Login
Login

2018 in spaceflight#December

{{Short description|none}}

{{Use British English|date=August 2017}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2018}}

{{Accessibility dispute|date=December 2023|reason=screen readers can not read flag icons. Words as the primary means of communication should be given greater precedence over flags}}

{{Infobox Year in spaceflight

| year = 2018

| image = {{Photomontage|

| photo1a = Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster (40143096241).jpg{{!}}A mannequin (Starman) in a spacesuit drives a car with the Earth in the background

| photo2a = PIA22575 IDC Camera First Image.jpg{{!}}Image of the science deck of the InSight lander, with the Martian landscape in the background

| photo2b = Asteroid-Bennu-OSIRIS-RExArrival-GifAnimation-20181203.gif{{!}}Animation of the rotating asteroid Bennu

| photo3a = ISS-57 EVA (b) Oleg Kononenko.jpg{{!}}A cosmonaut inspecting the exterior of a spacecraft during a spacewalk; Earth appears in the background

| size = 250

| spacing = 3

| color = transparent

| color_border = transparent

}}

| caption = Highlights from spaceflight in 2018{{Efn|Clockwise from top {{Bulleted list|Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster, with "Starman" aboard, is launched from the Earth into heliocentric orbit following the successful maiden test flight of the Falcon Heavy.|Animation of photographs of 101955 Bennu taken by the PolyCam instrument aboard the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.|Cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko inspects the exterior of the Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft, after the discovery of a 2 mm hole in the spacecraft that caused a temporary air leakage aboard the International Space Station.|First light of the Instrument Deployment Camera (IDC) aboard the InSight spacecraft, with the plains of Elysium Planitia in the background.}}}}

| first = 8 January

| last = 29 December

| total = 114

| success = 111

| failed = 2

| partial = 1

| catalogued = 112

| firstflight =

| firstsat =

{{plainlist|

  • {{NZL}}
  • {{CRI}}
  • {{KEN}}
  • {{BTN}}
  • {{JOR}}

}}

|firstlaunch=| firsttrav =

| maidens = {{plainlist|

}}

| retired = {{plainlist|

}}

| orbital = 3 (+1 failed)

| suborbital =1 (private)

| totalcrew = 11 (+2 failed)

| EVAs = 8

|firstsublaunch={{NOR}}}}

{{Infobox spaceflight

| programme = Timeline of spaceflight

| previous_mission = 2017

| next_mission = 2019

}}

{{TLS-L|alignment=right|fixed=on}}

This article documents notable spaceflight events during the year 2018. For the first time since 1990, more than 100 orbital launches were performed globally.

Overview

= Planetary exploration =

The NASA InSight seismology probe was launched in May 2018 and landed on Mars in November. The Parker Solar Probe was launched to explore the Sun in August 2018, and reached its first perihelion in November, traveling faster than any prior spacecraft. On 20 October the ESA and JAXA launched BepiColombo to Mercury, on a 10-year mission featuring several flybys and eventually deploying two orbiters in 2025 for local study. The asteroid sampling mission Hayabusa2 reached its target Ryugu in June,{{cite news |url=https://spaceflightnow.com/2018/06/28/japanese-spacecraft-reaches-asteroid-after-three-and-a-half-year-journey/ |title=Japanese spacecraft reaches asteroid after three-and-a-half-year journey |work=Spaceflight Now |first=Stephen |last=Clark |date=28 June 2018 |access-date=2 July 2018}} and the similar OSIRIS-REx probe reached Bennu in December.{{cite news |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/12/osiris-rex-arrives-asteroid-bennu/ |title=OSIRIS-REx Arrives at Asteroid Bennu |work=NASASpaceFlight.com |first=Justin |last=Davenport |date=3 December 2018 |access-date=6 December 2018}} China launched its Chang'e 4 lander/rover in December which performed the first ever soft landing on the far side of the Moon in January 2019;{{cite news |last=Lyons |first=Kate |title=Chang'e 4 landing: China probe makes historic touchdown on far side of the moon |url = https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |access-date=3 January 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian |language=en |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190103043232/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/jan/03/china-probe-change-4-land-far-side-moon-basin-crater |archive-date=3 January 2019 |url-status = live}}{{cite web |url = http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/change4-success.html |title=China successfully lands Chang'e-4 on far side of Moon |access-date=3 January 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190103133008/http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/change4-success.html |archive-date=3 January 2019 |url-status = live}} a communications relay was sent to the second Earth-Moon Lagrange point in May. The Google Lunar X Prize expired on 31 March without a winner for its $20 million grand prize, because none of its five finalist teams were able to launch a commercial lunar lander mission before the deadline.{{cite web|url=http://spacenews.com/google-lunar-x-prize-to-end-without-winner/|title=Google Lunar X Prize to end without winner - SpaceNews.com|date=23 January 2018}}

