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Space probes explore space, moons and planets.


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Probes and spacecraft launched from Earth. Spacecraft and probes have visited other planets, and searched our solar system. Below is a list of the probes and spacecraft.. The list includes past, current, and future probes as well as failed and cancelled missions.

The list of probes and spacecraft is organized as follows.

Space probes and spacecraft.
List of planetary probes and spacecraft sent to explore the planets and solar system.
  • spacecraft - name of the spacecraft.
  • organization - primary agency/agencies.
  • date - date of closest encounter (flybys, impactors), orbital insertion to end of mission (orbiters), landing to end of mission (landers).
  • type - type of mission.
  • flyby - the spacecraft is to fly past its target.
  • orbiter - the spacecraft is to study the target from orbit.
  • solar monitor - solar missions, usually located in a halo orbit at the L1 point.
  • lander - the spacecraft is to study the target on its surface.
  • impactor - the spacecraft is to study the target until it hits the target and is destroyed.
  • penetrator - the spacecraft is to penetrate the surface of the target.
  • atmospheric probe/balloon - the spacecraft is to study the atmosphere of the target.
  • sample return - the spacecraft is to return samples to the Earth.
  • status - current status or the outcome of the mission.
  • success - the mission has fulfilled its primary goals.
  • partial success - the spacecraft did send some data but did not fulfil its goals.
  • failure - no or very little data returned.
  • cancelled - the mission has been cancelled (usually due to budged cuts).
  • under study - the mission is being studied (not yet approved).
  • to be launched - the spacecraft has not yet been launched (may be still under construction).
  • yet to arrive - the spacecraft is on the way to the target.
  • in orbit - the spacecraft is in orbit but has not yet completed its primary mission.
  • operational - the spacecraft has reached the target but has not yet completed its primary mission.
  • notes - special notes, reasons for failure etc.
  • image - if available.
  • ref - references.

Solar probes

This list excludes Earth-orbiting observatories.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Pioneer 5 NASA/DOD 1960 solar monitor success Pioneer 5.
Pioneer 6 NASA 1965 solar monitor success Pioneer 6 - 9.
Pioneer 7 NASA 1966 solar monitor success Pioneer 9.
Pioneer 8 NASA 1967 solar monitor success Pioneer 6.
Pioneer 9 NASA 1968 solar monitor success Pioneer 6 to 9.
Helios 1 NASA/BWF 1974 solar monitor success Helios spacecraft.
Helios 2 NASA/BWF 1976 solar monitor success Helios.
Ulysses ESA/NASA 1994 orbiter success south polar observations Ulysses spacecraft.
1995 north polar observations
SOHO ESA/NASA 1995 solar monitor success still active SOHO instruments.
Ulysses ESA/NASA 2000 orbiter success south polar observations Ulysses.
2001 north polar observations
Genesis NASA 2001-2004 sample return partial success crash landed upon reentry Genesis.
STEREO A NASA 2006 solar monitor launched STEREO spacecraft.
STEREO B NASA 2006 solar monitor launched STEREO.
Ulysses ESA/USA 2007 orbiter success south polar observations Ulysses spacecraft.
2008 yet to arrive north polar observations
Solar Orbiter ESA 2015 orbiter planned

Mercury probes. Exploration of Mercury.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Mariner 10 NASA March 29, 1974 flyby success minimum distance 704 km Mariner 10.
September 21, 1974 48,069 km
March 16, 1975 327 km
MESSENGER NASA 15 January 2008 flyby yet to arrive minimum distance 200 km Messenger.
October 6, 2008 flyby
30 September 2009 flyby
18 March 2011 -
March, 2012		 orbiter
BepiColombo ESA/JAXA 2019 Bepicolumbo.
    Mercury Planetary Orbiter ESA orbiter under construction
Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter JAXA orbiter under construction
Mercury Surface Element ESA lander cancelled

