1976 in spaceflight

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1976 in spaceflight

Viking 2 on the surface of Mars

Orbital launches
First| 6 January
Last| 28 December
Total| 131
Catalogued| 128
National firsts
Satellite|  Indonesia
Rockets
Maiden flights| Thor DSV-2U
Retirements| Voskhod
Scout B-1
Soyuz
Soyuz-M
Thor-Burner
Luna sample return ascent stage
Crewed flights
Orbital| 3
Total travellers| 6

* v
* t
* e

1976 in spaceflight

Timeline of spaceflight

<- 1977

1977 ->

* v
* t
* e

Timeline of spaceflight

* Spaceflight before 1951

1950s|

* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958 (H1, H2)
* 1959 (H1, H2)

1960s|

* 1960 (T1, T2, T3)
* 1961 (H1, H2)
* 1962 (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)
* 1963 (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)
* 1964 (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)
* 1965 (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969

1970s|

* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979

1980s|

* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989

1990s|

* 1990
* 1991 (H1, H2)
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999

2000s|

* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009

2010s|

* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018 (H1, H2)
* 2019 (H1, H2)

2020s|

* 2020
* 2021 (H1, H2)
* 2022 (H1, H2)
* 2023 (H1, H2)
* 2024 (H1, H2)
* 2025 (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4)
* 2026
* 2027
* 2028
* 2029

* Future

The following is an outline of 1976 in spaceflight.

## Launches

[edit]

Date and time (UTC)  | Rocket | Flight number  | Launch site | LSP

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| Payload | Operator  | Orbit | Function  | Decay (UTC)  | Outcome
Remarks

### January

[edit]

6 January
04:52  | Kosmos-3M |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1 |
Kosmos 787 (Tselina-O 27)  |  | Low Earth | SIGINT | 12 December 1980 | Successful
7 January
15:34  | Voskhod |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3 |
Kosmos 788 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 54)  | GRU USSR | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 20 January | Successful
15 January
05:34:00  | Titan IIIE/Star-37 |  | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | NASA
Helios-B | NASA / DFVLR | Heliocentric | Solar probe | In orbit | Successful
Achieved a closest approach to the Sun of 43.432 million km (0.29 AU) on 17 April 1976, the closest approach achieved by an artificial satellite; it was succeeded by the Parker Solar Probe in 2018.
17 January
23:27  | Delta 2914 | D-119  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17B |
CTS Hermes  | NASA / CSA | Geosynchronous | Experimental communications | In orbit | Successful
20 January
17:07  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 789 (Parus 5)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful
22 January
11:38  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Baikonur Site 1/5 |
Molniya-1K 32  |  | Molniya orbit | Communications | In orbit | Successful
22 January
22:26  | Kosmos-3M |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 790 (Tselina-O 30)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 12 November 1980 | Successful
28 January
10:39  | Kosmos-3M |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1 |
Kosmos 791 (Strela-1M 105)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 792 (Strela-1M 106)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 793 (Strela-1M 107)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 794 (Strela-1M 108)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 795 (Strela-1M 109)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 796 (Strela-1M 110)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 797 (Strela-1M 111)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 798 (Strela-1M 112)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
29 January
08:30  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6 |
Kosmos 799 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 64)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 10 February | Successful
29 January
23:56  | Atlas-SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR | AC-37  | Cape Canaveral SLC-36B |
Intelsat IVA F-2 | Intelsat | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Successful

### February

[edit]