= Human spaceflight =

The Soyuz MS-10 October mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was aborted shortly after launch, due to a separation failure of one of the rocket's side boosters. The crew landed safely, and was rescheduled for March 2019 on Soyuz MS-12.{{cite web |url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-astronaut-nick-hague-set-for-new-space-station-mission-after-abort |title=NASA Astronaut Nick Hague Set for New Space Station Mission After Abort |date=4 December 2018}} The United States returned to spaceflight on 13 December with the successful suborbital spaceflight of VSS Unity Flight VP-03. The flight did not reach the Kármán line (100 km) but it did cross the US definition of space (50 mi). As per United States convention, it was the first human spaceflight launched from the U.S. since the last Space shuttle flight STS-135 in 2011. Astronauts Mark P. Stucky and Frederick W. Sturckow both received their FAA Commercial Astronaut Wings on 7 February 2019. The return of the United States to human orbital spaceflight was further delayed to 2019, as Boeing and SpaceX, under NASA supervision, performed further tests on their commercial crew spacecraft under development: Starliner on Atlas V and SpaceX Dragon 2 on Falcon 9.{{cite news |last1=Dunn |first1=Marcia |title=Astronauts chosen for SpaceX, Boeing capsule flights in 2019 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/78029175/astronauts-chosen-for-spacex-boeing/ |access-date=20 May 2021 |work=The Palm Beach Post |agency=Associated Press |publisher=Gannett |date=5 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520170708/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/78029175/astronauts-chosen-for-spacex-boeing/ |archive-date=20 May 2021 |location=Cape Canaveral, Florida |url-status=live |via=Newspapers.com }}

= Rocket innovation =

After a failed launch in 2017, the Electron rocket reached orbit with its second flight in January; manufactured by Rocket Lab, it is the first orbital rocket equipped with electric pump-fed engines.{{cite news |url=https://www.popsci.com/rocket-labs-got-3d-printed-battery-powered-rocket-engine |title=A 3D-Printed, Battery-Powered Rocket Engine |work=Popular Science |last1=Grush |first1=Loren |date=14 April 2015 |access-date=27 January 2018}}

On 3 February, the Japanese SS-520-5 rocket (a modified sounding rocket) successfully delivered a 3U CubeSat to orbit, thus becoming the lightest and smallest orbital launch vehicle ever.{{cite web|title=Japanese sounding rocket claims record-breaking orbital launch – NASASpaceFlight.com|url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/02/japanese-rocket-record-borbital-launch/|website=www.nasaspaceflight.com|date=3 February 2018|access-date=3 February 2018}}

On 6 February, SpaceX performed the much-delayed test flight of Falcon Heavy,{{cite news |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/02/spacex-debut-falcon-heavy-demonstration-launch/ |title=SpaceX successfully debuts Falcon Heavy in demonstration launch from KSC |work=NASASpaceflight |first=Chris |last=Gebhardt |date=5 February 2018 |access-date=7 February 2018}} carrying a car and a mannequin to a heliocentric orbit beyond Mars.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a16571489/elon-musk-space-tesla-mars/ |title=Elon Musk's Space Tesla Isn't Going to Mars. It's Going Somewhere More Important. |date=5 February 2018 |author=Joe Pappalardo |magazine=Popular Mechanics}} Falcon Heavy became the most powerful active rocket until the maiden launch of the Space Launch System in 2022.{{Cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2018/02/06/technology/future/biggest-rockets-falcon-heavy-comparison/index.html|title=SpaceX Falcon Heavy: How the biggest rockets in history stack up|first1=Amanda|last1=Barnett|first2=Jackie|last2=Wattles|work=CNNMoney|access-date=7 February 2018}}

