What Spacecraft Have Carried Americans into, and in, Orbit?

Since the dawn of the Space Age in the early 1960s, eight different types of spacecraft have transported American astronauts into/in Earth orbit and beyond. From the pioneering one-person Mercury capsules to the state-of-the-art Crew Dragon currently ferrying crews to the International Space Station, these vehicles have enabled some of humanity’s greatest achievements in space exploration. This article provides an overview of each of these historic spacecraft.

Project Mercury (1961-1963)

Project Mercury was America’s first human spaceflight program, with the objectives of orbiting a manned spacecraft around Earth, investigating man’s ability to function in space, and recovering both man and spacecraft safely. The Mercury spacecraft, produced by McDonnell Aircraft, was a bell-shaped one-person capsule with a pressurized cabin about 1.7 cubic meters in volume. It carried supplies of water, food and oxygen for about one day in orbit.

Mercury capsules were launched on either Redstone or Atlas rockets from Cape Canaveral, Florida. A launch escape system could jettison the capsule away from the rocket in an emergency. The capsule utilized small retrorockets to deorbit, an ablative heat shield for reentry, and parachutes for a water landing and recovery by the U.S. Navy.

NASA’s “Mercury Seven” astronauts flew six successful missions between 1961-1963:

• Mercury-Redstone 3 (Freedom 7): Alan Shepard became the first American in space on a 15-minute suborbital flight on May 5, 1961.
• Mercury-Redstone 4 (Liberty Bell 7): Virgil “Gus” Grissom made a 15-minute suborbital flight on July 21, 1961. The capsule sank after splashdown.
• Mercury-Atlas 6 (Friendship 7): John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth, completing three orbits in 4 hours 55 minutes on February 20, 1962.
• Mercury-Atlas 7 (Aurora 7): Scott Carpenter completed three orbits in 4 hours 56 minutes on May 24, 1962.
• Mercury-Atlas 8 (Sigma 7): Wally Schirra flew six orbits in 9 hours 13 minutes on October 3, 1962, the first longer-duration U.S. spaceflight.
• Mercury-Atlas 9 (Faith 7): Gordon Cooper completed 22 orbits in 34 hours 20 minutes on May 15-16, 1963, the first U.S. flight longer than a day.

The success of Project Mercury laid the groundwork for increasingly ambitious crewed missions in the Gemini and Apollo programs to follow. It demonstrated that humans could function effectively in space and be safely recovered, key steps toward the ultimate goal of landing astronauts on the Moon.

Project Gemini (1965-1966)

Project Gemini built upon Mercury’s accomplishments with the objectives of long-duration spaceflight, rendezvous and docking between spacecraft, and perfecting reentry and landing techniques. The two-person Gemini capsule, also built by McDonnell, had a habitable volume of 2.55 cubic meters. It included an orbital maneuvering system for changing its orbit in space.

Ten crewed Gemini missions launched on Titan II rockets between 1965-1966:

• Gemini 3: Virgil Grissom and John Young completed three orbits in 4 hours 52 minutes on March 23, 1965, demonstrating the new spacecraft’s maneuverability.
• Gemini 4: James McDivitt and Edward White completed 66 orbits in 4 days 1 hour on June 3-7, 1965. White performed the first American spacewalk, lasting 36 minutes.
• Gemini 5: Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad spent 7 days 22 hours in orbit on August 21-29, 1965, evaluating how well humans could live and work in space for extended periods.
• Gemini 7: Frank Borman and Jim Lovell completed a record-breaking 14-day mission on December 4-18, 1965. Their capsule performed the first space rendezvous with Gemini 6A.
• Gemini 6A: Wally Schirra and Tom Stafford rendezvoused with Gemini 7 in orbit on December 15-16, 1965, flying in formation as close as one foot apart.
• Gemini 8: Neil Armstrong and David Scott performed the first docking between two spacecraft on March 16, 1966, linking their Gemini capsule with an uncrewed Agena target vehicle. A thruster malfunction forced an early end to the mission.
• Gemini 9A: Tom Stafford and Gene Cernan completed 45 orbits on June 3-6, 1966. Cernan performed a challenging 2-hour spacewalk.
• Gemini 10: John Young and Michael Collins completed 43 orbits on July 18-21, 1966. They rendezvoused and docked with an Agena, using its engine to reach a record altitude of 474 miles.
• Gemini 11: Pete Conrad and Richard Gordon completed 44 orbits on September 12-15, 1966, performing rendezvous, docking, and tethered flight with an Agena. Gordon’s 33-minute spacewalk reached a peak altitude of 850 miles.
• Gemini 12: Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin flew 59 orbits on November 11-15, 1966. Aldrin completed over 5 hours of spacewalks, demonstrating new techniques for working efficiently outside the spacecraft.