3 February
08:16  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 800 (Zaliv 20)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful
4 February
06:00  | M-3C |  | Kagoshima Space Center LP-M  | ISAS
Corsa A | ISAS  | Low Earth  | X-ray astronomy | 4 February | Failure
5 February
14:30  | Kosmos-2 |  | Plesetsk Site 133/1  |
Kosmos 801 (DS-P1-I 17)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 5 January 1978 | Successful
11 February
08:50  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 802 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 55)  | GRU  | Low Eath  | Reconnaissance | 25 February | Successful
12 February
13:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 803 (DS-P1-M 8)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT target | In orbit | Successful
Target for Kosmos 804 and 814
16 February
08:29  | Tsyklon-2 |  | Baikonur Site 90/20  |
Kosmos 804 (IS-A 1)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT test | 16 February | Successful
19 February
07:52  | Thor-LV2F Burner-2A |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-10W | US Air Force
DMSP-5C F3 (OPS 5140)  | USAF  | Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO)  | Weather | 19 February | Failure
Thor stage not loaded with enough fuel due to typo in engine data sheet. The satellite was placed in much lower orbit and re-entered after one orbit
19 February
22:32  | Delta 2914 | D-120  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17B  |
Marisat-1 | Marisat  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
20 February
14:01  | Soyuz-U |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 805 (Yantar-2K/Feniks 4)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 11 March | Successful
29 February
03:30:00  | N-I |  | Tanegashima LA-N | ISAS
Ionospheric Sounding Satellite (ISS) Ume | ISAS  | Low Earth  | Ionospheric research | In orbit | Successful
First launch completed on February 29

### March

[edit]

10 March
08:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 806 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 56)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 23 March | Successful
11 March
19:45  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Plesetsk Site 41/1  |
Molniya-1K 33  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 10 October 1990 | Successful
12 March
13:30  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 807 (Taifun-1 4)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | In orbit | Successful
15 March
01:25:40[2] |  Titan III(23)C |  |  Cape Canaveral SLC-40 |  NASA
LES-8 | MIT Lincoln Laboratory | Geostationary  | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful
LES-9 | MIT Lincoln Laboratory | Geostationary  | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful
SOLRAD 11A | NRL | High Earth orbit | Heliophysics | In orbit | Successful
SOLRAD 11B | NRL | High Earth orbit  | Heliophysics | In orbit | Successful
LES-8 was decommissioned in 2004; LES-9, the last Lincoln Experimental Satellite, continued functioning for 44 years and was finally decommissioned in 2020.[1]
16 March
17:22  | Vostok-2M |  | Plesetsk Site 41/1  |
Kosmos 808 (Tselina-D 9)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 20 November 1993 | Successful
18 March
09:15  | Kosmos 809  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 809 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 65)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 30 March | Successful
19 March
19:31  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Baikonur Site 1/5  |
Molniya-1K 34  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 14 May 1985 | Successful
22 March
18:14  | Titan III(24)B |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-4W | US Air Force
KH-8 46 (Gambit-3 46, OPS 7600)  | NRO | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 18 May | Successful
26 March
15:00  | Voskhod  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 810 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 57)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 8 April | Successful
26 March
22:47  | Delta 3914 | D-121  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17A  |
Satcom 2  | RCA Americom | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
31 March
12:50  | Soyuz-M |  | Plesetsk Site 41/1  |
Kosmos 811 (Zenit-4MT/Orion 10)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 12 April | Successful

### April

[edit]

6 April
04:14  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 812 (Tselina-O 31)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 30 October 1980 | Successful
7 April
13:05  | Vostok-2M  |  | Plesetsk Site 41/1  |
Meteor-1 24  |  | Low Earth  | Weather | In orbit | Successful
9 April
08:30  | Voskhod  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 813 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 66)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 21 April | Successful
13 April
17:15  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/20  |
Kosmos 814 (IS-A 2)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT test | 13 March | Successful
22 April
20:46  | Delta 2914 | D-122  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17B  | US Air Force
NATO 3A | NATO  | Geostationary  | Military communications | In orbit | Successful
28 April
09:30  | Voskhod  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 815 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 58)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 11 May | Successful
28 April
13:30  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 816 (Taifun-2 1)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 24 November 1979 | Successful
24 Romb subsatellites  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 1977
30 April
19:12  | Atlas F MSD  |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-3W  |
MSD 1  | US Navy  | Low Earth  | Satellite deployment | In orbit | Successful
NOSS 1A  | US Navy  | Low Earth  | Ocean surveillance, ELINT | In orbit | Successful
NOSS 1B  | US Navy  | Low Earth  | Ocean surveillance, ELINT | In orbit | Successful
NOSS 1C  | US Navy  | Low Earth  | Ocean surveillance, ELINT | In orbit | Successful

### May

[edit]