On 27 October, LandSpace launched Zhuque-1, the first privately developed rocket in China; it failed to reach orbit.{{cite news |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/10/chinese-landspace-launches-weilai-1-zhuque-1-rocket/ |title=Chinese commercial provider LandSpace launches Weilai-1 on a Zhuque-1 rockets – fails to make orbit |work=NASASpaceFlight.com |first=Rui C. |last=Barbosa |date=27 October 2018 |access-date=27 October 2018}} The company later announced that it would not repeat the launch attempt and shift its focus to the Zhuque-2 launch vehicle, making this the only launch attempt of Zhuque-1.{{cite magazine|last=Jones|first=Andrew|date=12 July 2023|title=China's Landspace reaches orbit with methane-powered Zhuque-2 rocket|url=https://spacenews.com/chinas-landspace-reaches-orbit-with-methane-powered-zhuque-2-rocket/|magazine=SpaceNews|access-date=12 July 2023}}

On 13 December Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo reached 82.7 km, below the internationally recognized Kármán line but above the 50-mile definition of space used by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.{{cite news |url= https://www.upi.com/Virgin-Galactic-reaches-edge-of-space-in-historic-flight/1031544721368/?rc_fifo=3 |title= Virgin Galactic reaches edge of space in historic flight |author= Clyde Hughes |date= 13 December 2018 |agency= UPI }}{{cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/business/wp/2018/11/19/feature/virgin-galactic-space-tourism/ |title= Virgin Galactic's quest for space |author= Christian Davenport |date= 19 November 2018 |newspaper= Washington Post }}

= Accelerating activity =

The global activity of the launch industry grew significantly in 2018. 114 launches were conducted over the full year, compared with 91 in 2017, a 25% increase. Only three missions failed fully or partially in 2018, compared with eight failures in 2017. In August, China surpassed its previous record of 22 launches in 2016, and ended the year with a total 39 launches, also more launches than any other country in 2018. The 100th orbital launch of the year occurred on 3 December,{{cite news |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/12/100th-orbital-launch-2018-international-trio-space-station/ |title=100th orbital launch of 2018: International trio launch to Space Station |work=NASASpaceFlight.com |first=Chris |last=Gebhardt |date=3 December 2018 |access-date=3 December 2018}} exceeding all yearly tallies since the end of the Cold War space race in 1991.

Orbital and suborbital launches

{{main|List of spaceflight launches in January–June 2018|List of spaceflight launches in July–December 2018}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ List of orbital launches

!width=25%|Month

!Num. of successes

!Num. of failures

style="text-align:left"|January130
style="text-align:left"|February80
style="text-align:left"|March100
style="text-align:left"|April90
style="text-align:left"|May70
style="text-align:left"|June80
style="text-align:left"|July80
style="text-align:left"|August40
style="text-align:left"|September80
style="text-align:left"|October112
style="text-align:left"|November130
style="text-align:left"|December150
class="sortbottom"

! colspan=1 | Total

{{sum|13|8|10|9|7|8|8|4|8|11|13|15}}2

Deep-space rendezvous

class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
Date (GMT)

!Spacecraft

!Event

!Remarks

7 February

| Juno

| 11th perijove of Jupiter

|

1 April

| Juno

| 12th perijove

|

17 May

| TESS

| Gravity assist by the Moon

| Closest approach: {{convert|8100|km|mi}}

24 May

| Juno

| 13th perijove

|

25 May

| Queqiao

| Moon flyby

| In Earth–Moon L2 halo orbit{{cite news |url=https://gbtimes.com/queqiao-change-4-satellite-performs-moon-flyby-makes-successful-braking-manoeuvre |title=Queqiao Chang'e-4 satellite performs Moon flyby, makes successful braking manoeuvre |work=GBTimes |first=Andrew |last=Jones |date=1 June 2018 |access-date=11 July 2018 |archive-date=10 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710164404/https://gbtimes.com/queqiao-change-4-satellite-performs-moon-flyby-makes-successful-braking-manoeuvre |url-status=dead }}

25 May

| Longjiang-1

| Moon flyby

| Failed lunar orbital injection{{cite news |url=https://gbtimes.com/change-4-lunar-microsatellite-may-be-lost-queqiao-continues-toward-lagrange-point-beyond-moon |title=Chang'e-4: Lunar microsatellite may be lost, Queqiao continues toward Lagrange point beyond Moon |work=GBTimes |first=Andrew |last=Jones |date=28 May 2018 |access-date=1 June 2018 |archive-date=29 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529202938/https://gbtimes.com/change-4-lunar-microsatellite-may-be-lost-queqiao-continues-toward-lagrange-point-beyond-moon |url-status=dead }}