The Gemini missions provided vital experience in the techniques NASA would need to land astronauts on the Moon, including long-duration flight, rendezvous, docking, and spacewalking. The program successfully concluded in November 1966, paving the way for the Apollo lunar missions.

Apollo Program (1968-1972)

The Apollo program achieved the national goal, set by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, of “landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth” by the end of the 1960s. Apollo spacecraft consisted of three main components:

• The Command Module (CM), a conical capsule which housed the three-person crew during launch, spaceflight, and reentry. It had a habitable volume of 6.2 cubic meters.
• The Service Module (SM), a cylindrical section containing propulsion, electrical power, and life support systems.
• The Lunar Module (LM), a two-stage lander for descending to and ascending from the lunar surface, used on lunar missions from Apollo 10 onwards. It consisted of a descent stage for landing and an ascent stage for returning the two-person crew to lunar orbit.

Apollo spacecraft were launched by the giant Saturn V rocket. Eleven crewed Apollo missions flew between 1968-1972:

• Apollo 7: Wally Schirra, Donn Eisele and Walter Cunningham orbited Earth for 10 days 20 hours in October 1968, verifying the Apollo CM’s performance.
• Apollo 8: Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders became the first humans to orbit the Moon in December 1968, completing 10 lunar orbits in the CM.
• Apollo 9: Jim McDivitt, Dave Scott and Rusty Schweickart tested the LM in Earth orbit in March 1969, performing rendezvous and docking with the CM.
• Apollo 10: Tom Stafford, John Young and Gene Cernan completed a full “dress rehearsal” for the first Moon landing in May 1969, descending the LM to within 50,000 feet of the lunar surface.
• Apollo 11: On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to land on the Moon, spending 2 hours 31 minutes outside their LM Eagle on the Sea of Tranquility. Michael Collins orbited above in the CM.
• Apollo 12: In November 1969, Charles “Pete” Conrad and Alan Bean achieved a pinpoint landing near the Surveyor 3 probe in the Ocean of Storms, spending 7 hours 45 minutes on two moonwalks. Richard Gordon orbited in the CM.
• Apollo 13: Intended as a lunar landing mission in April 1970, a SM oxygen tank explosion forced Jim Lovell, Fred Haise and Jack Swigert to swing around the Moon and return to Earth in the CM, using the LM as a “lifeboat.”
• Apollo 14: Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell spent 9 hours 23 minutes exploring the Fra Mauro highlands during two moonwalks in February 1971. Stuart Roosa orbited in the CM.
• Apollo 15: In July 1971, David Scott and James Irwin landed near Hadley Rille and the Apennine Mountains, spending 18 hours 33 minutes on three moonwalks aided by the first Lunar Roving Vehicle. Al Worden performed a deep-space EVA on the return to Earth.
• Apollo 16: John Young and Charles Duke touched down in the Descartes Highlands in April 1972, conducting 20 hours 14 minutes of lunar surface exploration on three moonwalks. Ken Mattingly orbited in the CM.
• Apollo 17: In December 1972, Gene Cernan and Harrison “Jack” Schmitt landed in the Taurus-Littrow valley, spending 22 hours 4 minutes on three moonwalks during the final Apollo lunar mission. Ronald Evans orbited above.

The six successful lunar landing missions returned 382 kilograms (842 pounds) of Moon rocks and revolutionized scientific understanding of lunar geology. Apollo demonstrated a peak in astronautical capabilities and human spaceflight that has not been matched since.

Skylab (1973-1974)

Skylab was America’s first space station, built from a converted Saturn V third stage and launched unmanned in May 1973. It had a habitable volume of 361 cubic meters, almost the size of a small house. Three crews of three astronauts each visited Skylab on missions lasting 28, 59 and 84 days between May 1973 and February 1974:

• Skylab 2: Pete Conrad, Paul Weitz and Joseph Kerwin performed repairs on the damaged station and conducted 404 hours of scientific experiments.
• Skylab 3: Alan Bean, Jack Lousma and Owen Garriott studied the Sun and Earth, performed spacewalks, and completed 858 hours of experiments.
• Skylab 4: Gerald Carr, William Pogue and Edward Gibson set a spaceflight endurance record of 84 days and performed over 1,200 hours of experiments.