Venus spacecraft probes. Exploration of Venus.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Venera 1 (USSR) May 19, 1961 -May 20, 1961 flyby failure contact lost 7 days after launch; first spacecraft to fly by another planet
Mariner 1 NASA 1962 flyby failure
Mariner 2 NASA December 14, 1962 flyby success first successful Venus flyby; minimum distance 34,773 km Mariner 2.
Zond 1 (USSR) 1964 flyby failure Zond 1.
Venera 2 (USSR) February 27, 1966 flyby failure ceased to operate
Venera 3 (USSR) March 1, 1966 lander failure contact lost before arrival; first spacecraft to impact on the surface of another planet.
Venera 4 (USSR) October 18, 1967 atmospheric probe success
Mariner 5 NASA October 19, 1967 flyby success minimum distance 5,000 km Mariner 5.
Venera 5 (USSR) May 16, 1969 atmospheric probe success
Venera 6 (USSR) May 17, 1969 atmospheric probe success
Venera 7 (USSR) December 15, 1970 lander success first successful landing on another planet Venera 7 capsule.
Venera 8 (USSR) July 22, 1972 lander success Venera 8.
Mariner 10 NASA February 5, 1974 flyby success minimum distance 5768 km; first gravity assist Mariner 10.
Venera 9 (USSR) 1975 orbiter success Venera 9.
October 22, 1975 lander success first images from the surface Venera 9.
Venera 10 (USSR) 1975 orbiter success Venera 10.
October 23, 1975 lander success
Venera 11 SAS
flight platform December 25, 1978 flyby success minimum distance 34,000 km
descent craft December 25, 1978 lander partial success Venera 11.
Venera 12 SAS
flight platform December 21, 1978 flyby success minimum distance 34,000 km
descent craft December 21, 1978 lander partial success Venera 11 lander.
Pioneer Venus Orbiter NASA December 4, 1978 -
1992		 orbiter success Pioneer Venus orbiter.
Pioneer Venus Multiprobe NASA 1978 Pioneer spacecraft.
Bus
Large Probe atmospheric probe success Large venus probe.
North Probe atmospheric probe success venus probe.
Day Probe atmospheric probe success survived the impact probe.
Night Probe atmospheric probe success venus probe.
Venera 13 SAS
bus 1982 flyby success Venera 13.
descent craft March 1, 1982 lander success Venera lander.
Venera 14 SAS
bus 1982 flyby success Venera 13 orbiter.
descent craft March 5, 1982 lander success Venera lander.
Venera 15 SAS 1983-1984 orbiter success radar mapping Venera 15.
Venera 16 SAS 1983-1984 orbiter success radar mapping Venera 15.
Vega 1 SAS 1985 flyby success Vega 1 2.
lander failure Vega lander.
atmospheric balloon success
Vega 2 SAS 1985 flyby success Vega 1.
lander success Vega lander.
atmospheric balloon success
Galileo NASA February 10, 1990 flyby success minimum distance 16,000 km Galileo preparations.
Magellan NASA August 10, 1990 
October 12, 1994		 orbiter success global radar mapping Kennedy Space Center.
Cassini NASA/ESA/ASI April 26, 1998 flyby success Cassini assembly.
June 24, 1999
Venus Express ESA 2006 orbiter in orbit atmospheric studies Radiated EMC.
MESSENGER NASA October 24, 2006 flyby success gravity assist only; minimum distance 2990 km Messenger.
June 6, 2007 yet to arrive minimum distance 300 km
PLANET-C JAXA 2010 orbiter planned
Venera-D RFSA 2013 orbiter planned
Venus In-Situ Explorer NASA 2013 in-situ explorer planned Explorer.
Venus Surface Explorer. NASA 2013 in-situ explorer planned VSE 2013.