25 May

| Longjiang-2

| Injection into Selenocentric orbit

| Preliminary orbit was 350 × 13800 km, inclined 21° to the equator{{cite tweet |user=planet4589 |number=1000831214603898880 |title=So it looks like Longjiang-2 (DSLWP-B) is in a 350 x 13800 km x 21 deg lunar orbit. Longjiang-1 seems to have failed on May 21 and presumably remains in distant Earth orbit following its lunar flyby |date=27 May 2018}}

27 June

| Hayabusa2

| Arrival at asteroid Ryugu

|

16 July

| Juno

| 14th perijove

|

7 September

| Juno

| 15th perijove

|

nowrap | 21 September

| HIBOU (ROVER-1A)

| Landing on Ryugu

|

21 September

| OWL (ROVER-1B)

| Landing on Ryugu

|

3 October

| MASCOT

| Landing on Ryugu

|

3 October

| nowrap | Parker Solar Probe

| nowrap | First gravity assist at Venus

|

29 October

| Juno

| 16th perijove

|

6 November

| Parker Solar Probe

| First perihelion

| Occurred at 03:28 UTC, a distance of 25 million km from the Sun. New record for the fastest spacecraft (95 km/s).

nowrap | 26 November

| InSight

| Arrival at Mars

| Successful landing at Elysium Planitia, coordinates {{coord|4.5024|N|135.6234|E|globe:Mars}}.{{cite news |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/11/nasa-mars-fleet-insight-landing-red-planet/ |title=NASA, international InSight mission nail PERFECT landing on Mars |work=NASASpaceFlight.com |first=Chris |last=Genhardt |date=26 November 2018 |access-date=25 November 2018}}

26 November

| MarCO A, B

| Mars flyby

| Data relays for InSight lander

3 December

| OSIRIS-REx

| Arrival at asteroid Bennu

| Approach phase operations began on 17 August

12 December

| Chang'e 4

| Injection into Selenocentric orbit

| Preliminary orbit 100 × 400 km, en route to a landing attempt on the Lunar farside{{cite tweet |last=Jones |first=Andrew |user=AJ_FI |number=1072778049534525442 |title=Chang'e-4 has just successfully entered a 100 x 400km lunar orbit, achieved at 08:39 UTC (16:39 Beijing time), following a four-and-a-half day voyage to Moon |date=12 December 2018}}

21 December

| Juno

| 17th perijove

|

Extravehicular activities (EVAs)

{{See also|List of spacewalks 2015–2024#2018 spacewalks}}

class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
Start Date/Time

!Duration

!End Time

!Spacecraft

!Crew

!Remarks

23 January
11:49

| 7 hours
24 minutes

| 19:13

| {{nowrap|Expedition 54}}
ISS Quest

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Replacement of latching end effector-B (LEE-B) for the space station remote manipulator system (SSRMS)

2 February
15:34

| 8 hours
13 minutes

| 23:47

| {{nowrap|Expedition 54}}
ISS Pirs

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Dismantling Lira electronics assembly
  • Installation of upgraded electronics unit
  • Jettisoning of removed unit
  • Test exposure unit retrieval
  • Biorisk retrieval
  • Foot restraint relocation

16 February
12:00

| 5 hours
57 minutes

| 17:57

| {{nowrap|Expedition 54}}
ISS Quest

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Finished removal and replacement of latching end effector on POA
  • Replaced LEE camera, installed ground strap on Canadarm2
  • Brought failed LEE inside
  • Lubricated Canadarm2
  • Moved tool platform on Dextre
  • Adjusted struts on flex hose rotary coupler

29 March
13:33

| 6 hours
10 minutes

| 19:43

| {{nowrap|Expedition 55}}
ISS Quest

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Node 3 external wireless antenna install
  • P1 truss ammonia jumper remove (P1-3-2 RBVM)
  • CP8 camera group replacement
  • S0 ammonia jumper relocate to ESP-1
  • APFR relocate to ESP-1
  • Bolt preps on ESP-2

16 May
11:39

| 6 hours
31 minutes

| 18:10

| {{nowrap|Expedition 55}}
ISS Quest

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Relocation of two pump flow control subassembly (PFCS) units
  • Replace the camera port-13 (CP-13) external television camera group (ETVCG)
  • Replacement of the space to ground transmit/receive controller (SGTRC)

