previous day.

Together, the satellites weighed 9,840 kg at liftoff, making this the heaviest GTO payload yet launched by an Ariane 5.  EchoStar 18, a 6,300 kg Space Systems Loral 1300 series satellite, will be operated at 110 deg West by Echostar for for DISH Network. It will provide Ku-band coverage, using 61 Ku-band transponders, for the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Cuba.

BRIsat, also an SSL 1300 series satellite, rode beneath Echostar 18 within a long version Sylda 5 shroud.  It is the first communications satellite owned by a bank, P.T. Bank Rakyat Indonesia. The 3,540 kg satellite will use 36 C-band and 0 Ku-band transponders to serve bank branches in Indonesia and South East Asia from its 150.5 deg East position in geosynchronous orbit.


Falcon 9 Launches Comsat Pair

The 26th SpaceX Falcon 9, and sixth v1.2 variant, launched Eutelsat 117 West B and ABS 2A to supersynchronous transfer orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on June 15, 2016. The two-stage kerosene/LOX rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 at 14:49 UTC. Eutelsat 117 West B, which was stacked directly atop ABS 2A, was deployed about 30 minutes after liftoff. ABS 2A followed about 5 minutes later.

After firing for 2 minutes 36 seconds during the ascent, the first stage separated and attempted another experimental landing on the “Of Course I Still Love You” landing platform. The landing was not successful. The stage appeared to have reached the platform but was soon replaced in webcast views by images of flames and smoke.  Elon Musk subsequently tweeted that "thrust was low on 1 of 3 landing engines. High g landings v[ery] sensitive to all engines operating at max."

Boeing built both of the BSS-702SP series communications satellites. Both have 48 transponders and 4 dedicated Ku-band transmitters. Both use XIPS-25 Xenon gas-fueled all-electric propulsion systems. Eutelsat 117 West B will serve Latin America from 116.8 deg West in geosynchronous orbit. ABS-2A will be positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 75 deg East to serve Africa, Europe, Russia, South Asia and South East Asia.  BSS-702SP satellites typically weigh 1,800 to 2,500 kg at launch.   Eutelsat 117 West B weighed 1,963 kg, according to Eutelsat.  The combined payload mass may have been 4,000 to 4,200 kg.  

It was the year's sixth Falcon 9 launch.  The vehicle's first and second stages were test fired at McGregor, Texas during mid-May.  The first stage arrived at Cape Canaveral on May 27, 2016, shortly after the F9-25 Thaicom 8 launch.  The vehicle was assembled without payload and on June 12, 2016 was rolled out and briefly test fired on the SLC 40 pad.  After the early-morning hot fire, the vehicle   returned to the horizontal integration facility for payload integration.

China Launches Navsat

A Chang Zheng (Long March) 3C launched China's 23rd Beidou navigation satellite from Xichang Satellite Launch Center on June 12, 2016. Liftoff from LC 3 took place at 15:30 UTC. The 3.5-stage rocket boosted Beidou 23, identified by some Western analysts as Beidou 2 G7, into a geosynchronous transfer orbit. The satellite will lift itself into a geosynchronous orbit.

Beidou is based on the DFH-3 bus. China has been steadily building its first navigation satellite constellation during the last few years. As many as 35 satellites are planned, including three in inclined geosynchronous orbits, five in geostationary orbits, and 27 in 12-hour, 21,500 km circular orbits.

It was the year's seventh CZ launch.

Delta 4 Heavy Orbits NROL 37

The ninth Delta 4-Heavy orbited NROL 37 for the National Reconnaissance Office from Cape Canaveral, Florida on June 11, 2016. The big, triple core rocket, currently the world's most capable orbital launcher, rose from its SLC 37B launch pad on nearly 955.28 tonnes (2.1 million pounds) of combined thrust from its three liquid hydrogen fueled RS-68A engines. Liftoff occurred at 17:51 UTC, following a weather scrub on June 9.