Earth flybys

See also: Timeline of Earth science satellites.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Giotto ESA July 2, 1990 flyby success first Earth flyby Giotto.
Galileo NASA October 8, 1990 flyby success minimum distance 960 km Galileo.
Sakigake ISAS January 8, 1992 flyby Sakigake.
Suisei ISAS August 20, 1992 flyby failure hydrazine depleted Suisei.
Galileo NASA December 8, 1992 flyby success minimum distance 305 km Galileo.
Sakigake ISAS June 14, 1993 flyby Sakigake.
October 28, 1994 flyby
NEAR Shoemaker NASA 1998 flyby success NEARCraft.
Cassini NASA/ESA/ASI 1999 flyby success Cassini assembly.
Giotto ESA July 1, 1999 flyby n/a already defunct Giotto illustration.
Hayabusa ISAS 2004 flyby success Hayabusa.
Rosetta ESA 2005 flyby success
MESSENGER NASA 2005 flyby success Messenger.
Stardust NASA 2006 flyby success sample return stardust.
Rosetta ESA 2007 flyby yet to arrive

Lunar probes

Exploration of the Moon

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Pioneer 0 NASA 1958 orbiter failure launch vehicle failure
Pioneer 1 NASA/DOD 1958 orbiter failure third stage partial failure
Pioneer 2 NASA/STL 1958 orbiter failure third stage failure Pioneer.
Pioneer 3 NASA/DOD 1958 flyby failure launch vehicle failure Pioneer 3.
Luna 1958A Soviet Union 1958 impactor failure
Luna 1958B Soviet Union 1958 impactor failure
Luna 1958C Soviet Union 1958 impactor failure
Pioneer P-3 NASA 1959 orbiter failure
Luna 1 Soviet Union January 3, 1959 flyby success first spacecraft in the vicinity of the Moon Luna 1.
Luna 1959A Soviet Union 1959 impactor failure Luna 2.
Pioneer 4 NASA/DOD March 4, 1959 flyby partial success first US probe in solar orbit Pioneer 4.
Luna 2 Soviet Union September 14, 1959 impactor success first contact with the Moon Luna 2.
Luna 3 Soviet Union October 6, 1959 flyby success first images from the lunar farside Luna 3 flyby.
Ranger 3 USA January 28, 1962 impactor failure mised target 71392L.
Ranger 4 USA April 26, 1962 impactor failure hit the lunar farside 1964_71394L.
Ranger 5 USA October 21, 1962 impactor partial failure power failure, missed target probe.
Luna 4 Soviet Union April 5, 1963 lander partial failure missed target, became satellite Luna lander.
Ranger 6 USA 2 February 1964 impactor failure impact, no data due to power failure GPN.
Ranger 7 USA July 31, 1964 impactor success GPN-2000.
Ranger 8 USA February 20, 1965 impactor success GPN-2000.
Ranger 9 USA March 24, 1965 impactor success 2000.
Zond 3 Soviet Union July 20, 1965 flyby success Zond 3.
Luna 9 Soviet Union February 3, 1966 -
February 6, 1966		 lander success first images from the surface of Moon Luna 9.
Luna 10 Soviet Union April 3, 1966 -
May 30, 1966		 orbiter success Luna orbiter.
Surveyor 1 USA 1966 lander success NASA lunar lander.
Luna 11 Soviet Union 1966 orbiter success Luna orbiter.
Surveyor 2 USA 1966 lander failure crashed NASA lunar lander.
Luna 12 Soviet Union 1966-67 orbiter success orbiter photo.
Luna 13 Soviet Union 1966 lander success Luna 13.
Lunar Orbiter 1 USA 1966 orbiter success orbiter.
Lunar Orbiter 2 USA 1966-67 orbiter success Lunar.
Explorer 35 USA 1967-73 orbiter success Explorer 35.
Lunar Orbiter 3 USA 1967 orbiter success Lunar Orbiter 3.
Lunar Orbiter 4 USA 1967 orbiter success Lunar Orbiter 4.
Lunar Orbiter 5 USA 1967-68 orbiter success Lunar Orbiter 5.
Surveyor 3 USA 1967 lander success Surveyor 3.
Surveyor 4 USA 1967 lander failure crashed Surveyor 4.
Surveyor 5 USA 1967 lander success Surveyor 5.
Surveyor 6 USA 1967 lander success Surveyor 6.
Surveyor 7 USA 1968 lander success Surveyor 7.
Luna 14 Soviet Union 1968 orbiter success Luna 14
Zond 5 Soviet Union 1968 flyby success
Zond 6 Soviet Union 1968 flyby success
Zond 7 Soviet Union 1969 flyby success
Luna 16 Soviet Union 1970 sample return success Luna 16.
Luna 17 Soviet Union 1970 lander success Luna 17.
Lunokhod 1 Soviet Union 1970-71 rover success Lunokhod 1.
Zond 8 Soviet Union 1970 flyby success
Luna 19 Soviet Union 1971-72 orbiter success Luna 19.
Luna 20 Soviet Union 1972 lander success Luna 20.
Luna 21 Soviet Union 1973 lander success Luna 21.
Lunokhod 2 Soviet Union 1973 rover success Lunokhod 2.
Luna 22 Soviet Union 1974-75 orbiter success Luna 22.
Mariner 10 USA 1973 flyby success Mariner 10.
Luna 24 Soviet Union 1976 lander success Luna 24.
Hiten Japan 1990-93 orbiter success Hiten.
Hagoromo Japan 1990 orbiter failure
Clementine USA 1994 orbiter success Clementine.
Lunar Prospector USA 1998-99 orbiter success Lunar Prospector.
SMART-1 ESA 2003-06 orbiter success SMART-1.
Chandrayaan I ISRO 2007 orbiter planned Chandrayaan I.
impactor
Chang'e 1 CNSA 2007 orbiter under study Chang'e 1.
SELENE Japan 2007 orbiter to be launched SELENE
lander
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter USA 2008 orbiter planned Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.
LCROSS USA 2008 impactor planned LCROSS
LUNAR-A Japan orbiter, penetrators cancelled