14 June
08:06{{cite news |url=https://spaceflightnow.com/2018/06/14/station-spacewalk-underway-to-install-new-cameras/ |title=Station astronauts install new cameras on successful spacewalk |work=Spaceflight Now |first=William |last=Harwood |date=14 June 2018 |access-date=15 June 2018}}

| 6 hours
{{nobr|49 minutes}}

| 14:55

| {{nowrap|Expedition 56}}
ISS Quest

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Installed new cameras to monitor the approach and docking maneuvers of commercial crew spacecraft
  • Replaced a defective camera and lighting on the right side of the station
  • Closed the cover of the Cloud Aerosol Transport System instrument

15 August
16:17

| 7 hours
46 minutes

| 00:03 on 16 August

| Expedition 56
ISS Pirs

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Deployed four cubesats built by Russian students
  • Installed antennas and cables for the Icarus animal-tracking device
  • Retrieved two materials exposure packages from the Zvezda hull{{cite news |url=https://spaceflightnow.com/2018/08/15/russian-eva-45/ |title=Spacewalkers toss nanosatellites into orbit, hook up bird migration monitor |work=Spaceflight Now |first=Stephen |last=Clark |date=August 15, 2018 |access-date=August 23, 2018}}

nowrap | 11 December
15:59

| 7 hours
45 minutes

| 21:44

| Expedition 57
ISS Pirs

| {{plainlist|

}}

|

  • Inspected damage to the hull of Soyuz MS-09{{cite news |last=Bergin |first=Chris |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/12/russian-eva-hole-soyuz-ms-09/ |title=Russian EVA examines hole repair area on Soyuz MS-09 |work=NASASpaceFlight.com |date=11 December 2018 |access-date=18 April 2019}}

Space debris events

class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
Date/Time (UTC)

! {{nobr|Source object}}

! {{nobr|Event type}}

! Pieces tracked

! Remarks

31 August

| Centaur upper stage

| Unknown

| 80

|

22 December
07:12

| Orbcomm
OG1 FM 16

| Satellite breakup

| 34+

| Orbcomm OG1 sat FM 16 disintegrated for unknown reasons.{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/18spcs/status/1080161833837780998|title=#18SPCS confirmed breakup of ORBCOMM OG1 sat FM 16, #25417, on 22 Dec @ 0712 UTC - tracking 34 pieces - no indication caused by collision.|date=2019-01-01|website=twitter.com|language=en|access-date=2019-01-02}}

Orbital launch statistics

{{See also|Timeline of spaceflight}}

= By country =

For the purposes of this section, the yearly tally of orbital launches by country assigns each flight to the country of origin of the rocket, not to the launch services provider or the spaceport. As examples, Soyuz launches by Arianespace in Kourou are counted under Russia because Soyuz-2 is a Russian rocket and Electron launches from Mahia in New Zealand count as USA launches.

{{Pie chart

| radius = 120

| legend = false

| thumb = left

| value1 = 39 | color1 = #ff0000 | label1 = China:

| value2 = 34 | color2 = #484785 | label2 = United States:

| value3 = 20 | color3 = #a52a2a | label3 = Russia:

| value4 = 7 | color4 = #ff9933 | label4 = India:

| value5 = 6 | color5 = #ffffff | label5 = Japan:

| value6 = 6 | color6 = #318ce7 | label6 = France:

| value7 = 2 | color7 = #808000 | label7 = Italy:

}}

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
colspan=2 | Country

! Launches

! Successes

! Failures

! Partial
failures

style="background:#ff0000;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{CHN}}

| 39{{efn|China surpassed its previous record of 22 launches in 2016}} || 38 || 1{{efn|The only failure was the maiden flight of private rocket Zhuque-1.}} || 0

style="background:#318ce7;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{FRA}}

| 6 || 5 || 0 || 1{{efn|During Ariane 5 flight VA241 in January, two launched satellites were placed on an off-nominal orbit.}}

style="background:#ff9933;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{IND}}

| 7 || 7{{efn|GSAT-6A launch was a success, but the satellite failed.}} || 0 || 0

style="background:#808000;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{ITA}}

| 2 || 2 || 0 || 0

style="background:#ffffff;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{JPN}}

| 6 || 6 || 0 || 0

style="background:#a52a2a;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{RUS}}

| 20{{efn|Includes three European Soyuz launches from Kourou, French Guiana by Arianespace.}} || 19 || 1{{efn|Crewed Soyuz MS-10 launch failure, two cosmonauts landed safely.}} || 0

style="background:#484785;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{USA}}

| 34{{efn|Includes three Electron launches from Mahia.}} || 34{{efn|In January, Zuma launch was a success, satellite was reported lost but actual status is classified.}} || 0 || 0

class="sortbottom"