4 May
08:00  | Delta 2913 / Star-24 | D-123  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-2W  |
LAGEOS-1  | NASA  | Medium Earth orbit | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful
5 May
07:50  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 817 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 59)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 18 May | Successful
12 May
17:57  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Plesetsk Site 41/1  |
Molniya-3 16L  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 4 February 1990 | Successful
13 May
22:28  | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR | AC-38  | Cape Canaveral SLC-36A  |
Comstar 1A (D1)  | COMSAT | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
15 May
13:30  | Vostok-2M  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Meteor-Priroda 2-1 (Meteor-1 25)  |  | Low Earth  | Weather, Earth observation | In orbit | Successful
18 May
10:59  | Kosmos-2  |  | Plesetsk Site 133/1  |
Kosmos 818 (DS-P1-Yu 78)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 7 March 1977 | Successful
20 May
09:00  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 819 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 67)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 1 June | Successful
21 May
07:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 820 (Zenit-4MKT/Fram 2)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 2 June | Successful
22 May
07:42  | Scout B-1 |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-5  | US Air Force
Wideband (P76-5)  | STP | Low Earth  | Ionosphere research | In orbit | Successful
26 May
09:00  | Voskhod  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 821 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 60)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 8 June | Successful
28 May
15:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 822 (Taifun-1/Vektor 5)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 8 August 1978 | Successful

### June

[edit]

2 June
20:56  | Titan III(34)B |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-4W  |
Quasar 1 (SDS 1, OPS 7837)  | NRO  | Highly elliptical  | Data relay | In orbit | Successful
2 June
22:30  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 823 (Zaliv 21)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful
8 June
07:00  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 824 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 61)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 21 June | Successful
10 June
00:09  | Delta 2914  | D-124  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17A  |
Marisat 2  | Marisat  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
| Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 825 (Strela-1M 113)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 826 (Strela-1M 114)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 827 (Strela-1M 115)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 828 (Strela-1M 116)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 829 (Strela-1M 117)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 830 (Strela-1M 118)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 831 (Strela-1M 119)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 832 (Strela-1M 120)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
16 June
13:09  | Voskhod  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 833 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 62)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 29 June | Successful
19 June
16:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Interkosmos 15 (AUOS-Z-T-IK 1)  | Interkosmos | Low Earth  | Test spacecraft | 18 November 1979 | Successful
Cooperative project of Czechoslovakia, the GDR, Hungary, Poland and the USSR
22 June
18:04:00  | Proton-K |  | Baikonur Site 81/23 |
Salyut 5 (Almaz OPS-3)  |  | Low Earth | Space station | 8 August 1977 | Successful
Visited by three crews, one of which failed to dock
24 June
07:10  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 834 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 68)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 6 July | Successful
26 June
03:00  | Titan III(23)C  |  | Cape Canaveral SLC-40  |
DSP 6 (OPS 2112)  | USAF  | Geostationary  | Missile early warning | In orbit | Successful
29 June
07:20  | Voskhod  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 835 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 63)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 12 July | Successful
Final flight of the Voskhod
29 June
08:12  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 836 (Strela-2M 12)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful

### July

[edit]

