Timeline of planetary exploration
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Timeline of planetary exploration by date of launch.
Already-launched missions in italics have not yet achieved success or failure.
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1950s
- 1957
- Sputnik 1 - 4 October 1957 - 1st Earth Orbiter
- Sputnik 2 - 3 November 1957 - Earth Orbiter
- Vanguard TV3 - 6 December 1957 - Attempted Earth Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- 1958
- Explorer 1 - 1 February 1958 - Earth Orbiter
- Vanguard 1 - 17 March 1958 - Earth Orbiter
- Pioneer 0 - 17 August 1958 - Attempted Lunar Orbit (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1958A - 23 September 1958 - Attempted Lunar Impact? (Launch Failure)
- Pioneer 1 - 11 October 1958 - Attempted Lunar Orbit (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1958B - 12 October 1958 - Attempted Lunar Impact? (Launch Failure)
- Pioneer 2 - 8 November 1958 - Attempted Lunar Orbit (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1958C - 4 December 1958 - Attempted Lunar Impact? (Launch Failure)
- Pioneer 3 - 6 December 1958 - Attempted Lunar Flyby (Launch Failure)
- 1959
- Luna 1 - 2 January 1959 - Lunar Flyby (Attempted Lunar Impact?) 1st Lunar Flyby
- Pioneer 4 - 3 March 1959 - Lunar Flyby
- Luna 1959A - 16 June 1959 - Attempted Lunar Impact? (Launch Failure)
- Luna 2 - 12 September 1959 - 1st Lunar Impact
- Luna 3 - 4 October 1959 - Lunar Flyby
- Pioneer P-3 - 26 November 1959 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
1960s
- 1960
- Luna 1960A - 15 April 1960 - Attempted Lunar Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1960B - 18 April 1960 - Attempted Lunar Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Pioneer P-30 - 25 Sept 1960 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Marsnik 1 (Mars 1960A) - 10 October 1960 - Attempted Mars Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Marsnik 2 (Mars 1960B) - 14 October 1960 - Attempted Mars Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Pioneer P-31 - 15 December 1960 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- 1961
- Sputnik 7 - 4 February 1961 - Attempted Venus Impact
- Venera 1 - 12 February 1961 - Venus Flyby (Contact Lost)
- Ranger 1 - 23 August 1961 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight
- Ranger 2 - 18 November 1961 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight
- 1962
- Ranger 3 - 26 January 1962 - Attempted Lunar Impact
- Ranger 4 - 23 April 1962 - Lunar Impact
- Mariner 1 - 22 July 1962 - Attempted Venus Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Sputnik 19 - 25 August 1962 - Attempted Venus Flyby
- Mariner 2 - 27 August 1962 - 1st Venus Flyby
- Sputnik 20 - 1 September 1962 - Attempted Venus Flyby
- Sputnik 21 - 12 September 1962 - Attempted Venus Flyby
- Ranger 5 - 18 October 1962 - Attempted Lunar Impact
- Sputnik 22 - 24 October 1962 - Attempted Mars Flyby
- Mars 1 - 1 November 1962 - Mars Flyby (Contact Lost)
- Sputnik 24 - 4 November 1962 - Attempted Mars Lander
- 1963
- Sputnik 25 - 4 January 1963 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Luna 1963B - 2 February 1963 - Attempted Lunar Lander (Launch Failure)
- Luna 4 - 2 April 1963 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Cosmos 21 - 11 November 1963 - Attempted Venera Test Flight?
