In 2006, we observed that:

•	Russia launched the greatest number of rockets (30 of the 66) and of spacecrafts (50 of the 116 payloads), as it did in 2005.
•	The United States launched 50% more rockets (18 compared to 12 in 2005) and more than double its amount of payloads (37 compared to 14 in 2005).
•	Japan launched a record number of national satellites (11).
•	Europe and China launched about the same number of satellites (respectively 11 and 7) as they did in 2005.
•	The were a record number of small satellites launched: 22 weight less than ten kilograms as another 16 weight less than 100 kg. These 38 spacecrafts represent a third of all payloads launched in 2006 but less than 1% of the total mass launched. (See 2006 Payloads Weights Orbited below.)

Who Sponsored What?

Of the 116 spacecrafts launched this year, 29 were American, 15 were Russian, 11 Japanese, 8 European, 8 commercial, 7 Chinese, 6 Taiwenese and there were 20 amateur/student-built minisatellites. There were also 2 Arab and 2 South Korean satellites, as well as 1 Indian, 1 Israelian, 1 Mexican, 1 Australian, 1 Thailandese and 1 Malaysian. Also in 2006, Kazakhstan and Bellarus orbited their first satellite.

Civilian vs. Military Spacecrafts
        89 of the 116 spacecrafts launched during 2006 were civilian – which represents 76.7 % of the total – and 27 were military satellites. From 1960 to 1990, two-third of all spacecrafts launched were military, but since 1995, the majority are civilian. Nevertheless, 54.25 % of all spacecrafts ever launched are military. (See Table 4.)

For What Purpose?

Of the 89 civilian spacecrafts, 22 provided communications services, 10 were for technology R&D, 8 were part of piloted programs, 11 studied Earth and space environment, 1 explored the Solar System and 5 observed the Universe and our Sun. There were also 4 satellites for weather monitoring, 6 for Earth remote sensing, 1 for material processing, 1 for biological research as well as 20 who were built by students.

Of the 27 military satellites, 5 were for photo surveillance (“spy”) mission, 5 provided navigation aids, 2 were listening devices (elint), 3 relayed communications, 1 provide missile early warning, 1 meteorological monitoring and 10 were for science & technology research.

Space Failures
        23 of the 116 spacecrafts failed to accomplish their mission (18 small satellites were lost on a single Dnepr launch). This represents a 80% rate of success, which is far less than the historical average (1957-2004 = 89.1%). Of these 23 failures, 20 occurred at launch, one was put in a wrong orbit (Arabsat 4A) and two failed shortly after reaching orbit (Kompass-2 and Sinosat-2). (See Table 6 and Spacecrafts (know) Failure.)

Launcher Statistics

The 116 spacecrafts launched during 2006 were carried by 66 rockets. 30 of which were Russian (45½%), 18 were American, 6 were Japanese, 6 were Chinese, 5 were European and 1 was Indian. (See Spacecrafts/Launches Summary below.)

Come Fly With Us

Russian rockets launched 50 of the 116 spacecrafts (42%), American rockets carried 37 spacecrafts, European Ariane orbited 11 spacecrafts, Japanese launchers H-II and M-V carriee 10 payloads, Chinese Chang Zheng propelled 7 spacecrafts, as the Indian GSLV transported 1 spacecrafts.

Payloads Tonnage

Some 256 tons of payloads were put into space during 2006. Of this, Russia orbited nearly half of the tonnage, United States a quarter, Europe 15%, as Japan and China orbited 5 to 6% and India none (see table at right).      If we add the weight of the three Space Shuttle Orbiters flown by NASA, the total tonnage orbited more than double (to 574 tons) and then the United States would be credited for orbiting the two-thirds of this mass.       See 2006 Payloads Weights Orbited below.

Launch Provider Number of Payloads Total Weight Orbited % of Total Russia 50 116½ tons 45 % United States 37 72 tons* 28 % Europe 11 39 tons 15 % Japan 10 14½ tons 6 % China 7 14 tons 5½ % India 1 0 tons 0 % Total 256 tons Lost Payloads (at launch) 20 2,3 tons * Not counting the 318 tons orbited as three Space Shutlle Orbiters

Launch Failures
        There were 4 launch failures: a Dnepr (carrying 18 small satellites), a Falcon-1, a GSLV and a Proton (which failed to propelled Arabsat 4A into geostationary orbit). This represents a 94% rate of success, which is better than the average 91.5 % success cumulated from 1957 to 2005. (See Table 11 - Launchers Ranking.)

Launcher Scorecard

        Of the 66 launches accomplished during 2006:

•	The Russian Soyuz launcher score 12 successes in 12 launches.
•	The American Delta score 9 successes in 9 launches.
•	The Chinese Chang Zheng score 6 successes in 6 launches.
•	The Russian Proton score 5 successes in 6 launches.
•	The European Ariane and the Russian Zenit each score 5 successes in 5 launches.
•	The Japanese H-2A score 4 successes in 4 launches.
•	The American Space Shuttle score 3 successes in 3 launches.
•	American Atlas and Minotaur launchers as well as the Japanese M-V score 2 successes in 2 launches.
•	The Russian Dnepr score 1 success in 2 launches.
•	The American Pegagus and Russian's Kosmos 3M, Tsykon, Rokot, Start and Shtill each score 1 success in 1 launch.
•	The Indian GSLV and the American Falcon each score 1 failure in 1 launch.

 

Summary of spacecrafts launched in 2006