1 July
08:05  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 837 (Molniya-2)  |  | Molniya (planned)
Low Earth (achieved)  | Communications | 18 November 1983 | Partial failure
Malfunction of Blok ML upper stage, the satellite placed in the much lower orbit
2 July
10:30  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/19  |
Kosmos 838 (US-P 3)  |  | Low Earth  | Ocean surveillance, ELINT | 23 August 1977 | Successful
6 July
12:08:45  | Soyuz |  | Baikonur Site 1/5 |
Soyuz 21 |  | Low Earth (Salyut 5)  | Salyut expedition | 24 August
18:32:17 | Partial mission failure
Crewed flight with two cosmonauts, final flight of Soyuz 11A511, returned early due to crew illness
8 July
18:30  | Titan IIID |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-4E  |
KH-9 12 (Hexagon, OPS 4699)  | NRO  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 13 December | Successful
Ursala 3 (P-11 4430, OPS 5366)  |  | Low Earth  | ELINT, SIGINT | In orbit | Successful
S3 3 (S74-2, OPS 3986)  | STP  | Highly elliptical  | Magnetosphere research | 24 April 1986 | Successful
Ursala was deployed from KH-9
8 July
21:08  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 839 (DS-P1-M 9)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT target | In orbit | Successful
Target for Kosmos 843
8 July
23:31  | Delta 2914  | D-125  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17A  |
Palapa A1 | Perumtel | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
First Indonesian satellite
14 July
09:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 840 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 69)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 26 July | Successful
15 July
13:11  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 841 (Strela-2M 13)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
21 July
10:20  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk 132/1  |
Kosmos 842 (Sfera 15)  |  | Low Earth  | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful
21 July
15:14  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/19  |
Kosmos 843 (IS-A 3)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT test | 22 July | Successful
22 July
15:40  | Soyuz-U  |  |  |
Kosmos 844 (Yantar-2K/Feniks 5)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 30 August | Successful
22 July
22:04  | Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR  | AC-40  | Cape Canaveral SLC-36B  |
Comstar 1B (D2)  | COMSAT  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
23 July
15:49  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Baikonur Site 1/5  |
Molniya-1K 35  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 30 May 1987 | Successful
27 July
05:21  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 845 (Tselina-O 32)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 15 November 1980 | Successful
27 July
12:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Kapustin Yar Site 107/2  |
Interkosmos 16 (DS-U3-IK 6)  | Interkosmos  | Low Earth  | Aeronomy, solar research | 10 July 1979 | Successful
Cooperative project of Czechoslovakia, the GDR, Sweden and the USSR
29 July
17:07  | Delta 2310  | D-126  | Vendenberg AFB SLC-2W  |
NOAA-5 (ITOS-H)  | NOAA | SSO  | Weather | In orbit | Successful
29 July
20:02  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 846 (Zaliv 22)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful

### August

[edit]

4 August
13:40  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Sie 43/4  |
Kosmos 847 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 64)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 17 August | Successful
6 August
22:21  | Titan III(34)B  |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-4W  |
Quasar 2 (SDS 2, OPS 7940)  | NRO  | Highly elliptic  | Data relay | 18 April 2020 | Successful
9 August
12:08:45  |  Proton-K/D  |  |  Baikonur 81/23  |
Luna 24 |  | Selenocentric  | Lunar lander | 22 August | Successful
Third uncrewed lunar sample return, Third Soviet lunar sample return
12 August
13:30  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 848 (Zenit-2M/Gektor #70)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 25 August | Successful
Nauka-19KS 1L  |  | Low Earth  | Research
18 August
09:30  | Kosmos-2  |  | Plesetsk Site 133/1  |
Kosmos 849 (DS-P1-I 18)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 24 April 1978 | Successful
26 August
10:59  | Kosmos-2  |  | Plesetsk Site 133/1  |
Kosmos 850 (DS-P1-Yu 79)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 16 May 1977 | Successful
27 August
14:34  | Vostok-2M  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 851 (Tselina-D 10)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 5 August 1989 | Successful
28 August
09:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 852 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 65)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 10 September | Successful
30 August
11:45  | Feng Bao 1 |  | Jiuquan LA-2B (Site 138)  |
JSSW-3 (CK 3)  |  | Elliptical low Earth orbit  | Unknown | 25 November 1978 | Successful
Apogee much higher than intended.

### September

[edit]

1 September
03:23  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 853 (Molniya-2)  |  | Molniya (intended)
Low Earth (achieved)  | Communications | 31 December | Partial failure
Malfunction of the Blok ML upper stage, the satellite placed to the much lower orbit
1 September
21:14  | Scout D-1  |  | Veandenberg AFB SLC-5  | US Air Force
Triad 3 (TIP 3)  | US Navy  | Low Earth  | Navigation | 30 May 1981 | Successful
3 September
09:20  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 854 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 66)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 16 September | Successful
11 September
08:00  | Thor-LV2F Star-37XE Star-37S-ISS |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-10W  | US Air Force
DMSP-5D1 F1 (OPS 5721)  | USAF  | SSO  | Weather | In orbit | Successful
11 September
18:24  | Proton-K/Blok DM  |  | Baikonur Site 81/24  |
Raduga 2 (Gran 12L)  |  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
15 September
09:48:30  | Soyuz-U |  | Baikonur Site 1/5  |
Soyuz 22 |  | Low Earth  | Salyut expedition | 23 September
07:40:47 | Successful
Crewed flight with two cosmonauts
15 September
18:50  | Titan III(24)B  |  | Vandenberg AFB SLC-4W  | US Air Force
KH-8 47 (Gambit-3, OPS 8533)  | NRO  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 5 November | Successful
21 September
11:40  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 855 (Zenit-4MT/Orion 11)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 3 October | Successful
22 September
09:30  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 856 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 71) & Nauka  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 5 October | Successful
Nauka  |  | Low Earth  | Research
24 September
15:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Kosmos 857 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 67)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 7 November | Successful
29 September
07:04  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 858 (Strela-2M 14)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful

