2023 in spaceflight

This article documents notable and expected spaceflight events during the year 2023.

2023 in spaceflight
The Psyche mission to the metal asteroid of the same name is scheduled to launch in 2023.
JUICE is an ESA spacecraft to explore three of Jupiter's moons.
Top: The Psyche mission to the metal asteroid of the same name is scheduled to launch in 2023.
Bottom: ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer is scheduled to launch in 2023.
Orbital launches
First3 January
Last7 April
Total56
Successes52
Failures4
Partial failures0
Catalogued50
National firsts
Spaceflight
 Oman (suborbital spaceflight due to failed orbital launch)
Satellite
Rockets
Maiden flights
Crewed flights
Orbital1
Total travellers4

Overview

Exploration of the Solar System

NASA plans to launch the Psyche spacecraft, an orbiter mission that will explore the origin of planetary cores by studying the metallic asteroid 16 Psyche, in October 2023 on a Falcon Heavy launch vehicle.

In April, the European Space Agency (ESA) plans to launch the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) spacecraft, which will explore Jupiter and its large ice-covered moons following an eight-year transit.[1]

The OSIRIS-REx mission will return to Earth on 24 September with samples collected from asteroid Bennu.[2]

Space tourism

SpaceX plans to fly Polaris Dawn in July, a Crew Dragon mission including the first commercial spacewalk.

Rocket innovation

The maiden flights of Arianespace's Ariane 6,[3] Blue Origin's New Glenn,[4] SpaceX's Starship,[5] and United Launch Alliance's Vulcan Centaur[6] are planned for 2023, along with other smaller rockets.

On January 10, ABL Space Systems' RS1 had its debut flight, but failed to reach orbit.[7]

On March 7, JAXA/MHI H3's maiden flight was terminated in-flight due to failure to ignite the second stage, resulting in the loss of the ALOS-3 land observation satellite.[8]

On March 23, Relativity Space's Terran 1 had its debut flight. The flight goal, which was to demonstrate the viability of 3D printing for major structural components of a rocket, was achieved when Terran 1 passed max q and continued to perform nominally. However, after stage separation, the second stage failed to ignite, ending the mission.[9]

On April 2, Space Pioneer's Tianlong-2 had its debut flight, and successfully reached orbit. It was the first successful launch of a Chinese privately-funded liquid-fueled rocket. Space Pioneer is the first private company to reach orbit on it's first attempt using a fully liquid fueled rocket.[10]

Space debris and satellites management

On 27 January, ESA reported the successful demonstration of a breaking sail-based satellite deorbiter, ADEO, which could be used by space debris mitigation measures.[11][12]

Orbital launches
Main articles: List of spaceflight launches in January–June 2023 and List of spaceflight launches in July–December 2023
List of orbital launches
Month Num. of successes Num. of failures Num. of partial failures
January1420
February1200
March2220
April400
MayTBDTBDTBD
JuneTBDTBDTBD
JulyTBDTBDTBD
AugustTBDTBDTBD
SeptemberTBDTBDTBD
OctoberTBDTBDTBD
NovemberTBDTBDTBD
DecemberTBDTBDTBD
Total5240

Deep-space rendezvous
Date (UTC) Spacecraft Event Remarks
21 March HAKUTO-R Mission 1[13] Lunar orbit insertion
20 June BepiColombo Third gravity assist at Mercury
21 August Parker Solar Probe Sixth gravity assist at Venus
24 September OSIRIS-REx Sample return to Earth
1 November Lucy Flyby of 152830 Dinkinesh Lucy will approach 450 km (280 mi) from the asteroid.[14]
30 December Juno 57th perijove On the day of this perijove, Juno will fly by Io. Orbital period around Jupiter reduced to 35 days.[15][16]

