See also Born on this Day On this day in: 1937 - Launch Vehicle: Goddard. Model: Goddard L-C. -
Start of Goddard series L section C liquid rocket tests Nation: USA. These would run through August 9, 1938 (L16-L30). Section C rockets included light tank construction, movable-tailpiece (i.e. gimbal) steering, catapult launching, and further development of liquid nitrogen tank pressure method. Lengths varied from 17 ft 4.25 in. to 18 ft 5.75 in.; diameter 9 in., weight empty varied from 80 to 1091b; loaded weight about 170 lb or more; lift of static tests varied from 228 lb to 477 lb; jet velocities from 3960 to 5340 ft/sec. These tests indicated extremely high temperatures for the jet: pebbles of the cement gas deflector were fused and thrown out, starting fires more than 50 ft from the tower.
1937 - Launch Vehicle: Goddard. Model: Goddard L-C. -
Flight of Goddard series L section C rocket Nation: USA. Apogee: 0.63 km (0.39 mi). Rocket was equipped with movable-tailpiece or gimbal steering, with wire-wound tanks and barograph; length 18 ft 5.5 in.; diameter 9 in.; weight empty 95 lb 5 oz; loaded 162 lb 5 oz; 39 lb liquid oxygen, 28 lb gasoline; altitude 2055 ft; duration 28 sec; parachute opened near ground, checked speed; coasted one-eighth of ascent; landed 1000 ft from tower.
1952 - Launch Site: White Sands. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Corporal. Model: Corporal. LV Configuration: Corporal 27R. -
Test mission Nation: USA. Agency: USA?. Apogee: 30 km (18 mi).
1956 - Launch Site: Kapustin Yar. Launch Complex: V-2. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: R-1. Model: R-1 8A11. LV Configuration: R-1 8A11 No 0307. -
Operational test Nation: USSR. Agency: NII-88. Apogee: 100 km (60 mi).
1959 - Launch Vehicle: Little Joe. -
Second beach abort test leading to the Mercury Little Joe test series. Nation: USA. Program: Mercury. Spacecraft: Mercury. A boilerplate spacecraft, instrumented to measure sound pressure level and vibration, was launched in the second beach abort test leading to the Little Joe test series. The purpose of the instrumentation was to obtain measurement of the vibration and sound environment encountered on the capsule during the firing of the Grand Central abort rocket. Memo, Charles A. Hardesty to NASA Langley IRD files, subject: Sound Measurements on the Second Beach Abort Test on the Little Joe Capsule, Oct. 9, 1959.
1960 -
1960 - Launch Site: Vandenberg. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Caleb. LV Configuration: Caleb NOTS EV-II.
1960 - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC1. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Model: Vostok 8K72. LV Configuration: Vostok 8K72 L1-10. FAILURE: At ignition one of the combustion chambers in strap on Block B or G burned through. The strap on separated from the core at 17 seconds into the flight and the launch vehicle exploded at 28.5 seconds.
1960 - 08:30 GMT - Launch Site: Eglin. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Cajun. Model: Nike Cajun. LV Configuration: Nike Cajun AA6.419. -
Firefly AMY Aeronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: USAF. Apogee: 111 km (68 mi).
1960 - 19:36 GMT - Launch Site: Woomera. Launch Complex: LA2. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Long Tom. LV Configuration: Long Tom LT12. -
Aeronomy mission Nation: Australia. Agency: WRE. Apogee: 126 km (78 mi).
1960 - 21:38 GMT - Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: LC20. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Titan. Model: Titan 1. LV Configuration: Titan I J-4. FAILURE: 130 km range. -
Mk 4 re-entry vehicle test Nation: USA. Agency: USAF. Apogee: 100 km (60 mi). Titan 1 J (Mk 4 RV)
1961 - Launch Vehicle: Saturn I. -
NASA invitation to bids for Apollo prime contract Nation: USA. Program: Apollo. Spacecraft: Apollo CSM. NASA invited 12 companies to submit prime contractor proposals for the Apollo spacecraft by October 9: The Boeing Airplane Company, Chance Vought Corporation, Douglas Aircraft Company, General Dynamics/Convair, the General Electric Company, Goodyear Aircraft Corporation, Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, McDonnell Aircraft Corporation, The Martin Company, North American Aviation, Inc., and Republic Aviation Corporation.