The three Skylab crews proved that humans could live and work effectively in space for extended periods. The station was a precursor to the International Space Station and long-duration spaceflight.

Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975)

The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project was the first international crewed spaceflight, with American and Soviet spacecraft docking in orbit. On July 15, 1975, a modified Apollo CSM carrying Tom Stafford, Vance Brand and Deke Slayton launched from the Kennedy Space Center and docked two days later with a Soyuz spacecraft carrying cosmonauts Alexei Leonov and Valeri Kubasov.

The two crews exchanged visits between their spacecraft, performed joint experiments, and held a televised press conference during the two days their vehicles were docked. The mission demonstrated that spacecraft from different nations could dock in orbit, foreshadowing the international cooperation seen on the ISS decades later.

Space Shuttle (1981-2011)

The Space Shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft, designed to launch like a rocket, operate in orbit like a spacecraft, and land back on Earth like an airplane. The Shuttle consisted of three main components:

• The Orbiter Vehicle (OV), a winged, reusable spaceplane that carried the crew and payload. It had a crew module with 71.5 cubic meters of habitable space.
• The Expendable External Tank (ET), which supplied liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants to the Orbiter’s three main engines during launch.
• Two reusable Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) that provided additional thrust during liftoff.

NASA built a fleet of five Orbiters – Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour. The Shuttle launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and landed at either KSC or Edwards Air Force Base in California.

Between the first launch of Columbia on April 12, 1981 and the final flight of Atlantis on July 21, 2011, the Shuttle flew 135 missions. Highlights included:

• STS-1: John Young and Bob Crippen completed the first Shuttle flight on Columbia in April 1981.
• STS-7: Sally Ride became the first American woman in space in June 1983.
• STS-41C: The first satellite repair mission retrieved and repaired the Solar Max satellite in April 1984.
• STS-51L: The Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986 killed all seven crew members shortly after launch.
• STS-31: The Hubble Space Telescope was deployed from Discovery in April 1990.
• STS-71: The Shuttle docked with the Russian space station Mir for the first time in June 1995.
• STS-88: The first American module of the International Space Station, Unity, was launched in December 1998.
• STS-107: The Columbia disaster on February 1, 2003 killed seven crew members during reentry.
• STS-135: The final Shuttle mission delivered supplies to the ISS in July 2011.

Over its 30-year career, the Space Shuttle launched satellites, conducted cutting-edge scientific research, and assembled the bulk of the International Space Station. It demonstrated the capability of a mostly reusable spacecraft, although the Shuttle never achieved the flight rate or low costs initially envisioned.

Soyuz Spacecraft

The Soyuz is a Russian spacecraft that has been used to transport crews to space since 1967. It was the only vehicle capable of carrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station after the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, until the availability of the SpaceX Crew Dragon in 2020.

The Soyuz consists of three modules:

• The spherical Orbital Module serves as living quarters during flight and contains docking equipment
• The bell-shaped Descent Module in the middle houses the crew during launch and landing
• The cylindrical Service Module at the rear contains propulsion, life support, and power systems

Soyuz vehicles launch on Soyuz rockets from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. They can carry up to three crew members and remain docked to the ISS for about six months at a time to serve as lifeboats. Only the Descent Module returns to Earth intact, landing under parachutes assisted by braking rockets.

Over the decades, the Soyuz spacecraft has been upgraded and improved while retaining the same basic design. The latest version is the Soyuz MS series, which features digital avionics, improved solar arrays, and extra micrometeoroid shielding compared to the previous Soyuz TMA-M.

American Astronauts on Soyuz

Since the dawn of the Space Age in the early 1960s, eight different types of spacecraft have transported American astronauts into Earth orbit and beyond. From the pioneering one-person Mercury capsules to the state-of-the-art Crew Dragon currently ferrying crews to the International Space Station, these vehicles have enabled some of humanity’s greatest achievements in space exploration. However, American astronauts have also flown aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft on several notable occasions:

Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975)

As previously discussed, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project was the first joint US-Soviet space mission. The two crews conducted joint experiments and exchanged visits between the vehicles during the two days they were docked together.