Mars probes: Exploration of Mars.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Mars 1960A Soviet Union 1960 failure
Mars 1960B Soviet Union 1960 failure
Mars 1962A Soviet Union 1962 flyby failure
Mars 1 Soviet Union 1962 flyby failure
Mars 1962B Soviet Union 1962 lander failure
Mariner 3 USA 1964 flyby failure Mariner 3.
Zond 2 Soviet Union 1964 flyby failure
Mariner 4 USA 1964 flyby success first close-up images of Mars Mariner 4.
Mariner 6 USA 1969 flyby success Mariner 6.
Mariner 7 USA 1969 flyby success Mariner 7.
Mariner 8 USA 1971 orbiter failure Mariner 8.
Mariner 9 USA 1971 orbiter success Mariner 9.
Mars 2 Soviet Union 1971 orbiter partial success
Mars 2 Lander Soviet Union 1971 lander failure
Mars 3 Soviet Union 1971 partial failure orbiter Mars 3.
Mars 3 Lander Soviet Union 1971 failure lander
Cosmos 419 Soviet Union 1971 failure
Mars 4 Soviet Union 1973 failure orbiter
Mars 5 Soviet Union 1973 success orbiter
Mars 6 Soviet Union 1973 success flyby
Mars 6 Lander Soviet Union 1973 failure lander
Mars 7 Soviet Union 1973 success flyby
Mars 7 Lander Soviet Union 1973 lander failure
Viking 1 Orbiter USA 1976-80 orbiter success
Viking 1 Lander USA 1976-82 lander success first images from surface Viking 1 Lander.
Viking 2 Orbiter USA 1976-78 orbiter success
Viking 2 Lander USA 1976-80 lander success Viking 2 Lander.
Phobos 1 Soviet Union 1988 orbiter failure Phobos 1.
Phobos 2 Soviet Union 1988 orbiter partial success Phobos 2.
Mars Observer USA 1992 orbiter failure
Mars 96 Russia 1997 orbiter failure Mars 96.
    Russia 1997 lander failure Mars surface station.
Russia 1997 lander failure lander.
Russia 1997 penetrator failure penetrator.
Russia 1997 penetrator failure Mars penetrator.
Mars Observer USA 1997 lander success
    Sojourner USA 1997 rover success Sojourner.
Mars Global Surveyor USA 1997-2006 orbiter success Mars Global Surveyor.
Mars Climate Orbiter USA 1998 orbiter failure
Mars Polar Lander USA 1998 lander failure Mars Polar Lander.
Deep Space 2 "Amundsen" USA 1998 penetrator failure Deep Space 2.
Deep Space 2 "Scott" USA 1998 penetrator failure Scott Deep Space 2.
2001 Mars Odyssey USA 2001- orbiter success still active 2001 Mars Odyssey.
Mars Surveyor 2001 Lander USA 2001 lander cancelled Mars Surveyor Lander.
Nozomi Japan 2003 orbiter failure Nozomi.
Mars Express ESA 2004- orbiter success still active Mars Express.
Beagle 2 UK 2004 lander failure Beagle 2.
MER-A "Spirit" USA 2004- rover success still active Spirit.
MER-B "Opportunity" USA 2004- rover success still active Opportunity.
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter USA 2006- orbiter in orbit Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
Rosetta ESA 2007 flyby success Rosetta.
Phoenix USA 2008 lander under construction Phoenix.
Dawn USA 2009 flyby under construction Dawn Flight.
Mars Telecommunications Orbiter USA 2010 orbiter cancelled
Mars Science Laboratory USA 2010 rover under construction Mars Science Laboratory.
ExoMars ESA 2013 rover planned ExoMars.

