List of space programs of the United States explained

The United States has developed many space programs since the beginning of the spaceflight era in the mid-20th century. The government runs space programs by three primary agencies: NASA for civil space; the United States Space Force for military space; and the National Reconnaissance Office for intelligence space. These entities have invested significant resources to advance technological approaches to meet objectives. In the late 1980s, commercial interests emerged in the space industry and have expanded dramatically, especially within the last 10 to 15 years.

NASA delivers the most visible elements of the U.S. space program. From crewed space exploration and the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon, to the Space Shuttle, International Space Station, Voyager, the Mars rovers, numerous space telescopes, and the Artemis program, NASA delivers on the civil space exploration mandate. NASA also cooperates with other U.S. civil agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to deliver space assets supporting the weather and civil remote sensing mandates of those organizations. In 2022, NASA's annual budget was approximately $24 billion.

The Department of Defense delivers the military space programs. In 2019, the U.S. Space Force started as the primary DoD agent for delivery of military space capability.[1] Systems such as the Global Positioning System, which is ubiquitous to users worldwide, was developed and is maintained by the DoD.[2] Missile warning, defense weather, military satellite communications, and space domain awareness also acquire significant annual investment. In 2023, the annual DoD budget request focused on space is $24.5 billion dollars.[3]

The Intelligence Community, through entities that include the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), invests significant resources in space. Surveillance and reconnaissance are the primary focuses of these entities.

Commercial space activity in the United States was facilitated by the passage of the Commercial Space Launch Act in October 1984.[4] [5] Commercial crewed program activity was spurred by the establishment of the $10 million Ansari X Prize in May 1996.

Definition of space flight

Space programs of the United States date to the start of the Space Age in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Programs involve both crewed systems and uncrewed satellites, probes and platforms to meet diverse program objectives.

From a definition perspective, the criteria for what constitutes spaceflight vary. In the United States, professional, military, and commercial astronauts who travel above an altitude of are awarded astronaut wings.[6] The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale defines spaceflight as any flight over 100km (100miles).[7] This article follows the US definition of spaceflight. Similarly, for uncrewed missions, systems are required to travel above the same altitude thresholds.

Government-led programs

The following summarizes the major space programs where the United States government plays a leadership role in managing program delivery.

Crewed government-led programs

ProgramPurposeTimelineOrganization(s)FlightsExemplar mission(s)Refs
R&D1957–1968 13 X-15 Flight 91[8] [9]
R&D1958–1963 11 Mercury-Atlas 6[10] [11]
Exploration1961–1966 19 Gemini 4[12]
Exploration1961–1972 14 Apollo 11[13] [14]
Space Operations1962–1969 1 Test Flight[15]
Space Transportation1972–2011 134[16] [17]
Skylab program Space Operations1973–1974 4 Skylab 2[18]
Spacelab program Space Operations1973–1998 16 STS-50[19]
Space Operations1975 1 APAS-75 Docking System[20]
Space Operations1984–present in orbit[21] [22]
Exploration2000s–2010 1 Ares I-X[23]
Exploration2010–2017 1 Exploration Flight Test-1[24] [25] [26]
Lunar Gateway program Exploration2017–present 0 [27]
Exploration2017–present1 [28] [29] [30]