- Additional details.
1962 - 00:30 GMT - Launch Site: Vandenberg. Launch Complex: SLC1W. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Delta. Model: Thor Agena B. LV Configuration: Thor Agena B 347 / Agena B 1131.
1962 - 02:50 GMT - Launch Site: Wallops Island. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Trailblazer. Model: Trailblazer 1. LV Configuration: Trailblazer 1 TB Ik. -
Re-entry Vehicle test Nation: USA. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 280 km (170 mi).
1962 - 09:18 GMT - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC1. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Model: Vostok 8A92. LV Configuration: Vostok 8A92 T15000-07.
1964 - 02:08 GMT - Launch Site: Kagoshima. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: S. Model: S-160. LV Configuration: S-160 PT-160-1. -
Propellant test Nation: Japan. Agency: ISAS. Apogee: 44 km (27 mi).
1964 - 16:50 GMT - Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: LC12. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Atlas. Model: Atlas Agena B. LV Configuration: Atlas Agena B 250D (AA9) / Agena B 6009 (AA9). -
Ranger 7 Nation: USA. Program: Ranger. Mass: 362 kg (798 lb). Class: Planetary. Type: Lunar. Spacecraft: Ranger 6-7-8-9. Agency: NASA/JPL. COSPAR: 1964-041A. USAF Sat Cat: 842. Decay Date: 1964-07-31. First successful Ranger; returned 4,308 photos before lunar impact. The Atlas- Agena B inserted the Agena and Ranger into a 192 km altitude Earth parking orbit. Half an hour after launch a second burn of the Agena engine injected the spacecraft into a lunar intercept trajectory. After separation from the Agena, the solar panels were deployed, attitude control activated, and spacecraft transmissions switched from the omniantenna to the high-gain antenna. The next day the planned mid-course maneuver was successfully initiated at 10:27 GMT. The only anomaly during flight was a brief loss of two-way lock on the spacecraft by the DSIF tracking station at Cape Kennedy following launch. Ranger 7 reached the Moon on 31 July. The F-channel began its one minute warm up 18 minutes before impact. The first image was taken at 13:08:45 GMT at an altitude of 2110 km. Transmission of 4,308 photographs of excellent quality occurred over the final 17 minutes of flight. The final image taken before impact had a resolution of 0.5 meters. The spacecraft encountered the lunar surface in direct motion along a hyperbolic trajectory, with an incoming asymptotic direction at an angle of -5.57 degrees from the lunar equator. The orbit plane was inclined 26.84 degrees to the lunar equator. After 68.6 hours of flight, Ranger 7 impacted in an area between Mare Nubium and Oceanus Procellarum (subsequently named Mare Cognitum) at approximately 10.35 S latitude, 339.42 E longitude. Impact occurred at 13:25:48.82 GMT at a velocity of 2.62 km/s.
1964 - 20:06 GMT - Launch Site: White Sands. Launch Complex: LC33. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Apache. Model: Nike Apache. -
Sphere Aeronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: USAF. Apogee: 200 km (120 mi).
1964 - 21:14 GMT - Launch Site: Fort Churchill. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Aerobee. Model: Aerobee 300. LV Configuration: Aerobee 300 NASA 06.10GA. -
Thermosphere probe Aeronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 322 km (200 mi).