Mars Phobos probes.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Phobos 1 Soviet Union 1988 lander failure lost en route to Mars Phobos 1.
Phobos 2 Soviet Union 1988 lander failure lost in orbit Phobos 2.
Aladdin USA sample return not selected
Phobos-Grunt Russia 2009 sample return planned

Jupiter probes.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Pioneer 10 USA 1973 flyby success Pioneer 10.
Pioneer 11 USA 1974 flyby success Pioneer 11.
Voyager 1 USA 1979 flyby success Voyager 1.
Voyager 2 USA 1979 flyby success Voyager 2.
Ulysses ESA/USA 1992 flyby success Ulysses.
Galileo Orbiter NASA December 7, 1995 -
September 21, 2003		 orbiter success Galileo Orbiter.
    Galileo Probe NASA December 7, 1995 atmospheric probe success
Cassini USA 2000-01 flyby success Cassini.
Ulysses ESA/USA 2003-04 distant flyby success Ulysses probe.
New Horizons USA 2007 flyby success New Horizons.
Juno USA 2010 orbiter under study

Europa probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Europa Orbiter USA orbiter cancelled Europa Orbiter.
Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter USA orbiter cancelled Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter.

Ganymede probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter USA orbiter cancelled Icy Moons Orbiter.

Callisto probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter USA orbiter cancelled Moons Orbiter.

Saturn probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Pioneer 11 USA 1979 flyby success Pioneer 11.
Voyager 1 USA 1980 flyby success Voyager 1.
Voyager 2 USA 1981 flyby success Voyager 2.
Cassini USA 2004-08 orbiter in orbit primary mission Cassini-Huygens.

Titan probes.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Huygens ESA January 14, 2005 atmospheric probe, lander success first probe to land on a satellite of another planet Huygens.

Uranus probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Voyager 2 USA 1986 flyby success Voyager 2.

Neptune probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Voyager 2 USA 1989 flyby success Voyager 2.
Neptune Orbiter USA orbiter under study Neptune Orbiter.

dwarf planets

Ceres probes

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Dawn USA 2015 orbiter to be launched Dawn.

