Space history on January 3

7 events

1. 1993 33 years ago

   Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: premiere

   Category: Science Fiction › Type: Television series premiere

   • Science fiction
   • Film and television

   Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (Television series) by Rick Berman, Michael Piller

   Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: premiere.

   • StarTrek.com (opens in a new tab) — Factual summary based on StarTrek.com. Original source retains its rights.

2. 1999 27 years ago launch

   Mars Polar Lander — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Mars Polar Lander

   • Space transportation

   The Mars Polar Lander, also known as the Mars Surveyor '98 Lander, was a 290-kilogram uncrewed spacecraft lander launched by NASA on January 3, 1999, to study the soil and climate of Planum Australe, a region near the south pole…

   • Jonathan McDowell — General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (opens in a new tab) — Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), CC BY 4.0. Adapted into anniversary records.
   • Wikipedia — Mars Polar Lander (opens in a new tab) — Adapted from Wikipedia contributors; selected sentences retained and edited for length, reference markers and pronunciation glosses. CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Article and edit history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Polar_Lander
   • Timeline of Space Exploration Missions 1957 to 2031 (opens in a new tab)
   • NASA — Mars Polar Lander (opens in a new tab)
   • NASA NSSDCA — Mars Polar Lander (opens in a new tab)

3. 2019 7 years ago landing

   Chang'e 4: lunar landing

   Category: Mission Operations and Milestones › Type: Landing

   Mission: Chang'e 4

   Moon landing.

   • NASA — mission history (opens in a new tab) — Factual summary; source attribution retained.

4. 2023 3 years ago launch

   Transporter-6 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Transporter-6

   • Space transportation

   Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Transporter-6 flight from Cape Canaveral Air Station, Florida, pad LC40. Launch vehicle success.

   • Jonathan McDowell — General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (opens in a new tab) — Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), CC BY 4.0. Adapted into anniversary records.

5. 2024 2 years ago launch

   Starlink-133 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Starlink-133

   • Space transportation

   Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Starlink-133 flight from South Base, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, pad SLC4E. Launch vehicle success.

   • Jonathan McDowell — General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (opens in a new tab) — Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), CC BY 4.0. Adapted into anniversary records.

6. 2024 2 years ago launch

   Ovzon-3 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Ovzon-3

   • Space transportation

   Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Ovzon-3 flight from Cape Canaveral Air Station, Florida, pad LC40. Launch vehicle success.

   • Jonathan McDowell — General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (opens in a new tab) — Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), CC BY 4.0. Adapted into anniversary records.

7. 2026 launch

   CSG 3 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: CSG 3

   • Space transportation

   Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the CSG 3 flight from South Base, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, pad SLC4E. Launch vehicle success.

   • Jonathan McDowell — General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (opens in a new tab) — Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), CC BY 4.0. Adapted into anniversary records.