! colspan="2" | World

{{sum|39|6|7|2|6|20|34}}{{sum|38|5|7|2|6|19|34}}{{sum|1|0|0|0|0|1|0}}{{sum|0|1|0|0|0|0|0}}

{{clear}}

= By rocket =

{{ #invoke:Chart | bar chart

| float = center

| width = 990

| height = 480

| stack = 1

| group 1 = 2:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 2 = 0: 6:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 3 = 0:0: 5:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 4 = 0:0:0: 1:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 5 = 0:0:0: 1:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 6 = 0:0:0: 1:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 7 = 0:0:0:0: 3:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 8 = 0:0:0:0:0: 9:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 9 = 0:0:0:0:0:11:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 10 = 0:0:0:0:0: 1:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 11 = 0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 12 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 3:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 13 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 1:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 14 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:14:0:0:0:0:0

| group 15 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:14:0:0:0:0:0

| group 16 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 6:0:0:0:0:0

| group 17 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 3:0:0:0:0:0

| group 18 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 4:0:0:0:0

| group 19 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 5:0:0:0

| group 20 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 9:0:0:0

| group 21 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0:0:0

| group 22 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0:0

| group 23 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0:0

| group 24 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0

| group 25 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 5

| colors = DarkTurquoise : MediumBlue : Goldenrod : SteelBlue : LightSteelBlue : DarkBlue : Black : Teal : LightSeaGreen : DarkGreen : SandyBrown : Olive : DarkKhaki : FireBrick : IndianRed : Salmon : Sienna : Gold : DarkGrey : Chocolate : CornflowerBlue : Tan : Wheat : SkyBlue : LightGrey

| group names = Antares 200 : Ariane 5 : Atlas V : Delta II : Delta IV : Delta IV Heavy : Electron : Falcon 9 new : Falcon 9 reused : Falcon Heavy : GSLV Mk II : H-IIA : H-IIB : Long March 2 : Long March 3 : Long March 4 : Long March 11 : PSLV : Soyuz-FG : Soyuz-2 (Russia) : Soyuz-ST (Europe) : Proton-M : Rokot : Vega : Others

| x legends = Antares : Ariane : Atlas : Delta : Electron : Falcon : GSLV : H-II : Long March : PSLV : R-7 : UR : Vega : Others

| units suffix = _launches

}}

== By family ==

class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center;"
Family

! Country

! Launches

! Successes

! Failures

! Partial failures

! Remarks

align=left | Antaresalign=left | {{USA}}2200
align=left | Arianealign=left | {{FRA}}6501
align=left | Atlasalign=left | {{USA}}5500
align=left | Deltaalign=left | {{USA}}3300
align=left | Electronalign=left | {{USA}}3300
align=left | Epsilonalign=left | {{JPN}}1100
align=left | Falconalign=left | {{USA}}212100
align=left | GSLValign=left | {{IND}}2200
align=left | GSLV Mk IIIalign=left | {{IND}}1100
align=left | H-IIalign=left | {{JPN}}4400
align=left | Kuaizhoualign=left | {{CHN}}1100
align=left | Long Marchalign=left | {{CHN}}373700
align=left | PSLValign=left | {{IND}}4400
align=left | R-7align=left | {{RUS}}161510
align=left | S-Seriesalign=left | {{JPN}}1100align=left| Final orbital flight
align=left | Universal Rocketalign=left | {{RUS}}4400
align=left | Vegaalign=left | {{ITA}}2200
align=left | Zhuquealign=left | {{CHN}}1010align=left| Maiden flight