- 1964
- Ranger 6 - 30 January 1964 - Lunar Impact (Cameras Failed)
- Venera 1964A - 19 February 1964 - Attempted Venus Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Venera 1964B - 1 March 1964 - Attempted Venus Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1964A - 21 March 1964 - Attempted Lunar Lander (Launch Failure)
- Cosmos 27 - 27 March 1964 - Attempted Venus Flyby
- Zond 1 - 2 April 1964 - Venus Flyby (Contact Lost)
- Luna 1964B - 20 April 1964 - Attempted Lunar Lander (Launch Failure)
- Zond 1964A - 4 June 1964 - Attempted Lunar Lander (Launch Failure)
- Ranger 7 - 28 July 1964 - Lunar Impact
- Mariner 3 - 5 November 1964 - Attempted Mars Flyby
- Mariner 4 - 28 November 1964 - 1st Mars Flyby
- Zond 2 - 30 November 1964 - Mars Flyby (Contact Lost)
- 1965
- Ranger 8 - 17 February 1965 - Lunar Impact
- Cosmos 60 - 12 March 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Ranger 9 - 21 March 1965 - Lunar Impact
- Luna 1965A - 10 April 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander? (Launch Failure)
- Luna 5 - 9 May 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing)
- Luna 6 - 8 June 1965 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Zond 3 - 18 July 1965 - Lunar Flyby
- Luna 7 - 4 October 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing)
- Venera 2 - 12 November 1965 - Venus Flyby (Contact Lost)
- Venera 3 - 16 November 1965 - Venus Lander (Contact Lost) 1st Venus Impact
- Cosmos 96 - 23 November 1965 - Attempted Venus Lander?
- Venera 1965A - 23 November 1965 - Attempted Venus Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Luna 8 - 3 December 1965 - Lunar Impact (Attempted Soft Landing?)
- 1966
- Luna 9 - 31 January 1966 - 1st Lunar Lander
- Cosmos 111 - 1 March 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter?
- Luna 10 - 31 March 1966 - 1st Lunar Orbiter
- Luna 1966A - 30 April 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter? (Launch Failure)
- Surveyor 1 - 30 May 1966 - Lunar Lander
- Explorer 33 - 1 July 1966 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter
- Lunar Orbiter 1 - 10 August 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
- Luna 11 - 24 August 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
- Surveyor 2 - 20 September 1966 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Luna 12 - 22 October 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
- Lunar Orbiter 2 - 6 November 1966 - Lunar Orbiter
- Luna 13 - 21 December 1966 - Lunar Lander
- 1967
- Lunar Orbiter 3 - 4 February 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
- Surveyor 3 - 17 April 1967 - Lunar Lander
- Lunar Orbiter 4 - 8 May 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
- Venera 4 - 12 June 1967 - 1st Venus Atmospheric Probe
- Mariner 5 - 14 June 1967 - Venus Flyby
- Cosmos 167 - 17 June 1967 - Attempted Venus Probe
- Surveyor 4 - 14 July 1967 - Attempted Lunar Lander
- Explorer 35 (IMP-E) - 19 July 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
- Lunar Orbiter 5 - 1 August 1967 - Lunar Orbiter
- Surveyor 5 - 8 September 1967 - Lunar Lander
- Zond 1967A - 28 September 1967 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight (Launch Failure)
- Surveyor 6 - 7 November 1967 - Lunar Lander
- Zond 1967B - 22 November 1967 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight (Launch Failure)
- 1968
- Surveyor 7 - 7 January 1968 - Lunar Lander
- Luna 1968A - 7 February 1968 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Zond 4 - 2 March 1968 - Test Flight
- Luna 14 - 7 April 1968 - Lunar Orbiter
- Zond 1968A - 23 April 1968 - Attempted Lunar Test Flight? (Launch Failure)
- Zond 5 - 15 September 1968 - 1st Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
- Zond 6 - 10 November 1968 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
- Apollo 8 - 21 December 1968 - 1st Manned Lunar Orbiter
- 1969
- Venera 5 - 5 January 1969 - Venus Probe
- Venera 6 - 10 January 1969 - Venus Probe
- Zond 1969A - 20 January 1969 - Attempted Lunar Flyby and Return (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1969A - 19 February 1969 - Attempted Lunar Rover? (Launch Failure)
- Zond L1S-1 - 21 February 1969 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Mariner 6 - 25 February 1969 - Mars Flyby
- Mariner 7 - 27 March 1969 - Mars Flyby
- Mars 1969A - 27 March 1969 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Mars 1969B - 2 April 1969 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1969B - 15 April 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return? (Launch Failure)
- Apollo 10 - 18 May 1969 - Manned Lunar Orbiter
- Luna 1969C - 14 June 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return? (Launch Failure)
- Zond L1S-2 - 3 July 1969 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Luna 15 - 13 July 1969 - Lunar Orbiter (Attempted Lunar Lander?)