NROL 37 may be a Mentor (or Advanced Orion) signals intelligence satellite aimed for near-geosynchronous orbit using three burns by the upper stage RL10B-2 engine during a roughly six hour mission.  Six previous Mentor satellites, described as the largest satellites ever deployed, are believed to have been orbited by Titan 4 and Delta 4 Heavy launch vehicles since 1993.

The most recent Mentor launch, in June 2012, used the first set of improved RS-68A engines. RS-68A was said to have been developed specifically to lift the latest Mentor versions, which could weigh as much as 6 metric tons. The satellites are believed to have a huge antenna reflector, or arrays of reflectors, that deploy after they reach their operational orbits.

It was the 32nd Delta 4 launch.  The flight, designated "Delta 374", was the last Delta 4 Heavy until 2018.

Proton Launches Intelsat 31

An upgraded "Phase 4" Proton M/Briz M launched Intelsat 31 toward a planned supersynchronous transfer orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on June 9, 2016. The four-stage, 705 tonne rocket lifted off from Area 81 Pad 24 at 07:10 UTC, beginning a planned 15.5 hour mission involving five-burns by the Briz M upper stage. Intelsat 31, a 6.32 tonne Space Systems Loral 1300 series communications satellite, was aimed toward a 3,503 x 65,000 km x 29.6 deg transfer orbit.  The planned GTO was only about 1,500 m/s short of geosynchronous orbit.

During the Proton ascent phase, one of the four second stage main engines shut down nine seconds early, causing a small delta-v shortfall. Staging was otherwise nominal and, after the third stage completed its burn, the Briz M upper stage fired 32.66 seconds longer than planned to reach its initial low earth parking orbit. Briz M completed its subsequent four burns roughly on time.  The fifth and final burn followed a long coast to apogee.   Spacecraft separation took place at about 22:41 UTC.

Soon after spacecraft separation, launch service provider ILS and satellite owner Intelsat declared the launch a success. 

It was the 412th Proton launch, the third Proton flight of the year, and the 35th orbital launch of the year worldwide. 

Rokot Orbits Geo-IK-2 No. 12L

Russia's Rokot/Briz KM orbited a Russian Defense Ministry gravity mapping satellite from Plestesk Cosmodrome on June 4, 2016. The three-stage rocket, consisting of a retired two-stage RS-18 ICBM topped by a Khrunichev Briz KM upper stage, lifted off from LC 133/3 at 13:45 UTC. The satellite, named Geo-IK-2 No. 12L, entered a sun synchronous orbit.

ISS Reshetnev developed the 900 kg Geo-IK-2 No. 12L geodesy satellite, which will map the earth's gravitational field and land and sea surface heights from its operational 1,000 km x 98.6 deg orbit. The satellite will perform the mission of Geo-IK-2 No. 11, which was placed into an incorrect orbit by another Rokot/Briz KM in February 2011.

A Russian Aerospace Force combat crew performed the launch. It was the 26th Rokot/Briz KM orbital attempt.  The launch vehicle's development also included two suborbital and one orbital Rokot/Briz K flights during the early 1990s. 

The flight garnered the attention of Canadian environmentalists because the second stage debris impact zone was in the northern part of Baffin Bay between Greenland and Elsemere Island. Although in international waters, the impact zone was within the claimed exclusive economic zones of Canada and Denmark.


CZ-4B Orbits Remote Sensing Satellite

China's Chang Zheng (Long March) 4B launched Ziyuan 3-2, a high-resolution remote sensing satellite, from Taiyaun Satellite Launch Center on May 30, 2016. Liftoff from LC 9 took place at 03:17 UTC.  Ziyuan 3-2, a 2,630 kg satellite built by China’s Academy of Space Technology/Beijing Institute of Spacecraft System Engineering for the Chinese Ministry of Land and Resources, was injected into sun synchronous orbit. Two Aleph 1 microsatellite were also orbited.

Ziyuan 3-2, fitted with multiple cameras and an infrared multispectral scanner, will be used for civil mapping purposes. It will operate in a 506 km x 97.42 deg orbit.


