Updated Global Launch Schedule Through April
Expedition 55 crew members Ricky Arnold, Drew Feustel and cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev. (Credit: NASA)
Below is the updated launch schedule through the end of April. The 17 scheduled launches include:
- 7 USA (6 Falcon 9, 1 Atlas V)
- 4 Russia (1 Soyuz, 1 Soyuz-2.1, 1 Proton, 1 Rockot)
- 3 India (2 GSLV Mk.2, 1 PSLV)
- 2 China (2 Long March 3B)
- 1 Europe (1 Ariane 5).
Notable launches include:
- March 21: ISS 54s — new crew to the International Space Station (ISS)
- April 2: SpaceX CRS 14 Dragon ISS resupply mission
- April 16: NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS)
- April 25: Sentinel 3B remote sensing satellite (final Rockot flight)
- April 28: Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE Follow-On) satellites
- April TBA: Chandrayaan 2 lunar orbiter, lander and rover.
This schedule is subject to change. Please check with our friends at Spaceflight Now for updates.
March 21
Launch Vehicle: Soyuz
Payload: ISS 54S
Launch Time: 1:44 p.m. EDT (1744 GMT)
Launch Site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
NASA astronauts Drew Feustel and Ricky Arnold and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos will fly to the International Space Station.
March 29
Launch Vehicle: GSLV Mk.2
Payload: GSAT 6A communications satellite
Launch time: TBA
Launch site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, India
Launch Vehicle: Long March 3B
Payload: Beidou navigation satellites
Launch Time: TBA
Launch Site: Xichang, China
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payloads: Iridium Next 41-50 communications satellites
Launch Time: 10:19:49 a.m. EDT; 7:19:49 a.m. PDT (1419:49 GMT)
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
Late March
Launch Vehicle: Soyuz 2-1v
Payload: EMKA military satellite
Launch Time: TBA
Launch Site: Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia
April 2
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payload: SpaceX CRS 14 ISS resupply mission
Launch Time: 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030 GMT)
Launch Site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
No Earlier Than (NET) April 5
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payload: Bangabandhu 1 communications satellite
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center, Florida
April 12/13
Launch Vehicle: Atlas 5
Payload: AFSPC 11 mission
Launch Window: 6:00-10:00 p.m. EDT on 12th (2200-0200 GMT on 12th/13th)
Launch Site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
The U.S. Air Force’s EAGLE satellite will carry multiple military experiments.
April 16
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payload: Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS)
Launch Window: 6:32-6:33 p.m. EDT (2232-2233 GMT)
Launch Site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
April 19
Launch Vehicle: Proton
Payload: Blagovest No. 12L communications satellite
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
April 21
Launch Vehicle: Long March 3B
Payload: Apstar 6C communications satellite
Launch Time: TBA
Launch Site: Xichang, China
April 25
Launch Vehicle: Rockot
Payload: Sentinel 3B Earth observation satellite
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia
Final launch of Rockot, a converted ballistic missile.
NET April 28
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payloads: Iridium Next 51-55 & 2 Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE Follow-On) satellites
Launch Time: TBA
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
NET April 30
Launch Vehicle: Falcon 9
Payload: SES 12 communications satellite
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Cape Canaveral, Florida
April
Launch Vehicle: Ariane 5
Payload: Superbird 8/DSN 1 & Hylas 4 communications satellites
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Kourou, French Guiana
Launch Vehicle: PSLV
Payload: IRNSS 1I navigation satellite
Launch Time: TBA
Launch Site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, India
Launch Vehicle: GSLV Mk.2
Payload: Chandrayaan 2 lunar orbiter, lander and rover
Launch Window: TBA
Launch Site: Satish Dhawan Space Center, India
