A regularly updated listing of planned orbital missions from spaceports around the globe. Dates and times are given in Greenwich Mean Time. “NET” stands for no earlier than. “TBD” means to be determined.
See our Launch Log for a listing of completed space missions since 2004.
October 30
Falcon 9 • Starlink 11-23
Launch time:
Window opens at 1:06 p.m. PDT (4:06 p.m. EDT / 2006 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 28 Starlink V2 Mini satellites into low Earth orbit. A little more than eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage booster, tail number B1063, launching for a 29th time, will land on the drone ship ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ positioned in the Pacific Ocean.
Updated:
October 22
November 2
LVM3-M5 • CMS-03
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC SHAR), Sriharikota, India
A Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3) rocket, previously known as Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark 3 or GLSV Mk 3, will launch a multi-band communications satellites called CMS-3 to a geosynchronous transfer orbit. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said at roughly 4,400 kg (9,700 lbs), this will be the heaviest communications satellite launched to GTO from India.
Updated:
October 26
NET November 2
Falcon 9 • Bandwagon-4
Launch time:
1:09 a.m. EDT (0509 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the fourth ride share mission as part of SpaceX’s Bandwagon series. Among the payloads on board is a data center testbed CubeSat called Starcloud-1 from Starcloud, part of the startup program called NVIDIA Inception. Following stage separation, the first stage Falcon 9 booster will perform a return to landing site operation to target a touchdown at Landing Zone 2 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Updated:
October 29
November 4
Ariane 6 • Sentinel-1D
Launch time:
6:02 p.m. GFT (4:02 p.m. EST / 2102 UTC)
Launch site: Europe's Spaceport, Kourou, French Guiana
An Ariane 6 rocket from Ariancespace, mission designation VA265, will launch the Sentinel-1D satellite into a Sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 693 km (431 mi). Sentinel-1D is part of the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space Programme. This will be the fourth launch of an Ariane 6 rocket.
Updated:
October 27
November 5/6
Electron • ‘The Nation God Navigates’
Launch time:
8:45 a.m. NZT on Nov. 6 (2:45 p.m. EST / 1945 UTC)
Launch site: Launch Complex 1, Pad B, Mahia, New Zealand
A Rocket Lab Electron rocket will launch the QPS-SAR-14 satellite, nicknamed Yachihoko-1, into a 575 km (357 mi) at an inclination of 42 degrees. This will be Rocket Lab’s sixth Electron rocket launch in support of Japan-based Earth imaging company, Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space, Inc.. The satellite is set to be deployed about 50 minutes after liftoff.
Updated:
October 22
November 5
Falcon 9 • Starlink 6-81
Launch time:
Window opens at 6:08 p.m. EST (2308 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch a batch of Starlink V2 Mini satellites into low Earth orbit. About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the first stage booster will target a landing on a drone ship positioned in the Atlantic Ocean.
Updated:
October 28
November 5/6
Atlas 5 • ViaSat-3 F2
Launch time:
10:24 p.m. EST (0324 UTC)
Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
United Launch Alliance will launch its Atlas 5 rocket in a 551 configuration to support the launch of Viasat’s ViaSat-3 Flight 2 satellite. The 6-ton spacecraft is designed to provide download speeds of more than 100 Mbps and operates using a Ka-band frequency. The satellite is built by Viasat on Boeing’s 702MP+ platform. Delayed from Nov. 3/4 due to poor weather delaying launch processing.
Updated:
October 28
NET Fall 2025
New Glenn • EscaPADE
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: Launch Complex 36, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket will launch a pair of identical spacecraft on NASA’s Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (EscaPADE) mission. The two satellites, named Blue and Gold, will make a roughly 11-month journey to Mars where they will then perform about an 11-month science mission while orbiting the Red Planet. Blue and Gold were manufactured by Rocket Lab over about 3.5 years and carry science experiments from the University of California, Berkeley. This launch of the New Glenn rocket will also feature a landing attempt on its landing barge in the Atlantic Ocean. Delayed from Oct. 13, 2024. Delayed from mid-August. Delayed from Sept. 29.
Updated:
October 27
NET November 2025
Falcon 9 • Sentinel-6B
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the second of the two-satellite Sentinel-6 series. NASA awarded SpaceX a $94 million firm fixed price contract for the launch in 2022. The Sentinel-6B “will use a radar altimeter to bounce signals off the ocean surface and deliver continuity of ocean topography measurements,” according to NASA. The missions is designed through a partnership between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the European Organization for the Exploration of Meteorological Studies.
Updated:
October 27
NET December 8
H3 • QZS-5
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: Yoshinobu Launch Complex, JAXA Tanegashima Space Center
An H3 launch vehicle, a rocket developed through a partnership between Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), will launch the Michibiki No. 5, Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZS-5). This will be the eighth launch of an H3 rocket.
Updated:
October 08
TBD 2026
Vulcan Centaur • Dream Chaser 1
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: SLC-41, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida
A United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket will launch on its second demonstration flight with Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser cargo vehicle for the International Space Station. The Dream Chaser is a lifting body resupply spacecraft that will launch on top of a rocket and land on a runway. This will be the Dream Chaser’s first flight to space. The Vulcan Centaur rocket will fly in the VC4L configuration with four GEM-63XL solid rocket boosters, a long-length payload fairing, and two RL10 engines on the Centaur upper stage. Delayed from August 2022, December 2023, January 2024, April 2024 and September 2024. Delayed from 2025.
Updated:
September 16
NET July 5, 2028
Falcon Heavy • Dragonfly
Launch time:
TBD
Launch site: Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket will launch NASA’s Dragonfly mission, which consists of a rotorcraft designed by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) that will explore Saturn’s icy moon, Titan. The mission was originally selected in 2019 and went through multiple plan iterations across fiscal years 2020 through 2022. It passed its Preliminary Design Review in March 2023 and then its Critical Design Review in April 2025. The mission has a total lifecycle cost of $3.35 billion, of which, $256.6 million was awarded to SpaceX to provide launch services and other mission related costs. The 20-day launch window opens on July 5, 2028.
Updated:
April 25