Soyuz Orbits Glonass Navsat

Russia's Soyuz 2-1B/Fregat launched a GLONASS-M navigation satellite from Plesetsk Cosmodrome Site 43/4 on May 29, 2016. Liftoff took place at 08:44 UTC. The 1,415 kg satellite was identified as Glonass 53.  It was slated to be named Kosmos 2516 after a successful orbit had been achieved.

Spacecraft separation occurred at 12:16 UTC. After the Soyuz rocket boosted Fregat and its payload into low earth orbit, the Fregat upper stage performed three burns to lift the 1.415 tonne satellite into a roughly 19,140 km x 64.8 deg orbit.

It was the ninth R-7 launch of 2016.

Falcon 9 Launches Thaicom 8

F9-25 Liftoff

SpaceX Corporation's 25th Falcon 9 rocket, and its fifth upgraded Falcon 9 v1.2 variant, launched Thailand's Thaicom 8 communication satellite into orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on May 27, 2016. Liftoff of the 69.98 meter (229.6 foot) tall rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 took place at 21:39 UTC. After a 2 minute 35 second first stage burn, the Merlin 1D Vacuum powered, stretched second stage performed two burns, with a roughly 18 minute parking orbit coast between, to accelerate the 3.025 metric ton (tonne) Orbital ATK GEOStar 2 satellite toward a targeted 250 x 90,000 km supersynchronous transfer orbit.

After its ascent burn, the first stage reoriented itself to perform experimental reentry and landing retro-burns, while using four grid-fins to steer toward a SpaceX landing platform positioned on the Atlantic Ocean surface about 680 km downrange. The stage achieved the third consecutive successful sea platform landing.

The initial second stage burn lasted for about 6 minutes 10 seconds to reach a low earth parking orbit. Payload fairing separation occurred about 51 seconds after the start of the burn. After a roughly 18 minute coast, the second stage reignited for a one minute 13 seconds burn to loft the payload toward its insertion orbit. Spacecraft separation occurred about 31 minutes 56 seconds after liftoff.


First Stage on Landing Platform

After maneuvering itself to geosynchronous orbit, Thaicom 8, equipped with 24 Ku-band transponders, will be located at 78.5 degrees East.

During the launch campaign, the Thaicom 8 stages performed qualification burns at McGregor, Texas during mid-April. The first stage performed a hot fire test at SLC 40 on May 24, 2016. The first launch attempt was scrubbed on May 26 during the final hour of the countdown to investigate a potential second stage actuator problem

Soyuz 2-1b/Fregat Orbits Navsat Pair

A Soyuz 2-1b/Fregat successfully orbited two more European Galileo navigation satellites from the Kourou Soyuz Launch Zone on May 24, 2016. Liftoff for the VS15 mission for Arianespace took place at 08:48:43 UTC. After the 2.5-stage R-7/Soyuz rocket completed its ascent, the Fregat MT upper stage performed two burns during a nearly four hour FOC 5 mission to place Galileo FM10 and FM11 into 23,522 kilometer circular orbits at an inclination of 57.4 degrees.

OHB-System and SSTL built the satellite bus and payload, respectfully, for the 715 kg Galileo satellites. After a 2014 failure that placed two satellites into an improper orbit, these will become the fourth pair of properly placed "Full Operational Capability" satellites of a planned 22 satellite constellation. Including the mis-placed pair and four initial operating capability test satellites launched in 2011 and 2012, there are now 14 Galileo satellites in orbit.

Russia's Roscosmos was in charge of range operations for the launch. TsENKI handled systems engineering. Crews from RKTs-Progress (Soyuz) and NPO Lavochkin (Fregat) handled launch operations. 

It was the year's 30th orbital launch, all of which have been successful.