Extravehicular activities (EVAs)
See also: List of spacewalks since 2015
Start Date/Time Duration End Time Spacecraft Crew Remarks
20 January 2023
13:14		 7 hours 21 minutes 20:35 Expedition 68
ISS Quest
 Japan Koichi Wakata
United States Nicole Mann		 First spacewalk of 2023 to finish installation of the IROSA mounting brackets on the starboard side of the station. Wakata and Mann installed cables on the 1B Array at the S6 truss, which was not completed on the last spacewalk, tightened bolts and installed a terminator on a cable along with its connected jumper on the SSDCDC converter box to isolate the 1B array until the IROSA solar arrays are installed following the arrival of SpaceX CRS-28 in June. They also assembled and installed the IROSA mounting bracket onto the 1A array, which was also left incomplete on the last spacewalk. Wakata and Mann were unable to secure the final strut on the 1A solar array because of debris in the guide track of the mounting pad and only one of the jumpers was installed. The astronauts returned the strut to the Quest Airlock and will use special tools to clean the tracks before it is remounted on the next spacewalk. They were also unable to connect the cables for 1A due to time constraints. NASA astronaut Zena Cardman was Ground IV, assisted by JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, who was the Capcom for the astronauts inside the ISS during the spacewalk.[17][18][19]
2 February 2023
12:45		 6 hours 41 minutes 19:26 Expedition 68
ISS Quest
 United States Nicole Mann
Japan Koichi Wakata		 Final spacewalk to install the mounting brackets for the 1A solar array in preparation for the delivery of IROSA on SpaceX CRS-28. Tasks included installing the final strut, securing the bolts on the 1A solar array, relocating foot restraints that were left on P6 inboard, and routing cables. NASA astronaut Zena Cardman was Ground IV.[20][21]
9 February 2023
9:10		 7 hours 6 minutes 16:16 Shenzhou 15
TSS Wentian airlock		 China Fei Junlong
China Zhang Lu		 They completed a series of tasks, including installing an external pump on the Mengtian lab module and other tasks related to Mengtian's payload airlock, which allows astronauts to deploy science payloads and small satellites using the station's robotic arms. It is the China's longest spacewalk to date.[22]
28 February 2023
??:??		  ? hours ? minutes  ??:?? Shenzhou 15

TSS Wentian airlock

 China Fei Junlong
China Zhang Lu
30 March 2023
??:??		  ? hours ? minutes  ??:?? Shenzhou 15

TSS Wentian airlock

 China Fei Junlong
China Zhang Lu

Space debris events
See also: List of space debris producing events
Date/Time (UTC) Source object Event type Pieces tracked Remarks
4 January Russia Kosmos 2499 Breakup 85 Energetic fragmentation event; Cause Unknown
11 March United States Orbcomm F36 Breakup 7 Unknown; likely energetic fragmentation event caused by a malfunction in the hydrazine orbit adjust system[23][24]

Orbital launch statistics

By country

For the purposes of this section, the yearly tally of orbital launches by country assigns each flight to the country of origin of the rocket, not to the launch services provider or the spaceport. As an example, Electron launches from Mahia in New Zealand are counted under USA.

Country Launches Successes Failures Partial
failures		 Remarks
 China161600
 India2200
 Israel1100
 Japan2110
 Russia6600
 United States292630Includes Electron launches from Mahia
World565240

By rocket

By family

By type

By configuration

By spaceport
5
10
15
20
25
30
China
France
India
Israel
Japan
Kazakhstan
New Zealand
Russia
South Korea
United Kingdom
United States
Site Country Launches Successes Failures Partial failures Remarks
Baikonur Kazakhstan4400
Cape Canaveral United States141310
Cornwall United Kingdom1010First launch
Jiuquan China9900
Kennedy United States4400
Mahia New Zealand1100
MARS United States2200
PSCA United States1010
Palmachim Israel1100
Plesetsk Russia2200
Satish Dhawan India2200
Taiyuan China3300
Tanegashima Japan2110
Vandenberg United States6600
Wenchang China1100
Xichang China3300
Total565240

By orbit
  •   Transatmospheric
  •   Low Earth
  •   Low Earth (ISS)
  •   Low Earth (CSS)
  •   Low Earth (SSO)
  •   Low Earth (polar)
  •   Low Earth (retrograde)
  •   Medium Earth
  •   Molniya
  •   Geosynchronous
  •   Tundra
  •   High Earth
  •   Lunar transfer
  •   Heliocentric
  •  
Orbital regime Launches Achieved Not achieved Accidentally
achieved		 Remarks
Transatmospheric0000
Low Earth / Sun-synchronous444040Including flights to ISS and Tiangong
Geosynchronous / Tundra / GTO111100
Medium Earth / Molniya1100
High Earth / Lunar transfer0000
Heliocentric orbit / Planetary transfer0000
Total565240

Suborbital launch statistics

By country

For the purposes of this section, the yearly tally of suborbital launches by country assigns each flight to the country of origin of the rocket, not to the launch services provider or the spaceport. Flights intended to fly below 80 km (50 mi) are omitted.

