List of extraterrestrial orbiters explained

This list of extraterrestrial orbiters is a listing of spacecraft that achieved an extraterrestrial orbit.

Legend

- ! style="background:" colspan="2" Color legend for orbital status - Departed - Unclear - Inactive - Operational

Sun

See main article: article and List of artificial objects in heliocentric orbit. The first artificial object in heliocentric orbit was Luna 1 (1959).

Moon

MissionCountry/agencyOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
Luna 10[1] USSR3 April 1966Contact lost 30 May 1966, probably decayed the same yearFirst extraterrestrial and Moon orbiter
Lunar Orbiter 1 USA14 August 1966Impacted lunar surface 29 October 1966First U.S. extraterrestrial orbiter
Luna 11[2] USSR27 August 1966Contact lost 1 October 1966, probably decayed the same or following year
Luna 12 USSR25 October 1966Contact lost 19 January 1967, probably decayed the same year
Lunar Orbiter 2 USALaunched 6 November 1966Impacted lunar surface 11 October 1967
Lunar Orbiter 3 USA8 February 1967Impacted lunar surface 9 October 1967
Lunar Orbiter 4 USALaunched 4 May 1967Contact lost 17 July 1967, impacted lunar surface 6 October 1967
Explorer 35 USALaunched 19 July 1967Deactivated 24 June 1973; impacted lunar surface in the middle to late 1970s
Lunar Orbiter 5 USA5 August 1967Deorbited; impacted lunar surface 31 January 1968
Luna 14 USSR10 April 1968Mission terminated 24 June 1968, its orbit probably decayed
Luna 19 USSR2 October 1971Mission terminated 20 October 1972 and contact lost on 1 November 1972, probably decayed the following year
Explorer 49 USALaunched 10 June 1973Contact lost August 1977, its orbit probably decayed
Luna 22 USSR2 June 1974Mission terminated November 1975, its orbit probably decayed in 1976
Apollo 8 USALaunched 21 December 1968; entered orbit after 69 hrsLeft orbit after 10 orbits; splashdown on EarthFirst crewed lunar orbit
Apollo 10 USALaunched 18 May 1969Left orbit 26 May 1969
Apollo 11 USAJuly 19, 1969 July 21, 1969; Lunar module ascent stage abandoned in orbit, impact site unknown First human Moon landing
Apollo 12 USANovember 18, 1969 November 21, 1969 Human Moon landing
Apollo 14 USAFebruary 4, 1971 February 7, 1971 Human Moon landing
Apollo 15 USAJuly 29, 1971 August 4, 1971 Human Moon landing
Apollo 15 subsatellite (PFS-1) USA August 4, 1971 January 1973
Apollo 16 USAApril 19, 1972 April 25, 1972; Lunar module ascent stage abandoned in orbit, impact site unknown Human Moon landing
Apollo 16 subsatellite (PFS-2) USAApril 24, 1972 May 29, 1972
Apollo 17 USADecember 11, 1972 December 14, 1972 Human Moon landing
Hiten and Hagoromo JapanHiten: 15 February 1993Hiten was deliberately deorbited and impacted the lunar surface 10 April 1993First Japanese lunar orbiter
Clementine USALaunched 25 January 1994Left lunar orbit and entered heliocentric orbit; contact lost June 1994
Lunar Prospector USALaunched 7 January 1998Deliberately deorbited; impacted lunar surface 31 July 1999
SMART-1 ESA11 November 2004Deliberately deorbited; impacted lunar surface 3 September 2006
SELENE (Kaguya, Okina and Ouna) Japan3 October 2007Deliberately deorbited; impacted lunar surface 10 June 2009
Chang'e 1 China5 November 2007Deliberately deorbited 1 March 2009; impacted the Moon's surface.First Chinese lunar orbiter
Chandrayaan-1 India8 November 2008Deliberately crashed into lunar surface. Impact probe remained operational for a few days. Contact lost 29 August 2009.First Indian lunar orbiter
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter[3] USA23 June 2009Active
Chang'e 2 China6 October 2010Left lunar orbit 8 June 2011; currently in deep-space orbit
ARTEMIS P1 USA2 July 2011Active
ARTEMIS P2[4] USA17 July 2011Active
Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) USA31 December 2011 / 1 January 2012Both spacecraft were deliberately deorbited and impacted on the lunar surface 17 December 2012