China Orbits Yaogan 30

A Chang Zheng 2D (CZ-2D) orbited a remote sensing satellite for China from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on May 15, 2016. The two-stage hypergolic propellant rocket lifted off from LC 43-603 at 02:43 UTC. The satellite, named Yaogan 30, entered a roughly 626 x 655 km x 98.07 deg sun synchronous low earth orbit, an orbit to which CZ-2D is capable of lifting at least 2 metric tonnes.

China announced that the satellite will be used for scientific experiments, land survey, and crop and disaster monitoring. Western analysts suspect that Yaogan 30 is an electro-optical reconnaisance satellite used primarily for military purposes.

It was the fifth CZ launch of 2016.

Falcon 9 Launches JCSAT 14

The 24th Falcon 9, and fourth Falcon 9 v1.2 with full-thrust Merlin 1D engines, boosted SKY Perfect JSAT Corparation's JCSAT 14 communications satellite into geosynchronous transfer orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida on May 6, 2016. Liftoff from SLC 40 took place at 05:21 UTC. The 4,696.2 kg Space Systems Loral 1300-series satellite separated about 32 minutes 2 seconds later, after two burns by the second stage Merlin 1D Vacuum engine that together totaled 7 minutes 3 seconds.  The first stage fired for 2 minutes 38 seconds.

JCSAT 14 separated into a 189 x 35,957 km x 23.7 deg transfer orbit 32 minutes 2 seconds after liftoff.  It was the third Falcon 9 v1.2 geosynchronous transfer orbit mission.  

As it had before the SES 9 launch, SpaceX announced before the liftoff that it did not expect a successful first stage recovery, although more landing propellant was available due to the lighter payload and lower energy orbit compared to SES 9.   The first stage  performed a three-engine reentry burn and a three-engine final landing burn to land successfully on the deck of a converted barge positioned about 658 km downrange.  It was the second successful barge landing in six attempts. 

The success followed a brief launch vehicle static test firing at SLC 40 on May 1.   The vehicle's stages performed acceptance test firings at McGregor, Texas during March.  

PSLV Orbits Navsat

India's PSLV-XL orbited IRNSS 1G, the country's seventh navigation satellite, from Sriharikota on April 28, 2016. The 4.5 -stage rocket lifted off from Satish Dhawan Space Center's First Launch Pad at 07:20 UTC. The 20 minute, 19 second PSLV C-33 mission boosted the 1,425 kg satellite toward a planned 284 x 20,657 km x 17.86 deg subsychronous transfer orbit. IRNSS 1G will raise itself to a nearly 36,000 km circular geosynchronous orbit inclined 5 degrees to the equator. IRNSS 1G will trace a small figure-8 pattern over the Earth's surface, centered on 129.5 deg East longitude.

The flight completed India's first generation navigation constellation, which will consist of four satellites in inclined geosynchronous orbit and three in equatorial geostationary orbits.

It was the 35th PSLV flight and the 31th consecutive success. PSLV began flying in 1993.

Vostochny Cosmodrome Inaugural

Russia's Vostochny Cosmodrome hosted its first orbital launch on April 28, 2016, when a Soyuz 2-1a with a Volga upper stage boosted three satellites to sun synchronous low earth orbit. Liftoff took place at 02:01 UTC. Primary satellite Mikhailo Lomonosov, designed to study cosmic and gamma rays, was joined by two small secondary satellites named Aist 2 and SamSat 218.

The hypergolic liquid fueled Volga stage, which has flown atop Soyuz 2-1v, was slated to perform two burns, at about T+50 and T+95 minutes.  Spacecraft separation was to follow the second burn.  A third, deorbit burn was then scheduled to aim the stage toward the Pacific Ocean. 

Vostochny, Russia's new Eastern spaceport, is being built around the former Svobodny Cosmodrome, which last hosted a Start 1 orbital launch in 2006. Svobodny was orignally a mobile ICBM site. The site is in Russia's Far East near the 51st parallel in Amur Oblast. It lies 600-800 km from the Pacific Ocean. This first flight ascended on a northwesterly track across Siberia toward the Arctic Ocean.