- Apollo 11 - 16 July 1969 - 1st Manned Lunar Landing
- Zond 7 - 7 August 1969 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
- Cosmos 300 - 23 September 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return?
- Cosmos 305 - 22 October 1969 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return?
- Apollo 12 - 14 November 1969 - Manned Lunar Landing
1970s
- 1970
- Luna 1970A - 6 February 1970 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return? (Launch Failure)
- Luna 1970B - 19 February 1970 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter? (Launch Failure)
- Apollo 13 - 11 April 1970 - Manned Lunar Mission (Landing Aborted)
- Venera 7 - 17 August 1970 - 1st Venus Lander
- Cosmos 359 - 22 August 1970 - Attempted Venus Probe
- Luna 16 - 12 September 1970 - 1st Unmanned Lunar Sample Return
- Zond 8 - 20 October 1970 - Lunar Flyby and Return to Earth
- Luna 17/Lunokhod 1 - 10 November 1970 - 1st Lunar Rover
- 1971
- Apollo 14 - 31 January 1971 - Manned Lunar Landing
- Mariner 8 - 8 May 1971 - Attempted Mars Flyby (Launch Failure)
- Cosmos 419 - 10 May 1971 - Attempted Mars Orbiter/Lander
- Mars 2 - 19 May 1971 - 1st Mars Orbiter/Attempted Lander/1st Mars Impact
- Mars 3 - 28 May 1971 - Mars Orbiter/1st Mars Lander and 1st Mars Atmospheric Probe
- Mariner 9 - 30 May 1971 - Mars Orbiter
- Apollo 15 - 26 July 1971 - Manned Lunar Landing
- Luna 18 - 2 September 1971 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return
- Luna 19 - 28 September 1971 - Lunar Orbiter
- 1972
- Luna 20 - 14 February 1972 - Lunar Sample Return
- Pioneer 10 - 3 March 1972 - 1st Jupiter Flyby and 1st to leave solar system
- Venera 8 - 27 March 1972 - Venus Probe
- Cosmos 482 - 31 March 1972 - Attempted Venus Probe
- Apollo 16 - 16 April 1972 - Manned Lunar Landing
- Soyuz L3 - 23 November 1972 - Attempted Lunar Orbiter (Launch Failure)
- Apollo 17 - 7 December 1972 - Manned Lunar Landing
- 1973
- Luna 21/Lunokhod 2 - 8 January 1973 - Lunar Rover
- Pioneer 11 - 5 April 1973 - Jupiter/1st Saturn Flyby
- Skylab - 14 May 1973 - Manned Earth Orbiter
- Explorer 49 (RAE-B) - 10 June 1973 - Lunar Orbiter/Radio Astronomy
- Mars 4 - 21 July 1973 - Mars Flyby (Attempted Mars Orbiter)
- Mars 5 - 25 July 1973 - Mars Orbiter
- Mars 6 - 5 August 1973 - Mars Lander (Contact Lost)
- Mars 7 - 9 August 1973 - Mars Flyby (Attempted Mars Lander)
- Mariner 10 - 4 November 1973 - Venus Flyby/1st Mercury Flyby
- 1974
- 1975
- Venera 9 - 8 June 1975 - 1st Venus Orbiter and Lander
- Venera 10 - 14 June 1975 - Venus Orbiter and Lander
- Viking 1 - 20 August 1975 - Mars Orbiter and Lander
- Viking 2 - 9 September 1975 - Mars Orbiter and Lander
- Luna 1975A - 16 October 1975 - Attempted Lunar Sample Return?