### October

[edit]

4 October
11:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Zenit-4MKT/Fram 3  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 4 October | Failure
One of liquid rocket boosters prematurely detached from the core stage, the launch vehicle lost stability. Thrust termination command was issued at T+94 s
10 October
09:35  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 859 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 68)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 21 October | Successful
14 October
17:39:18  | Soyuz-U |  | Baikonur Site 1/5  |
Soyuz 23 |  | Low Earth (Intended: Salyut 5)  | Salyut expedition | 16 October
17:45:53 | Spacecraft failure
Crewed flight with two cosmonauts, failed to dock with Salyut 5
14 October
22:44  | Delta 2914  | D-  | Cape Canaveral SLC-17A  |
Marisat 3  | Marisat  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
15 October
22:59  | Vostok-2M  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/3  |
Meteor-1 26  |  | Low Earth  | Weather | In orbit | Successful
17 October
18:06  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/19  |
Kosmos 860 (US-A 12)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar ocean surveillance | In orbit | Successful
21 October
16:53  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/19  |
Kosmos 861 (US-A 13)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar ocean surveillance | In orbit | Successful
22 October
09:11  | Molniya-M/Blok 2BL  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 862 (US-K 5)  |  | Molniya  | Missile early warning | In orbit | Successful
25 October
14:30  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 863 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 69)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 5 November | Successful
26 October
14:50  | Proton-K/Blok DM  |  | Baikonur Site 81/24  |
Ekran 1 (Ekran 11L)  |  | Geostationary  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
29 October
12:39  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 864 (Parus 6)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful

### November

[edit]

1 November
11:20  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 865 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 72)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 13 November | Successful
10 November
09:05  | Feng Bao 1  |  | Jiuquan LA-2B (Site 138)  |
JSSW  |  | Low Earth  | Unknown | 10 November | Failure
Engine on the second stage malfunctioned, reducing thrust.
11 November
10:45  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 866 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 70)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 23 November | Successful
23 November
16:27  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 867 (Zenit-6U/Argon 1)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 6 December | Successful
25 November
03:59  | Molniya-M/Blok SO-L  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Prognoz 5  |  | Highly elliptical  | Magnetoshpere and solar research | 12 July 1979 | Successful
26 November
14:30  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/20  |
Kosmos 868 (US-P 4)  |  | Low Earth  | Ocean surveillance, ELINT | 8 July 1978 | Successful
29 November
16:04  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 1/5  |
Kosmos 869 (Soyuz-T Test 3)  |  | Low Earth  | Uncrewed test of Soyuz-T spacecraft | 17 December
10:31 | Successful

### December

[edit]