1965 -
1965 - -
Voskhod production Nation: USSR. Program: Voskhod. Flight: Voskhod 3, Voskhod 4, Voskhod 5, Voskhod 6. The All-Soviet national economic commission on Military-Industrial Matters issues resolution 145, "On completion of the Voskhod spacecraft". Voskhod s/n 5, 6, and 7 are to be completed in October, November, and December 1965; and s/n 8 and 9 in February and March 1966. The new-design spacecraft will be designed for flight of two cosmonauts up to 15 days, with provisions for multiple spacewalks outside of the capsule over periods of 3 to 6 days, provisions for artificial gravity tests, and equipment for medical, biological, physics, technical, and military experiments. All concerned ministries are instructed to complete development and deliver all needed subsystem and experimental equipment 45 days before the completion dates of the spacecraft. The trainer for the 3KV Voskhod is to be delivered by October 1965, and the 3KD trainer in the first quarter of 1966.
1966 - Launch Site: Shijiedu. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: T-7. Model: T-7A-S2. -
Life Science (dog) Biological mission Nation: China. Agency: Shanghai. Apogee: 100 km (60 mi).
1966 - 00:51 GMT - Launch Site: Woomera. Launch Complex: LA2. Launch Pad: LA2 SL. Launch Vehicle: Skylark. Model: Skylark 3. LV Configuration: Skylark 3 SL88C. -
Test mission Nation: Australia. Agency: WRE/RAE. Apogee: 213 km (132 mi).
1966 - 02:36 GMT - Launch Site: Barking Sands. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Tomahawk Sandia. Model: Nike Tomahawk. LV Configuration: Nike Tomahawk-12 Sandia 152-54. -
LRL BOX-6 X-ray astronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: Sandia. Apogee: 173 km (107 mi).
1966 - 10:48 GMT - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC31. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Model: Voskhod 11A57. LV Configuration: Voskhod 11A57 N15001-01.
1966 - 18:01 GMT - Launch Site: Delamar Dry Lake DZ. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: 37.3 N x 114.9 W. Launch Vehicle: X-15. LV Configuration: X-15 1-65-108.
1966 - 19:00 GMT - Launch Site: Barking Sands. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Honest John. Model: HJ Nike Nike. LV Configuration: HJ Nike Nike Sandia 152-44. -
LRL RCS-2 (Daisy 2) Aeronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: Sandia. Apogee: 173 km (107 mi).
1967 - 14:21 GMT - Launch Site: Vandenberg. Launch Complex: SLC2E. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Delta. Model: Thor SLV-2A Agena D. LV Configuration: Thor SLV-2A Agena D 478 (TA8) / Agena D SS-01B 680. -
OGO 4 Nation: USA. Payload: OGO D (NASA S-50A). Mass: 634 kg (1,397 lb). Class: Earth. Type: Magnetosphere. Spacecraft: OGO. Agency: NASA GSF. Perigee: 422 km (262 mi). Apogee: 885 km (549 mi). Inclination: 86.00 deg. Period: 97.80 min. COSPAR: 1967-073A. USAF Sat Cat: 2895. Decay Date: 1972-08-16. OGO 4 was a large observatory instrumented with experiments designed to study the interrelationships between the aurora and airglow emissions, energetic particle activity, geomagnetic field variation, ionospheric ionization and recombination, and atmospheric heating which take place during a period of increased solar activity. After the spacecraft achieved orbit and the experiments were deployed into an operating mode, an attitude control problem occurred. This condition was corrected by ground control procedures until complete failure of the tape recording systems in mid-January 1969. At that time, due to the difficulty of maintaining attitude control without the tape recorders, the attitude control system was commanded off, and the spacecraft was placed into a spin-stabilized mode about the axis which was previously maintained vertically. In this mode, seven of the remaining experiments were turned off since no meaningful data could be observed by them. On October 23, 1969, the satellite was turned off. It was reactivated again in January 1970 for 2 months to obtain VLF observations.
1969 - 00:17 GMT - Launch Site: Atlantic Ocean. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: 45.0 N x 46.0 W. Launch Vehicle: MR-12. -
Aeronomy mission Nation: USSR. Apogee: 167 km (103 mi).