LADEE USA6 October 2013Deliberately deorbited 18 April 2014
Chang'e 3 China6 December 2013Landed on lunar surface 14 December 2013First Chinese lunar landing
Chang'e 5-T1 China13 January 2015Returned to Earth on 31 October 2014
Chang'e 4 China12 December 2018Landed on lunar surface 3 January 2019. The Queqiao relay satellite was placed in an Earth-Moon L2 halo orbit.First lunar far-side landing
Longjiang-2 microsatellite China25 May 2018Deorbited 2019
Beresheet Israel4 April 2019Crashed onto lunar surface 11 April 2019First private lunar lander. Successfully orbited for 7 days. Soft landing failed.
Chandrayaan-2 India20 August 2019Orbiter is active. The Vikram lander lost contact at 2.1 km from the lunar surface, and was subsequently destroyed.[5] It was originally thought that Vikram had survived the impact, and ISRO continued trying to contact the lander until the lunar night.[6]
Chang'e 5 China1 December 2020Orbiter is in lunar DRO orbit.First lunar sample return mission by China. Ascent stage deorbited on 7 December 2020. Capsule successfully returned sample via service module on 16 December 2020. The orbiter will make lunar flyby in extended mission on 9 September 2021 in Distant retrograde orbit.[7]
CAPSTONE USA14 November 2022Active and on a Near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO)Lunar orbiting CubeSat that will test and verify the calculated orbital stability planned for the Gateway space station.
Artemis 1 USA25 November 2022Remained on a Selenocentric orbit (DRO) until 5 December 2022, then returned back to EarthFirst mission of the Artemis program.
LunaH-Map USA25 November 2022Decayed 20 February 2023
Lunar IceCube USA25 November 2022On a Selenocentric orbitContact lost shortly after the launch. Conducted lunar flyby on 21 November 2022, likely in a heliocentric orbit.
Danuri KPLO USA / South Korea16 December 2022On a Selenocentric orbitLunar Orbiter by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) of South Korea. The orbiter, its science payload and ground control infrastructure are technology demonstrators. The orbiter will also be tasked with surveying lunar resources such as water ice, uranium, helium-3, silicon, and aluminium, and produce a topographic map to help select future lunar landing sites.
Japan21 March 2023Crashed onto lunar surface on 25 April 2023Carried the emirati Rashid and the japanese SORA-Q lunar rovers. Contact lost during landing attempt.
Chandrayaan-3 India5 August 2023 Success (returned to Earth Orbit)Propulsion module, also functioning as a Chandrayaan-3 relay satellite. Conducted 4 flybys enroute return to Earth's orbit.
Luna 25 Russia16 August 2023 Crashed onto lunar surface on 19 August 2023Lunar south pole lander, landing scheduled for 21 August 2023. Contact lost after orbit lowering maneuver.
Japan25 December 2023Landed on Lunar surface on 19 January 2024Carried the japanese LEV-1 and LEV-2 lunar rovers. First Japanese soft landing.
USA21 February 2024Landed on lunar surface on 22 February 2024Carried the American EagleCam cubesat.
Queqiao-2 China24 March 2024On a Selenocentric orbit
Tiandu-1 China24 March 2024On a Selenocentric orbit
Tiandu-2 China24 March 2024On a Selenocentric orbit
DRO A/B China~20 August 2024On a Selenocentric orbitYuanzheng 1S upper stage failed to deliver spacecrafts into correct orbit. The satellites were intended to test Distant retrograde orbit.[8] Tracking data appears to show China is attempting to salvage spacecraft and they appear to have succeeded in reaching their desired orbit.[9] [10]
Chang'e 6 China8 May 2024Left lunar orbit 21 June 2024; currently at Sun Earth L2First lunar sample return mission from far side and south pole of Moon by China. Ascent stage was be deorbited on 6 June 2024. Capsule was be returned sample via service module on 25 June 2024.[11]
Pakistan 8 May 2024First Pakistani lunar mission, piggybacking with Chang'e 6.[12]

Mars

See also: List of Mars orbiters.