== By type ==

class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center;"
Rocket

! Country

! Family

! Launches

! Successes

! Failures

! Partial failures

! Remarks

align=left | Antares 200align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Antares2200
align=left | Ariane 5align=left | {{FRA}}align=left | Ariane6501
align=left | Atlas Valign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Atlas5500
align=left | Delta IIalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Delta1100align=left| Final flight
align=left | Delta IValign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Delta2200
align=left | Electronalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Electron3300
align=left | Epsilonalign=left | {{JPN}}align=left | Epsilon1100
align=left | Falcon 9align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Falcon212100
align=left | GSLValign=left | {{IND}}align=left | GSLV2200
align=left | GSLV Mk IIIalign=left | {{IND}}align=left | GSLV Mk III1100
align=left | H-IIAalign=left | {{JPN}}align=left | H-II3300
align=left | H-IIBalign=left | {{JPN}}align=left | H-II1100
align=left | Kuaizhou 1align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Kuaizhou1100
align=left | Long March 2align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March141400
align=left | Long March 3align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March141400
align=left | Long March 4align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March6600
align=left | Long March 11align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March3300
align=left | Protonalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Universal Rocket2200
align=left | PSLValign=left | {{IND}}align=left | PSLV4400
align=left | Soyuzalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | R-75410
align=left | Soyuz-2 or STalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | R-7111100
align=left | SS-520align=left | {{JPN}}align=left | S-Series1100align=left| Final orbital flight
align=left | UR-100align=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Universal Rocket2200
align=left | Vegaalign=left | {{ITA}}align=left | Vega2200
align=left | Zhuque-1align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Zhuque1010align=left| Only flight

== By configuration ==

class="wikitable sortable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center;"
Rocket

! Country

! Type

! Launches

! Successes

! Failures

! Partial failures

! Remarks

align=left | Antares 230align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Antares 2002200
align=left | Ariane 5 ECAalign=left | {{FRA}}align=left | Ariane 55401
align=left | Ariane 5 ESalign=left | {{FRA}}align=left | Ariane 51100align=left| Final flight
align=left | Atlas V 401align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Atlas V1100
align=left | Atlas V 411align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Atlas V1100
align=left | Atlas V 541align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Atlas V1100
align=left | Atlas V 551align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Atlas V2200
align=left | Delta II 7420align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Delta II1100align=left| Final flight
align=left | Delta IV Medium+ (5,2)align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Delta IV1100align=left| Final flight
align=left | Delta IV Heavyalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Delta IV1100
align=left | Epsilonalign=left | {{JPN}}align=left | Epsilon1100
align=left | Electronalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Electron3300
align=left | Falcon 9 Full Thrustalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Falcon 9101000align=left| Final flight
align=left | Falcon 9 Block 5align=left | {{USA}}align=left | Falcon 9101000align=left| Maiden flight
align=left | Falcon Heavyalign=left | {{USA}}align=left | Falcon 91100align=left| Maiden flight
align=left | GSLV Mk IIalign=left | {{IND}}align=left | GSLV2200
align=left | GSLV Mk IIIalign=left | {{IND}}align=left | GSLV Mk III1100
align=left | H-IIA 202align=left | {{JPN}}align=left | H-IIA3300
align=left | H-IIA 204align=left | {{JPN}}align=left | H-IIA0000
align=left | H-IIBalign=left | {{JPN}}align=left | H-IIB1100
align=left | Kuaizhou 1Aalign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Kuaizhou1100
align=left | Long March 2Calign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 26600
align=left | Long March 2Dalign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 28800
align=left | Long March 3Aalign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 32200
align=left | Long March 3B/Ealign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 33300
align=left | Long March 3B/E / YZ-1align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 38800
align=left | Long March 3C/Ealign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 31100
align=left | Long March 4Balign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 42200
align=left | Long March 4Calign=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 44400
align=left | Long March 11align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Long March 113300
align=left | Proton-M / Briz-Malign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Proton2200
align=left | PSLV-CAalign=left | {{IND}}align=left | PSLV2200
align=left | PLSV-XLalign=left | {{IND}}align=left | PSLV2200
align=left | Rokot / Briz-KMalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | UR-1002200
align=left | Soyuz-FGalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz5410
align=left | Soyuz-2.1a or ST-Aalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-22200
align=left | Soyuz-2.1a or ST-A / Fregat-Malign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-22200
align=left | Soyuz-2.1b or ST-Balign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-21100
align=left | Soyuz-2.1b or ST-B / Fregat-Malign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-24400
align=left | Soyuz-2.1b or ST-B / Fregat-MTalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-21100
align=left | Soyuz-2-1v / Volgaalign=left | {{RUS}}align=left | Soyuz-21100
align=left | SS-520-5align=left | {{JPN}}align=left | SS-5201100align=left| Final orbital flight
align=left | Vegaalign=left | {{ITA}}align=left | Vega2200
align=left | Zhuque-1align=left | {{CHN}}align=left | Zhuque-11010align=left| Only flight