2 December
00:17  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 870 (Tselina-O 33)  |  | Low Earth  | SIGINT | 20 December 1980 | Successful
2 December
02:44  | Molniya-M/Blok ML  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Molniya-2 16  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 18 January 1991 | Successful
7 December
04:38  | Long March 2A |  | Jiquan LA-2B (Site 138)  |
FSW-0 2  |  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 2 December | Successful
Re-entry capsule recovered on 9 December
7 December
10:23  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 871 (Strela-1M 121)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 872 (Strela-1M 122)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 873 (Strela-1M 123)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 874 (Strela-1M 124)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 875 (Strela-1M 125)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 876 (Strela-1M 126)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 877 (Strela-1M 127)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
Kosmos 878 (Strela-1M 128)  |  | Low Earth  | Communications | In orbit | Successful
9 December
10:00  | Soyuz-U  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Kosmos 879 (Zenit-2M/Gektor 73)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 22 December | Successful
9 December
20:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 880 (DS-P1-M 10)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT target | 31 August 1991 | Successful
Target for Kosmos 886
15 December
01:30  | Proton-K  |  | Baikonur Site 81/24  |
Kosmos 881 (TKS-VA 1)  |  | Low Earth  | Uncrewed test of TKS-VA spacecraft | 15 December | Successful
Kosmos 882 (TKS-VA 2)  |  | Low Earth  | Uncrewed test of TKS-VA spacecraft | 15 December | Successful
Test flight of two VA capsules without FGB service modules
15 December
13:59  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 883 (Tsikada 1)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful
17 December
09:30  | Soyuz-U  |  | Baikonur Site 31/6  |
Kosmos 884 (Zenit-4MK/Germes 71)  | GRU  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 29 December | Successful
17 December
12:00  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/2  |
Kosmos 885 (Taifun-2 2)  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 14 October 1979 | Successful
17 Romb subsatellites  |  | Low Earth  | Radar calibration | 1977-1978
19 December
18:19  | Titan IIID  |  | Vandenberg SLC-4E  | US Air Force
KH-11 1 (Kennen, OPS 5705)  | NRO  | Low Earth  | Reconnaissance | 28 January 1979 | Successful
27 December
12:05  | Tsyklon-2  |  | Baikonur Site 90/19  |
Kosmos 886 (IS-A 4)  |  | Low Earth  | ASAT test | In orbit | Successful
28 December
06:38  | Molniya-M/Blok BL  |  | Plesetsk Site 43/4  |
Molniya-3 17L  |  | Molniya  | Communications | 19 March 1990 | Successful
28 December
07:49  | Kosmos-3M  |  | Plesetsk Site 132/1  |
Kosmos 887 (Parus 7)  |  | Low Earth  | Navigation | In orbit | Successful

## Launches from the Moon

[edit]

Date and time (UTC)  | Rocket | Flight number  | Launch site | LSP

|
|
|
|

| Payload
(⚀ = CubeSat)  | Operator  | Orbit | Function  | Decay (UTC)  | Outcome
Remarks
19 August
5:25  |  Luna 24 Ascent stage  |  | Mare Crisium (Luna)  |
Luna 24 Return capsule  |  | Highly elliptical  | Sample return | 22 August 1976 | Successful
Third uncrewed lunar sample return mission

## Deep space rendezvous

[edit]

Date  | Spacecraft  | Event  | Remarks

|
|
|

19 June | Viking 1 | Areocentric orbit insertion |
20 July | Viking 1 Lander | landed in Chryse Planitia |
7 August | Viking 2 | Areocentric orbit insertion |
18 August | Luna 24 | landed in Mare Crisium | sample return mission
19 August | Luna 24 | lift-off from Mare Crisium | 170 grams (6.0 oz)
3 September | Viking 2 Lander | landed in Utopia Planitia |

## References

[edit]

* Bergin, Chris. "NASASpaceFlight.com".
* Clark, Stephen. "Spaceflight Now".
* Kelso, T.S. "Satellite Catalog (SATCAT)". CelesTrak.
* Krebs, Gunter. "Chronology of Space Launches".
* Kyle, Ed. "Space Launch Report". Archived from the original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
* McDowell, Jonathan. "GCAT Orbital Launch Log".
* Pietrobon, Steven. "Steven Pietrobon's Space Archive".
* Wade, Mark. "Encyclopedia Astronautica".
* Webb, Brian. "Southwest Space Archive".
* Zak, Anatoly. "Russian Space Web".
* "ISS Calendar". Spaceflight 101.
* "NSSDCA Master Catalog". NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
* "Хроника освоения космоса" [Chronicle of space exploration]. CosmoWorld (in Russian).
* "Rocket Launch Manifest". Next Spaceflight.
* "Space Launch Plans". Novosti Kosmonavtiki.