- 1976
- 1977
- 1978
- Pioneer Venus 1 - 20 May 1978 - Venus Orbiter
- Pioneer Venus 2 - 8 August 1978 - Venus Probes
- ISEE-3/ICE - 12 August 1978 - Comet Giacobini-Zinner and Comet Halley Flybys - 1st Comet flyby
- Venera 11 - 9 September 1978 - Venus Orbiter and Lander
- Venera 12 - 14 September 1978 - Venus Orbiter and Lander
1980s
- 1981
- Venera 13 - 30 October 1981 - Venus Orbiter and Lander
- Venera 14 - 4 November 1981 - Venus Orbiter and Lander
- 1983
- 1984
- Vega 1 - 15 December 1984 - Venus Lander and Balloon/Comet Halley Flyby
- Vega 2 - 21 December 1984 - Venus Lander and Balloon/Comet Halley Flyby
- 1985
- 1988
- 1989
- Magellan - 4 May 1989 - Venus Orbiter
- Galileo - 18 October 1989 - 1st Asteroid Flyby, 1st Asteroid moon discovery, 1st Jupiter Orbiter and 1st Jupiter Atmospheric Probe
1990s
- 1990
- Hiten - 24 January 1990 - Lunar Flyby and Orbiter
- Hubble Space Telescope - 25 April 1990 - Earth Orbiting Observatory
- Ulysses - 06 October 1990 - Jupiter Flyby and Solar Polar Orbiter
- 1992
- Mars Observer - 25 September 1992 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (Contact Lost)
- 1994
- Clementine - 25 January 1994 - Lunar Orbiter/Attempted Asteroid Flyby
- 1996
- NEAR - 17 February 1996 -1st Near-Earth asteroid Flyby, 1st Asteroid Orbit and 1st Asteroid Landing - Eros Orbiter
- Mars Global Surveyor - 07 November 1996 - Mars Orbiter
- Mars 96 - 16 November 1996 - Attempted Mars Orbiter/Landers
- Mars Pathfinder - 04 December 1996 - Mars Lander and 1st Mars Rover
- 1997
- Cassini-Huygens - 15 October 1997 - Saturn Orbiter and Titan Probe and Lander, 1st Saturn Orbiter, 1st Titan Lander
- AsiaSat 3/HGS-1 - 24 December 1997 - Lunar Flyby
- 1998
- Lunar Prospector - 7 January 1998 - Lunar Orbiter
- Nozomi (Planet-B) - 3 July 1998 - Attempted Mars Orbiter (failed to enter Mars orbit)
- Deep Space 1 (DS1) - 24 October 1998 - Asteroid and Comet Flyby
- Mars Climate Orbiter - 11 December 1998 - Attempted Mars Orbiter
- 1999
- Mars Polar Lander - 3 January 1999 - Attempted Mars Lander
- Deep Space 2 (DS2) - 3 January 1999 - Attempted Mars Penetrators
- Stardust - 7 February 1999 - Comet Coma Sample Return
2000s
- 2001
- 2002
- 2003
- Champollion/DS4 - 19 April 2003 - Comet Orbiter and Lander (cancelled)
- Hayabusa (Muses-C) - 9 May 2003 - Asteroid Lander and Sample Return
- Mars Exploration Rovers - 10 June/7 July 2003 - Two Mars Rovers
- Mars Express - 1 June 2003 - Mars Orbiter/Attempted Lander
- SMART 1 - 27 September 2003 - Lunar Orbiter
- 2004
- Rosetta - 2 March 2004 - Comet Orbiter and Lander
- MESSENGER - 3 August 2004 - Mercury Orbiter
- Pluto Kuiper Express - cancelled, now New Horizons
- 2005
- Deep Impact - 12 January 2005 - Comet Rendezvous and Impact
Planned/scheduled
- 2005
- Lunar-A - 2005 - JAXA - Lunar Orbiter and Penetrators (delayed)
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - 10 August 2005 - Mars Orbiter
- Venus Express - November 2005 - Venus polar orbiter
- Selene - 2005 - Lunar Orbiter
- 2006
- 2007
- 2008
- Planet-C - 2008 - JAXA Venus Orbiter
- Solar Dynamics Laboratory - continuous solar monitoring
- Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
- 2009
- Mercury Orbiter - August 2009 - ISAS Mercury Orbiter
- Mars Science Laboratory - December 2009 - Rover
- Mars Telecommunications Orbiter - Late 2009 - Communications Satellite, Technology Demonstrator
- ExoMars -2009 - Mars Rover
- Phobos-Grunt - 2009 - Phobos Sample Return
- 2011
- Mars 2011 - scouting mission
- 2012
- BepiColombo - Sep 2012 - ESA and ISAS Mercury Orbiters
- 2015
- Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) - Orbiter to Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto