October 18 in Space History

16 events

1. 1962 64 years ago launch

   Ranger 5 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Ranger 5

   • Space transportation

   Ranger 5 was a spacecraft of the Ranger program designed to transmit pictures of the lunar surface to Earth stations during a period of 10 minutes of flight prior to impacting on the Moon, to rough-land a seismometer capsule on…

   • 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. (CC BY 4.0)
   • Wikipedia — Ranger 5 (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/Ranger_5 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
   • Timeline of Space Exploration Missions 1957 to 2031 (opens in a new tab)
   • NASA — Ranger 5 (opens in a new tab)
   • NASA NSSDCA — Ranger 5 (opens in a new tab)

2. 1963 63 years ago launch

   Kosmos-20 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-20

   • Space transportation

   Vostok 8A92 launched on the Kosmos-20 flight from NIIP-5, Baykonur, Kazakstan, pad LC1. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

3. 1967 59 years ago launch

   Kosmos-183 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-183

   • Space transportation

   R-36O 8K69 launched on the Kosmos-183 flight from NIIP-5, Baykonur, Kazakstan, pad LC161/35. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

4. 1967 59 years ago launch

   OSO 4 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: OSO 4

   • Space transportation

   Thor Delta C1 launched on the OSO 4 flight from Cape Canaveral Air Station, Florida, pad LC17B. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

5. 1969 57 years ago launch

   Kosmos-303 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-303

   • Space transportation

   Kosmos 11K63 launched on the Kosmos-303 flight from 53-y Nauchno-Issledovatelskiy Ispitatelniy Poligon, pad LC133/3. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

6. 1972 54 years ago launch

   Kosmos-525 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-525

   • Space transportation

   Voskhod 11A57 launched on the Kosmos-525 flight from 53-y Nauchno-Issledovatelskiy Ispitatelniy Poligon, pad LC43/4. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

7. 1974 52 years ago launch

   Kosmos-688 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-688

   • Space transportation

   Voskhod 11A57 launched on the Kosmos-688 flight from 53-y Nauchno-Issledovatelskiy Ispitatelniy Poligon, pad LC41/1. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

8. 1974 52 years ago launch

   Kosmos-689 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-689

   • Space transportation

   Kosmos 11K65M launched on the Kosmos-689 flight from 53-y Nauchno-Issledovatelskiy Ispitatelniy Poligon, pad LC132/2. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

9. 1984 42 years ago launch

   Kosmos-1606 — launch

   Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

   Mission: Kosmos-1606

   • Space transportation

   Tsiklon-3 launched on the Kosmos-1606 flight from 53-y Nauchno-Issledovatelskiy Ispitatelniy Poligon, pad LC32/2. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

10. 1989 37 years ago launch

    Galileo — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: Galileo

    • Space transportation

    Galileo was an American robotic space probe that studied the planet Jupiter and its moons, as well as the asteroids Gaspra and Ida.

    • 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. (CC BY 4.0)
    • Wikipedia — Galileo (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/Galileo_(spacecraft) (CC BY-SA 4.0)
    • Timeline of Space Exploration Missions 1957 to 2031 (opens in a new tab)
    • NASA — Galileo (opens in a new tab)
    • NASA NSSDCA — Galileo (opens in a new tab)

11. 1993 33 years ago launch

    Spacelab SLS 2 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: Spacelab SLS 2

    • Space transportation

    Space Shuttle launched on the Spacelab SLS 2 flight from NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida, pad LC39B. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

12. 2001 25 years ago launch

    QuickBird 2 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: QuickBird 2

    • Space transportation

    Delta 7320-10 launched on the QuickBird 2 flight from Vandenberg AFB, California, pad SLC2W. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

13. 2009 17 years ago launch

    DMSP 5D-3 F18 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: DMSP 5D-3 F18

    • Space transportation

    Atlas V 401 launched on the DMSP 5D-3 F18 flight from South Vandenberg AFB, California, pad SLC3E. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

14. 2020 6 years ago launch

    Starlink-14 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: Starlink-14

    • Space transportation

    Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Starlink-14 flight from NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida, pad LC39A. 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. (CC BY 4.0)

15. 2023 3 years ago launch

    Starlink-116 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: Starlink-116

    • Space transportation

    Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Starlink-116 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. (CC BY 4.0)

16. 2024 2 years ago launch

    Starlink-199 — launch

    Category: Launches and Flight Tests › Type: Orbital launch

    Mission: Starlink-199

    • Space transportation

    Falcon 9 (FT5) launched on the Starlink-199 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. (CC BY 4.0)