Shuttle-Mir Program (1995-1998)

The Shuttle-Mir program saw American Space Shuttles dock with the Russian space station Mir and included long-duration flights by U.S. astronauts aboard the outpost. In March 1995, Norman Thagard became the first American to launch on a Soyuz when he flew to Mir along with two Russian cosmonauts aboard Soyuz TM-21. He spent 115 days on the station before returning to Earth on Space Shuttle Atlantis in July 1995.

ISS Crew Rotations (2000-Present)

After the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, Soyuz became the only means of transporting crews to and from the International Space Station. American astronauts regularly fly to the ISS aboard Soyuz as part of the station’s international crews, most recently including:

• Soyuz MS-24 (2023): NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara launched to the ISS with Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub.
• Soyuz MS-25 (2024): NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson flew to the ISS with Russian commander Oleg Novitskiy and Belarusian cosmonaut Marina Vasilevskaya.

Soyuz will continue to alternate with the new American commercial crew vehicles, SpaceX Crew Dragon and Boeing Starliner, in carrying astronauts to the ISS through the late 2020s. Despite geopolitical tensions, it remains a reliable means of maintaining the continuous human presence in orbit that has lasted for over two decades.

While American astronauts primarily fly on U.S. spacecraft, the Russian Soyuz has played a vital role in transporting crews to space stations from the Apollo-Soyuz mission through the Shuttle-Mir program to today. It serves as a reminder of the importance of international cooperation in the exploration of the final frontier.

Crew Dragon (2020-Present)

The SpaceX Crew Dragon is a class of reusable spacecraft that can transport up to seven astronauts to and from low Earth orbit. It launches atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center and splashes down under parachutes in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico.

Crew Dragon was developed under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which sought to restore America’s capability to launch astronauts after the Space Shuttle’s retirement. It consists of a conical crew module with a habitable volume of 9.3 cubic meters, and a cylindrical trunk section housing solar arrays and unpressurized cargo.

As of May 2024, Crew Dragon has flown seven crewed missions carrying astronauts to the ISS:

• Demo-2: Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken completed the first crewed test flight from May 30 to August 2, 2020.
• Crew-1: Mike Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker and Soichi Noguchi flew to the ISS for a 6-month mission from November 2020 to May 2021.
• Crew-2: Shane Kimbrough, Megan McArthur, Akihiko Hoshide and Thomas Pesquet completed a 6-month ISS mission from April to November 2021.
• Inspiration4: The first all-private orbital spaceflight, with Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski and Sian Proctor, orbited Earth for three days in September 2021.
• Crew-3: Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, Kayla Barron and Matthias Maurer stayed on the ISS for 6 months from November 2021 to May 2022.
• Axiom Mission 1: The first all-private astronaut mission to the ISS, with Michael López-Alegría, Larry Connor, Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy, spent 17 days in orbit in April 2022.
• Crew-4: Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, Jessica Watkins and Samantha Cristoforetti launched to the ISS in April 2022 for a 6-month stay.

Crew Dragon has restored America’s ability to launch astronauts from home soil on a reusable vehicle. It is slated to alternate with Boeing’s Starliner in transporting NASA crews to the ISS through the late 2020s.

Boeing Starliner (2024-Present)

The Boeing CST-100 Starliner is a reusable capsule spacecraft designed to carry up to seven astronauts to low Earth orbit. It launches on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and lands under parachutes at one of five sites in the western United States.

Like Crew Dragon, Starliner was developed under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to provide transportation to the ISS after the Space Shuttle’s retirement. The capsule has a diameter of 4.56 meters (15 ft) and a habitable volume of 11 cubic meters.

After an uncrewed orbital flight test in December 2019 that experienced software issues, and a second uncrewed test flight in May 2022, Starliner is scheduled to complete its first crewed mission in 2024:

• Starliner-1: NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, along with one other crew member, flew to the ISS for a short test flight, docking to the station for five days before returning to Earth. Unfortunately, technical issues with the Starliner have delayed the crew return as Boeing and NASA investigate.

Starliner was expected to begin regular crew rotation flights to the ISS in late 2024, providing NASA with a second independent means of transporting astronauts to and from the orbiting laboratory. However issues with Starliner-1 are expected to push this date to 2025.

Summary

Nine historic spacecraft – Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, the Space Shuttle, Soyuz, Crew Dragon, and Starliner – have each played a vital role in advancing America’s human spaceflight capabilities over the past six decades. From the first tentative steps into orbit to long-duration flights aboard space stations, these vehicles and the courageous astronauts who flew them have pushed back the boundaries of exploration and opened the way for even more ambitious voyages in the future.