Pluto probes.

spacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
Pluto Fast Flyby NASA 2010 flyby cancelled Pluto Fast Flyby.
Pluto Kuiper Express NASA 2012 flyby cancelled Pluto Kuiper Express.
New Horizons NASA 2015 flyby yet to arrive New Horizons.

asteroid probes

targetspacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
951 Gaspra Galileo NASA October 29, 1991 flyby success minimum distance 1900 km Galileo
243 Ida Galileo NASA August 28, 1993 flyby success minimum distance 2400 km; discovery of the first asteroid satellite Dactyl Galileo preparations.
1620 Geographos Clementine BMDO/NASA 1994 flyby failure flyby cancelled due to equipment malfunction Clementine.
253 Mathilde NEAR Shoemaker NASA 1997 flyby success NEAR Shoemaker.
433 Eros NEAR Shoemaker NASA 1999 orbiter failure became flyby Shoemaker.
9969 Braille Deep Space 1 NASA 1999 flyby partial success no close-up images due to camera pointing error Deep Space 1.
2685 Masursky Cassini NASA/ESA/ASI 2000 distant flyby success Masursky.
433 Eros NEAR Shoemaker NASA 2000-01 orbiter success Eros.
2001 lander success improvised landing
5535 Annefrank Stardust NASA 2002 distant flyby success Stardust.
25143 Itokawa Hayabusa ISAS 2005-07 sample return arrived Hayabusa.
    MINERVA ISAS 2005 hopper failure missed target
3840 Mimistrobell Rosetta ESA 2006 flyby cancelled rerouted Mimistrobell.
4979 Otawara Rosetta ESA 2006 flyby cancelled rerouted Rosetta probe.
132524 APL New Horizons NASA 2006 distant flyby success Horizons.
2867 Šteins Rosetta NASA 2008 flyby yet to arrive Rosetta.
21 Lutetia Rosetta ESA 2010 flyby yet to arrive Rosetta.
4 Vesta Dawn NASA 2011 orbiter to be launched 4 Vesta.
4660 Nereus Hayabusa ISAS sample return cancelled rerouted to 25143 Itokawa Itokawa.
    SSV NASA rover cancelled
4660 Nereus Near Earth Asteroid Prospector SpaceDev sample return cancelled Near Earth Asteroid Prospector.

comet probes

targetspacecraftorganizationdatetypestatusnotesimageref
21P/Giacobini-Zinner ISEE3/ICE USA 1985 Giacobini-Zinner.
1P/Halley Giotto ESA 1986 flyby success minimum distance 596 km Giotto.
1P/Halley Vega 1 Soviet Union 1986 flyby success 8,890 km Vega 1.
1P/Halley Vega 2 Soviet Union 1986 flyby success 8,030 km Vega 2.
1P/Halley Sakigake Japan 1986 distant flyby partial failure 6.99 million km Sakigake.
1P/Halley Suisei Japan 1986 flyby success 151,000 km Suisei.
1P/Halley ISEE3/ICE USA 1986 distant observations success 32 million km Halley.
26P/Grigg-Skjellerup Giotto ESA 1992 flyby success Giotto illustration.
21P/Giacobini-Zinner Sakigake Japan 1998 flyby failure Sakigake.
21P/Giacobini-Zinner Suisei Japan 1998 flyby failure Giacobini.
19P/Borrelly Deep Space 1 USA 2001 flyby success Borrelly.
2P/Encke CONTOUR USA 2003 flyby failure CONTOUR.
81P/Wild Stardust USA 2004 flyby, sample return success flyby, sample return.
9P/Tempel Deep Impact USA 2005 flyby success Tempel.
    Impactor USA 2005 impactor success
73P/Schwassmann-
Wachmann		 CONTOUR USA 2006 flyby failure space mission.
6P/d'Arrest CONTOUR USA 2008 flyby failure CONTOUR flyby.
85P/Boethin Deep Impact USA 2008 flyby under study Deep Impact.
9P/Tempel Stardust USA 2010 flyby under study Stardust flyby.
46P/Wirtanen Rosetta ESA 2011 orbiter cancelled rerouted to 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Rosetta spacecraft.
67P/Churyumov-
Gerasimenko		 Rosetta ESA 2014-15 orbiter yet to arrive Rosetta orbiter.
    Philae ESA 2014 lander yet to arrive



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