Generic references:

* view
* talk
* edit

Spaceflight portal

### Footnotes

[edit]

1. ^ Ryan, Dorothy (27 May 2020). "Lincoln Laboratory decommissions Lincoln Experimental Satellite–9". MIT. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
2. ^ McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 16 November 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2020.

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* Future

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← 1975

Orbital launches in 1976

1977 →

* Kosmos 787
* Kosmos 788
* Helios 2
* Hermes
* Kosmos 789
* Molniya-1 No.40
* Kosmos 790
* Kosmos 791
* Kosmos 792
* Kosmos 793
* Kosmos 794
* Kosmos 795
* Kosmos 796
* Kosmos 797
* Kosmos 798
* Kosmos 799
* Intelsat IVA F-2
* Kosmos 800
* CORSA-A
* Kosmos 801
* Kosmos 802
* Kosmos 803
* Kosmos 804
* OPS 5140
* Marisat 1
* Kosmos 805
* Ume 1
* Kosmos 806
* Molniya-1-33
* Kosmos 807
* LES-8
* LES-9
* Solrad 11A
* Solrad 11B
* Kosmos 808
* Kosmos 809
* Molniya-1 No.42
* OPS 7600
* Kosmos 810
* Satcom 2
* Kosmos 811
* Kosmos 812
* Meteor No.37
* Kosmos 813
* Kosmos 814
* NATO 3A
* Kosmos 815
* Kosmos 816
* OPS 6431
* OPS 6431 SSU-1
* OPS 6431 SSU-2
* OPS 6431 SSU-3
* LAGEOS-1
* Kosmos 817
* Molniya-3 No.16
* Comstar 1A
* Meteor-Priroda No.2-1
* Kosmos 818
* Kosmos 819
* Kosmos 820
* Wideband
* Kosmos 821
* Kosmos 822
* OPS 7837
* Kosmos 823
* Kosmos 824
* Marisat-3
* Kosmos 825
* Kosmos 826
* Kosmos 827
* Kosmos 828
* Kosmos 829
* Kosmos 830
* Kosmos 831
* Kosmos 832
* Kosmos 833
* Interkosmos 15
* Salyut 5
* Kosmos 834
* OPS 2112
* Kosmos 835
* Kosmos 836
* Kosmos 837
* Kosmos 838
* Soyuz 21
* OPS 4699
* OPS 5366
* OPS 3986
* Kosmos 839
* Palapa A1
* Kosmos 840
* Kosmos 841
* Kosmos 842
* Kosmos 843
* Kosmos 844
* Comstar 1B
* Molniya-1 No.43
* Kosmos 845
* Interkosmos 16
* NOAA-5
* Kosmos 846
* Kosmos 847
* OPS 7940
* Luna 24
* Kosmos 848
* Kosmos 849
* Kosmos 850
* Kosmos 851
* Kosmos 852
* Ji Shu Shiyan Weixing 3
* Kosmos 853
* Triad 3
* Kosmos 854
* OPS 5721
* Gran' No.12L
* Soyuz 22
* OPS 8533
* Kosmos 855
* Kosmos 856
* Kosmos 857
* Kosmos 858
* Unnamed
* Kosmos 859
* Soyuz 23
* Marisat-2
* Meteor No.35
* Kosmos 860
* Kosmos 861
* Kosmos 862
* Kosmos 863
* Ekran No.11L
* Kosmos 864
* Kosmos 865
* Kosmos 865
* Unnamed
* Kosmos 866
* Kosmos 867
* Prognoz 5
* Kosmos 868
* Kosmos 869
* Kosmos 870
* Molniya-2-16
* Fanhui Shi Weixing 3
* Kosmos 871
* Kosmos 872
* Kosmos 873
* Kosmos 874
* Kosmos 875
* Kosmos 876
* Kosmos 877
* Kosmos 878
* Kosmos 879
* Kosmos 880
* Kosmos 881
* Kosmos 882
* Kosmos 883
* Kosmos 884
* Kosmos 885
* OPS 5705
* Kosmos 886
* Molniya-3 No.17
* Kosmos 887

Payloads are separated by bullets ( · ), launches by pipes ( | ). Crewed flights are indicated in underline. Uncatalogued launch failures are listed in italics. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are denoted in (brackets).
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