1969 - 14:15 GMT - Launch Site: South Uist. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Petrel. Model: Petrel 1. LV Configuration: Petrel P40H. -
SpE fine scale Ionosphere mission Nation: UK. Agency: SRC. Apogee: 121 km (75 mi).
1970 -
1970 - -
Soyuz 9 crew tours Leningrad Nation: USSR. Program: Soyuz. Flight: Soyuz 9. Kamanin, Nikolayev, Sevastyanov, and their families take a train to Leningrad. There they do some sightseeing, visit the television tower, and make a local television appearance.
1970 - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: UR-100. Model: UR-100M. -
Operational missile test Nation: USSR. Agency: RVSN. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi).
1970 - 22:00 GMT - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC191/66. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Tsiklon. Model: R-36-O. LV Configuration: R-36O 8K69 Yu45201 No. 49T.
1970 - 23:17 GMT - Launch Site: Vandenberg. Launch Complex: LF02. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Minuteman 3. LV Configuration: Minuteman 3 FTM-5008. -
Research and development launch Nation: USA. Agency: USAF AFSC. Apogee: 1,300 km (800 mi).
1971 - 03:29 GMT - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Model: Molniya 8K78M.
1972 - 10:19 GMT - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Soyuz. Model: Voskhod 11A57.
1972 - 18:59 GMT - Launch Site: Wallops Island. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Trailblazer. Model: Trailblazer 2. LV Configuration: Trailblazer 2 CRL A21.011-1. -
AFCRL TB2-4 Re-entry vehicle test Nation: USA. Agency: USAF. Apogee: 314 km (195 mi).
1973 - 01:06 GMT - Launch Site: White Sands. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Tomahawk Sandia. Model: Nike Tomahawk. LV Configuration: Nike Tomahawk NASA 18.153UA. -
Aeronomy mission Nation: USA. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 120 km (70 mi).
1973 - 11:10 GMT - Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: LC39B. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Saturn I. Model: Saturn IB. LV Configuration: Saturn IB SA-207. -
Skylab 3 Nation: USA. Program: Skylab. Payload: Apollo CSM 117. Mass: 20,121 kg (44,359 lb). Class: Manned. Type: Lunar spacecraft. Spacecraft: Apollo CSM. Location of Spacecraft: Glenn Research Center, NASA, Cleveland, OH. Agency: NASA MSC. Perigee: 422 km (262 mi). Apogee: 442 km (274 mi). Inclination: 50.00 deg. Period: 93.20 min. COSPAR: 1973-050A. USAF Sat Cat: 6757. Duration: 59.46 days. Decay Date: 1973-09-25. Crew: Bean, Garriott, Lousma. Flight: Skylab 3. Continued maintenance of the Skylab space station and extensive scientific and medical experiments. Installed twinpole solar shield on EVA; performed major inflight maintenance; doubled record for length of time in space. Completed 858 Earth orbits and 1,081 hours of solar and Earth experiments; three EVAs totalled 13 hours, 43 minutes. The space vehicle, consisting of a modified Apollo command and service module payload on a Saturn IB launch vehicle, was inserted into a 231.3 by 154.7 km orbit. Rendezvous maneuvers were performed during the first five orbits as planned. During the rendezvous, the CSM reaction control system forward firing engine oxidizer valve leaked. The quad was isolated. Station-keeping with the Saturn Workshop began approximately 8 hours after liftoff, with docking being performed about 30 minutes later.
1975 - 17:44 GMT - Launch Site: White Sands. Launch Complex: LC36. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Black Brant. Model: Black Brant 5C. LV Configuration: Black Brant VC NASA 21.29US. -
Solar ultraviolet mission Nation: USA. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 278 km (172 mi).
1977 - Launch Site: Sary Shagan. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: S-225. -
Intercept Nation: USSR. Agency: PRO. Apogee: 180 km (110 mi).