Vostochny, under construction since 2010, consists of the new "Site 1" Soyuz launch pad and a "Site 2" comprising large launch vehicle and payload processing buildings. The new Soyuz launch site has the familiar rail-based transport/erector, deep R-7 flame trench, and trussed counterbalanced launcher, but also includes a mobile service tower similar to Kourou ELS Soyuz launch site. The first Soyuz 2 launch vehicle arrived at Vostochny in late September, 2015 by train. It was used to test facilities for several months, an effort that culminated in a full propellant loading exercise.

Plans call for a second launch pad to be built for Russia's new Angara launch vehicle family. Eventually, Vostochny may host crewed launches, which would allow Russia to pull out of Baikonur Cosmodrome, which is located outside Russian borders in Kazakhstan.


Soyuz 2-1a/Fregat Launches Sentinel 1B

Russian contractor teams launched a Soyuz 2-1a/Fregat from Kourou Space Center in French Guiana for Arianespace on April 25, 2016. The VS14 launch orbited the European Space Agency's Sentinel 1B environmental monitoring satellite. The 3.5 stage rocket lifted off from the ELS pad at 21:02 UTC to begin the Arianespace VS14 mission. The 2,164 kg Thales Alenia Space-built satellite was boosted into a 686 km x 98.18 deg sun synchronous orbit after the Fregat stage completed a single burn about 20 minutes after liftoff.

Sentinel 1B will use a C-band synthetic aperture radar to provide imagery of both ocean and land surfaces.

After deploying Sentinel 1B, Fregat perfomed a second burn to deploy three 1 kg CubeSats in 453 x 665 km orbits. The stage performed two more burns before deploying the 303 kg Microscope satellite into a 711 km x 98.23 deg orbit some 4 hours 52 minutes after liftoff. Fregat then performed a final deorbit burn.

Falcon 9 Launches CRS 8, First Stage Lands at Sea

The 23rd Falcon 9 launch vehicle successfully orbited the Dragon 10 spacecraft on NASA's CRS 8 International Space Station cargo hauling mission on April 8, 2016. After performing the initial mission boost, the rocket's first stage accomplished the first successful landing on a floating platform - the company's converted landing barge - positioned about 300 km northeast of the Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40 launch site. It was the fifth such attempt.

Liftoff took place at 20:43 UTC after no delays or scrubs.  Dragon was targeted toward a 200 x 360 km x 51.6 deg orbit. The spacecraft carried 3,136 kg of cargo, including the 1,413 kg Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) experiment in the unpressurized trunk section. At roughly 10.4 tonnes, the combined Dragon and cargo mass was the heaviest-payload yet launched by a Falcon 9.

F9-23 First Stage After Landing

During its descent, the first stage perform three-engine boost-back and reentry burns, followed by a final single-engine landing burn.   Landing took place about 8 minutes 35 seconds after liftoff.

The F9-23 first stage had performed a static firing at SLC 40 on April 5.  After its successful static testing at McGregor, Texas during February, a ground equipment failure damaged multiple engines during a non-propulsive test.  The engines were repaired or replaced without causing significant delay to the launch schedule.

Dragon arrived at ISS on April 10, 2016. 

The landing platform with the first stage returned to Port Canaveral during the pre-dawn hours of April 12, 2016.  During the day, a crane picked up the stage from the barge and placed it onto a work stand on the dock.



CZ-2D Orbits Shijian 10

China's Chang Zheng (Long March) 2D launched a recoverable spacecraft named Shijian 10 into orbit from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on April 5, 2016. The two-stage rocket, serial number Y36, lifted off from LC 43 Pad 603 at 17:38 UTC. Shijian 10, a 3,600 kg satellite with a cylindrical section topped by a conical reentry vehicle, was inserted into a 234 x 268 km x 42.89 deg orbit. It housed 29 physics and biology experiments. Shijian 10 is slated to return to earth after two weeks in orbit.

It was the 27th CZ-2D launch, all of which have succeeded. The type began flying in 1992.