MissionCountry/agencyOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
Mariner 9 USA14 November 1971Deactivated 27 October 1972. In derelict orbit around Mars, expected to decay no sooner than 2022[13] First spacecraft to orbit another planetFirst Mars orbiter
Mars 2 orbiter USSR27 November 1971 [14] Mission terminated 22 August 1972; spacecraft in derelict orbitFirst Soviet spacecraft to orbit Mars
Mars 3 orbiter USSR2 December 1971Mission terminated on August 22, 1972
Mars 5 orbiter[15] USSR12 February 1974Contact lost on 28 February 1974 due to a loss of pressurization in the transmitter [16]
Viking 1 orbiter USA19 June 1976Mission terminated 17 August 1980, spacecraft in derelict high altitude orbit.
Viking 2 orbiter USA7 August 1976Mission terminated 25 July 1978, spacecraft in derelict high altitude orbit.
Phobos 2[17] USSR29 January 1989Contact lost 27 March 1989
Mars Global Surveyor USA11 September 1997Contact lost 2 November 2006; In derelict orbit around Mars, expected to decay no sooner than 2047[18]
2001 Mars Odyssey USA24 October 2001ActiveLongest-surviving, continuously active spacecraft in orbit around another planet
Mars Express ESA20 December 2003Active
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter USA10 March 2006Active
MAVEN USA22 September 2014Active
Mars Orbiter Mission India24 September 2014Contact lost April 2022[19] India's first interplanetary mission
ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter ESA19 October 2016ActiveCarried Schiaparelli EDM lander
Emirates Mars Mission
(Hope)		 UAE9 February 2021ActiveUnited Arab Emirates's first interplanetary mission
Tianwen 1 China10 February 2021ActiveTianwen-1 is China’s first interplanetary mission, which consists of an orbiter, a lander, and a rover named Zhurong.

Venus

MissionCountry/agencyOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
Venera 9 USSR22 October 1975Mission terminated on March 22, 1976First Venus orbiter
Venera 10 USSR23 October 1975Contact lost sometime in June 1976
Pioneer Venus Orbiter USA4 December 1978Contact lost 8 October 1992; Atmospheric entry disintegration on 22 October 1992.
Venera 15 USSR10 October 1983Contact lost January 5, 1985
Venera 16 USSR11 October 1983Contact lost June 13, 1984
Magellan USA7 August 1990Contact lost 13 October 1994. Deliberately deorbited into Venus' atmosphere.
Venus Express ESA11 April 2006Contact lost 16 December 2014: Atmospheric entry disintegration in January 2015
Akatsuki Japan7 December 2015Contact lost April 2024

Jupiter

MissionCountry/agencyOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
Galileo USA8 December 1995Intentionally deorbited and incinerated in Jupiter's atmosphere 21 September 2003First Jupiter orbiter
Juno USA4 July 2016Active
JUICE ESAJuly 2031 (planned)en route mission to study Jupiter's three icy moons Callisto, Europa and Ganymede, eventually orbiting Ganymede as the first spacecraft to orbit a satellite of another planet.
Europa Clipper USA11 April 2030 (planned)en route planned to orbit Jupiter and fly by Europa multiple times.

Mercury

MissionCountry/agencyOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
MESSENGER USA18 March 2011Deliberately crashed into surface 30 April 2015. Impact probably around 54.4° N, 149.9° W, near the crater Janáček.First Mercury orbiter
BepiColombo ESA JapanNovember 2026 (planned)en routeConsists of two satellites, the ESA's Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and Japan's Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO).

Minor planets and comets

MissionCountry/agencyObjectOrbital insertionCurrent statusNotes
NEAR Shoemaker USA433 Eros14 February 2000Landed 12 February 2001 on the surface of Eros.First spacecraft to orbit an asteroid
Dawn USA4 Vesta16 July 2011Left Vesta orbit 5 September 2012
Dawn USACeres9 March 2015Mission concluded 1 November 2018. In derelict orbit around Ceres, expected to decay no sooner than 2038[20] First spacecraft to achieve orbit around two separate objects and to orbit a dwarf planet.
Rosetta ESA67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko6 August 2014On 30 September 2016, ended its mission by landing on the comet in its Ma'at region.First spacecraft to orbit a comet. Philae lander module successfully landed on 12 November 2014
OSIRIS-REx USA101955 Bennu31 December 2018Collected surface sample and departed from Bennu on 20 October 2020[21] Smallest body to be orbited by spacecraft and closest ever orbit[22] [23]
Psyche USA16 PsycheAugust 2029 (planned)enrouteSelected for mission #14 of NASA's Discovery Program to explore a metallic asteroid.
Hera, Milani and Juventas ESA65803 Didymos and Dimorphos11 December 2026 (planned)enroutestudying effects of DART's impact on the asteroid
OSIRIS-APEX USA99942 ApophisApril 2029 (planned)enroutestudy of a C-type asteroid in 2029