= By spaceport =

{{ #invoke:Chart | bar chart

| float = center

| width = 800

| height = 400

| stack = 1

| group 1 = 16:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 2 = 6:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 3 = 17:0:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 4 = 0:11:0:0:0:0:0:0

| group 5 = 0:0: 7:0:0:0:0:0

| group 6 = 0:0:0: 4:0:0:0:0

| group 7 = 0:0:0: 2:0:0:0:0

| group 8 = 0:0:0:0: 9:0:0:0

| group 9 = 0:0:0:0:0: 3:0:0

| group 10 = 0:0:0:0:0:0: 6:0

| group 11 = 0:0:0:0:0:0: 2:0

| group 12 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:17

| group 13 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 3

| group 14 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 2

| group 15 = 0:0:0:0:0:0:0: 9

| colors = FireBrick : Crimson : LightCoral : MediumBlue : Orange : MediumPurple : Plum : LightSeaGreen : Black : SteelBlue : LightSteelBlue : Blue : DodgerBlue : DeepSkyBlue : SkyBlue

| group names = Jiuquan : Taiyuan : Xichang : Kourou : Satish Dhawan : Tanegashima : Uchinoura : Baikonur : Mahia : Plesetsk : Vostochny : Cape Canaveral : Kennedy : MARS : Vandenberg

| x legends = China : France : India : Japan : Kazakhstan : New Zealand : Russia : United States

| units suffix = _launches

}}

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
Site

! Country

! Launches

! Successes

! Failures

! Partial failures

! Remarks

align=left | Baikonuralign=left | {{KAZ}}9810
align=left | Cape Canaveralalign=left | {{USA}}171610
align=left | Jiuquanalign=left | {{CHN}}161510
align=left | Kennedyalign=left | {{USA}}3300
align=left | Kouroualign=left | {{FRA}}111001
align=left | Mahiaalign=left | {{NZL}}3300
align=left | MARSalign=left | {{USA}}2200
align=left | Plesetskalign=left | {{RUS}}6600
align=left | Satish Dhawanalign=left | {{IND}}7700
align=left | Taiyuanalign=left | {{CHN}}6600
align=left | Tanegashimaalign=left | {{JPN}}4400
align=left | Uchinouraalign=left | {{JPN}}2200
align=left | Vandenbergalign=left | {{USA}}9900
align=left | Vostochnyalign=left | {{RUS}}2200
align=left | Xichangalign=left | {{CHN}}171700
class="sortbottom"

! colspan=2 | Total

11411031

= By orbit =

{{ #invoke:Chart | bar chart

| float = center

| width = 710

| height = 400

| stack = 1

| group 1 = 23:0:0:0:0

| group 2 = 13:0:0:0:0

| group 3 = 30:0:0:0:0

| group 4 = 1:0:0:0:0

| group 5 = 0:13:0:0:0

| group 6 = 0:0:27:0:0

| group 7 = 0:0:0: 3:0

| group 8 = 0:0:0:0: 4

| colors = Navy : MediumBlue : RoyalBlue : DodgerBlue : LightSeaGreen : SaddleBrown : Black: Gold

| group names = Low Earth : Low Earth (ISS) : Low Earth (SSO) : Low Earth (retrograde) : Medium Earth :Geosychronous (transfer) : High Earth : Heliocentric

| x legends = Low Earth : Medium Earth : Geosynchronous / transfer : High Earth : Heliocentric orbit

| units suffix = _launches

}}

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
Orbital regime

! Launches

! Achieved

! Not achieved

! Accidentally
achieved

! Remarks

align=left | Transatmospheric0000align=left |
align=left | Low Earth / Sun-synchronous676430align=left | Zuma, Soyuz MS-10 and Zhuque-1 lost
align=left | Geosynchronous / GTO272601align=left | Ariane VA241 underperformed
align=left | Medium Earth131300align=left |
align=left | High Earth / Lunar transfer3300align=left |
align=left | Heliocentric / Planetary transfer4400align=left |
class="sortbottom"

! Total

11411031

References

Notes

{{Notelist}}

Citations

{{reflist |refs=

}}

External links

{{TLS-R}}

{{TLS-L|year=2018|nav=on}}

{{Orbital launches in 2018}}

{{2018 in space}}

{{#invoke:Portal bar|main|Spaceflight}}

Category:Spaceflight by year

Category:2018-related lists

Category:Transport timelines by year