Country Launches Successes Failures Partial
failures		 Remarks
 Canada1100
 North Korea3300
 Pakistan1010
 Russia1010
 South Korea1100
 United States9810
World161330

Planned maiden flights

Notes

    References
    1. "Juice's journey and Jupiter system tour". ESA. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
    2. Tillman, Nola Taylor; Howell, Elizabeth (11 November 2022). "OSIRIS-REx: NASA's asteroid study and sample return mission". Space.com. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
    3. Foust, Jeff (19 October 2022). "Ariane 6 first launch slips to late 2023". SpaceNews. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
    4. Foust, Jeff (23 March 2022). "Vulcan Centaur on schedule for first launch in 2022 as New Glenn slips". SpaceNews. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
    5. Baylor, Michael. "Starship-Super Heavy (Prototype) | Orbital Test Flight". Next Spaceflight. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
    6. "ULA Sets Path Forward for Inaugural Vulcan Flight Test". ULA. 12 October 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
    7. Foust, Jeff (10 January 2023). "First ABL Space Systems launch fails". SpaceNews. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
    8. Roston, Michael; Dooley, Ben; Ueno, Hisako (7 March 2023). "New Japanese Rocket Is Destroyed During First Test Flight to Space". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
    9. Wall, Mike (23 March 2023). "Relativity Space launches world's first 3D-printed rocket on historic test flight, but fails to reach orbit". Space.com. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
    10. China 'N Asia Spaceflight [@CNSpaceflight] (2 April 2023). "🚀 History made on April 02, 2023! Liftoff at ~08:48UTC, SPACE-PIONEER's Tianlong-2 successfully launched Jinta cubesat from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. 🎉 World's first startup to successfully launch a liquid fueled rocket to orbit on first attempt" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
    11. Young, Chris (9 February 2023). "ESA successfully deploys braking sail for deorbiting small satellites". interestingengineering.com. Archived from the original on 9 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
    12. "Show Me Your Wings: Successful In-flight Demonstration of the ADEO Braking Sail". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
    13. Foust, Jeff (21 March 2023). "Japanese lander enters lunar orbit". Space News. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
    14. "NASA's Lucy Team Announces New Asteroid Target". 25 January 2023.
    15. Talbert, Tricia (8 January 2021). "NASA Extends Exploration for Two Planetary Science Missions". NASA. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
    16. "NASA's Juno Mission Expands Into the Future". NASA.gov. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
    17. Dodson, Gerelle (13 January 2023). "NASA to Provide Coverage of US Spacewalk, Preview News Conference". NASA. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
    18. Lavelle, Heidi. "Astronauts Begin Spacewalk to Prep for Station Power Upgrades". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
    19. Garcia, Mark. "Spacewalkers Wrap Up First Spacewalk of 2023". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
    20. Lavelle, Heidi. "Astronauts Begin Spacewalk to Continue Power System Upgrades". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
    21. Garcia, Mark. "Spacewalkers Complete Construction Job to Upgrade Station Power". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
    22. "China's Shenzhou 15 astronauts take their 1st spacewalk outside Tiangong space station (video)". Space.com. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
    23. Orbital Focus [@OrbitalFocus] (17 March 2023). "From Space-Track: The 18th Space Defense Squadron (18 SDS) has confirmed the breakup of Orbcomm FM 36 (#25984, 1999-065E), which likely occurred March 11, 2023, at approximately 0145 UTC. As of March 16, 18 SDS is tracking 7 associated pieces at an estimated 792 km altitude..." (Tweet). Retrieved 3 April 2023 – via Twitter.
    24. Jonathan McDowell [@planet4589] (17 March 2023). "The jump is a propulsive orbit adjust, which makes the likeliest cause some kind of bad event in the hydrazine orbit adjust system" (Tweet). Retrieved 3 April 2023 – via Twitter.
    25. China 'N Asia Spaceflight [@CNSpaceflight] (8 March 2023). "ORIENSPACE now targets the 4th quarter of 2023 for the maiden launch of Gravitation-1 and the second quarter of 2024 for the 2nd launch. There are still ~1 tonnes and ~2 tonnes capacity respectively available for additional customers" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
    26. 串本町 民間ロケット打ち上げ ことし夏ごろに 延期は３回目 (in Japanese). NHK. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
    27. China N' Asia Spaceflight [@CNSpaceflight] (3 January 2023). "CASC had a planning meeting today of 2023 missions, affirming Long March 6C to debut in 2023, and 50+ launches are planned in the year" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
    28. "Rocket Factory Augsburg's first launch to take place from SaxaVord Spaceport". Rocket Factory Augsburg (Press release). 11 January 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
    29. Elon Musk [@elonmusk] (4 February 2023). "If remaining tests go well, we will attempt a Starship launch next month" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
    30. Foust, Jeff (23 February 2023). "ULA announces May launch of first Vulcan". SpaceNews. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
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