Uncrewed government-led programs

ProgramPurposeTimelineOrganization(s)FlightsExemplar mission(s)Refs
R&D1956–1959 3 Vanguard 1[31]
Exploration1958–present 91 [32] [33]
Exploration1958–1992 8 [34]
KH-1 to KH-6 CoronaReconnaissance1959–1972142 Discoverer 1[35]
Exploration1961–1965 4 Ranger 7[36] [37]
Strategic missile warning programsSurveillance1960–present39 [38] [39]
Exploration1962–1973 7 [40]
Space Transportation1962–2003 91[41] [42]
Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) Weather1962–present 39 [43]
Exploration1963–1967 5 Lunar Orbiter 3[44]
KH-7 GambitReconnaissance1963–196738 [45] [46] [47]
KH-8 Gambit 3Reconnaissance1966–198454 [48] [49]
Earth Science1966–present NASA29 [50]
Communications1966–present 63 DSCS-III[51] [52] [53]
Reconnaissance1971–1984 19 [54]
Earth Science1972–present 9 Landsat 9[55] [56]
NAVSTAR GPSNavigation1973–present US Air Force (1973–2019)
US Space Force (2019 onward)		77GPS Block III[57] [58]
Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) Weather1975–present 18 [59]
Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) Communications1983–present NASA14 [60]
Exploration1975–present 8 [61] [62] [63]
Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) Weather1978–present 16 [64] [65]
MilstarCommunications1985–present US Air Force6 [66]
UHF Follow-On programCommunications1988–presentUS Navy11 [67]
Medium Launch Vehicle II (MLV-II) Space Transportation1988–2004US Air Force14 [68]
Exploration1990–present 12[69]
Astrophysics1991–present 4 [70] [71]
Exploration1993–present 8 [72] [73]
NASA Heliophysics division programs Heliophysics1995–present 63 [74]
Evolved Expendable Launch VehicleSpace Transportation1998–present 106[75] [76]
New Frontiers programExploration2003–present 3 [77]
X-37B programR&D2006–present 6 OTV-3[78] [79]
AEHF Satellite ProgramCommunications2010–present 6 AEHF-1[80] [81]
Wideband Global Satcom ProgramCommunications2011–present 10 WGS-4[82]

Commercial space programs

The following summarizes the major space programs where private interests play the leadership role in managing program delivery.

Crewed commercial programs

ProgramPurposeTimelineOrganization(s)FlightsExemplar mission(s)Refs
Space AdventuresSpace tourism1998–present 7 [83] [84]
Space tourism2003–2004 3 SpaceShipOne flight 16P[85] [86]
Space tourism2010–present 10 Virgin Galactic Unity 22Galactic 02[87] [88]
Space tourism2015–present 24 Blue Origin NS-18[89] [90]
DearMoon lunar tourismSpace tourism2018–present 0[91] [92]
Space tourism2020–present 3 Axiom Mission 1Axiom Mission 2[93]
Space tourism2021–present 1 Inspiration4[94] [95]
Space transportation2011–present 7 [96] [97]
SpaceX StarshipSpace Transportation2012–present SpaceX0 [98]
Orbital Reef Space Station Space Operations2021–present 0[99]

Uncrewed commercial programs

ProgramPurposeTimelineOrganization(s)FlightsExemplar mission(s)Refs
Commercial Launch Services (Atlas) Space TransportationAC-69/Atlas I[100] [101]
Satellite communications1987–present Iridium Communications170 Iridium 77[102]
Satellite communications1991–present Globalstar84 [103]
Earth Imaging1992–present Maxar Technologies8 [104]
Satellite data messaging1992–present Orbcomm62 [105]
International Launch Services (Atlas, Proton) Space transportation1995–2006 100 [106] [107]
Sea Launch (Zenit) Space transportation1995–2014 36 [108]
Satellite Television1995–present DirecTV19 DirecTV T10 satellite[109]
Satellite Television1996–present DISH Network Corporation16EchoStar X[110]
Satellite Radio1997–present 13Sirius FM-5[111]
SpaceX Launch Services Space transportation2002–present SpaceXxx[112]
Space transportation2006–2013 3 [113]
United Launch Alliance Commercial Launch Services Space Transportation2006–present xx [114]
Space transportation[115]
Planetscope satellite constellationEarth imaging2010–present Planet Labs487List of Flock satellite types[116]
Rocket Lab (Electron)Space Transportation2013–present Rocket Lab41 List of Electron launches[117]
Satellite Internet Service2016–present 5,330[118]
Space transportation2018–present 1 Astrobotic Peregrine Lander[119]

See also

Notes and References

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