1979 - Launch Site: Jiuquan. Launch Complex: LA2B. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: CZ. Model: FB-1. LV Configuration: Feng Bao 1 XCZ-1-02. FAILURE: Second stage failure.
1980 - 19:00 GMT - Launch Site: Wallops Island. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Honest John. Model: Taurus Orion. LV Configuration: Taurus Orion NASA 33.13UE. -
Plasma mission Nation: USA. Agency: NASA. Apogee: 229 km (142 mi).
1983 - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Poseidon. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi).
1983 - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Poseidon. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi).
1983 - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Poseidon. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi).
1983 - 05:22 GMT - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Poseidon. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 500 km (310 mi).
1983 - 22:49 GMT - Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: LC17A. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Delta. Model: Delta 3920/PAM. LV Configuration: Delta 3920/PAM D171.
1986 - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Trident. Model: Trident C-4. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi).
1986 - 21:08 GMT - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC32/2. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Tsiklon. Model: Tsiklon-3.
1986 - 21:55 GMT - Launch Site: ETR Launch Area. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Trident. Model: Trident C-4. -
Follow-on operational missile test Nation: USA. Agency: USN. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi).
1988 - 11:20 GMT - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC132/1. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Kosmos 3. Model: Kosmos 11K65M. LV Configuration: Kosmos 11K65M 65026-187.
1992 - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: UR-100N. Model: UR-100NU 15A35P. -
Joint flight trials launch Nation: Russia. Agency: RVSN RF. Apogee: 1,000 km (600 mi).
1994 - 22:39 GMT - Launch Site: Andoya. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Hawk. Model: Nike Orion. LV Configuration: Nike Orion DLR A-NO-210. -
Echo 94 F-102 DUSTY Ionosphere mission Nation: Germany. Agency: DLR. Apogee: 140 km (80 mi).
1997 - -
Energia Engineer Cosmonaut Training Group 14 selected. Nation: Russia.
1997 - -
Russian Air Force Cosmonaut Training Group 12 selected. Nation: Russia.
1997 - 01:15 GMT - Launch Site: Cape Canaveral. Launch Complex: LC36B. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Atlas. Model: Atlas IIAS. LV Configuration: Atlas IIAS AC-133.
1998 - 09:15 GMT - Launch Site: Baikonur. Launch Complex: LC45/1. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: Zenit. Model: Zenit-2. -
Cosmos 2360 Nation: Russia. Program: Tselina. Payload: Tselina-2 no. 22. Class: Sigint. Spacecraft: Tselina-2. Manufacturer: KB Yuzhnoe, Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. Agency: MO RF. Perigee: 847 km (526 mi). Apogee: 855 km (531 mi). Inclination: 71.00 deg. Period: 102.00 min. COSPAR: 1998-045A. USAF Sat Cat: 25406.
1999 - 09:37 GMT -
1999 -
2000 - 22:42 GMT - Launch Site: Kiritimati. Launch Complex: -. Launch Pad: 0.0 N x 154.0 W. Launch Vehicle: Zenit. Model: Zenit-3SL.
2002 - -
Galileo, Exits Solar Conjunction Nation: USA. Spacecraft: Galileo.
2006 - 07:05 GMT - Launch Site: Plesetsk. Launch Complex: LC133/3. Launch Pad: -. Launch Vehicle: UR-100N. Model: Rokot.
Born on this day in:
- 1947 - Alexei Sergeyevich Borodai. Ukrainian Pilot Cosmonaut. Birth City: Borodaevka. Birth State: Volgograd. Birth Country: Russia.
- 1961 - Dr Scott Edward Parazynski. American Mission Specialist Astronaut. Birth City: Little Rock. Birth State: Arkansas. Birth Country: USA.
Contact us with any corrections, additions, or comments.
Conditions for use of drawings, pictures, or other materials from this site..
To contact astronauts or cosmonauts.
© Mark Wade, 1997 - 2008 except where otherwise noted.
|
|