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1966-027A NSSDC - Luna 10
  2. https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1966-078A NSSDC - Luna 11
  3. http://lroc.sese.asu.edu/whereislro/ Where is LRO?
  4. Web site: Hendrix. Susan. Second ARTEMIS Spacecraft Successfully Enters Lunar Orbit. The Sun-Earth Connection: Heliophysics. 25 March 2015 . NASA.
  5. News: A Billion Pixels and the Search for India's Crashed Moon Lander. Chang. Kenneth. 2019-12-06. The New York Times. 2019-12-07. en-US. 0362-4331.
  6. Web site: Chandrayaan-2: Isro, not losing hope, continues to make all-out efforts to restore link with lander 'Vikram'. September 9, 2019. The Times of India. en. 2019-09-09.
  7. Web site: 2021-09-06. China's Chang'e-5 orbiter is heading back to the moon. 2021-09-08. SpaceNews. en-US.
  8. Web site: Jones . Andrew . 2024-03-14 . Surprise Chinese lunar mission hit by launch anomaly . 2024-03-14 . SpaceNews . en-US.
  9. Web site: Jones . Andrew . 2024-08-20 . Chinese spacecraft appear to reach lunar orbit despite launch setback . 2024-08-20 . SpaceNews . en-US.
  10. Web site: Jones . Andrew . 2024-03-28 . China appears to be trying to save stricken spacecraft from lunar limbo . 2024-03-29 . SpaceNews . en-US.
  11. Web site: Jones . Andrew . China's Chang'e-6 probe arrives at spaceport for first-ever lunar far side sample mission . . 10 January 2024 . 10 January 2024.
  12. Web site: Jones . Andrew . China's Chang'e-6 probe arrives at spaceport for first-ever lunar far side sample mission . . 10 January 2024 . 10 January 2024.
  13. http://www.nasa.gov/offices/oce/appel/ask-academy/issues/volume4/ata_4-9_mariner_9_prt.htm NASA - This Month in NASA History: Mariner 9
  14. Web site: NASA Mars log . 2013-01-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141113205319/http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/programmissions/missions/log/ . 2014-11-13 . dead .
  15. http://historicspacecraft.com/Probes_Mars.html Historic Spacecraft - Mars Probes
  16. Web site: Mars 5. US National Space Science Data Centre. 12 April 2013.
  17. http://www.astronautix.com/craft/fobos1f.htm Encyclopedia Astronautica Fobos 1F
  18. Web site: Dunn . Marcia . 27 October 1996 . NASA Takes No Dirty Chances With Mars Rover . 12 September 2021 . Los Angeles Times.
  19. Web site: Update on the Mars Orbiter Mission (Mom) .
  20. News: Chang . Kenneth . November 1, 2018 . NASA's Dawn Mission to the Asteroid Belt Says Good Night - Launched in 2007, the spacecraft discovered bright spots on Ceres and forbidding terrain on Vesta. . . November 2, 2018.
  21. News: Chang . Kenneth . 20 October 2020 . Seeking Solar System's Secrets, NASA's OSIRIS-REX Mission Touches Bennu Asteroid - The spacecraft attempted to suck up rocks and dirt from the asteroid, which could aid humanity's ability to divert one that might slam into Earth. . The New York Times . 21 October 2020.
  22. Web site: 2018-12-03 . NASA'S OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Arrives at Asteroid Bennu . 2018-12-20 . NASA.
  23. Web site: 2019-06-13 . NASA's OSIRIS-REx Mission Breaks Another Orbit Record . 2019-06-22 . NASA.

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