Proton launches military communications satellite
A Russian Proton rocket today successfully launched a military communications satellite into orbit.
This was the third Proton launch this year, the most since 2017. It also put Russia in the lead for most launches in 2019, the first time that country has been in first since 2015:
12 Russia
11 China
9 SpaceX
5 Europe (Arianespace)
4 India
The U.S. still leads Russia in the national rankings, 15-12.
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A Russian Proton rocket today successfully launched a military communications satellite into orbit.
This was the third Proton launch this year, the most since 2017. It also put Russia in the lead for most launches in 2019, the first time that country has been in first since 2015:
12 Russia
11 China
9 SpaceX
5 Europe (Arianespace)
4 India
The U.S. still leads Russia in the national rankings, 15-12.
The support of my readers through the years has given me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Four years ago, just before the 2020 election I wrote that Joe Biden's mental health was suspect. Only in this year has the propaganda mainstream media decided to recognize that basic fact.
Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Even today NASA and Congress refuse to recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are five ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation:
5. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
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You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above. And if you buy the books through the ebookit links, I get a larger cut and I get it sooner.
If the US has 15 overall but just 9 from SpaceX, who launched the other 6? Presumably ULA did most of them? It would be useful to see a breakdown of the smaller players at some point.
ULA launched a Delta IV Heavy and the last single-stick Delta IV Medium. NGIS launched an Antares-Cygnus to ISS. Rocket Lab launched three Electrons from New Zealand.
ULA may launch three or four Atlas V’s during the rest of 2019. SpaceX has at least three more Falcon 9 launches left in 2019 for customers plus an unknown number of Starlink deployment launches for itself. NGIS has another Antares-Cygnus and a Minotaur 4 scheduled. It may also finally manage to launch a Pegasus XL with NASA’s ICON satellite but that is still uncertain. Rocket Lab has up to 13 more launches manifested for 2019, but how many of them will actually launch this year is unknown. Rocket Lab has scheduled at least one Electron launch this year from its new launch facility now under construction at Wallops Island, VA. Virgin Orbit has two LauncherOne missions scheduled to launch this year.
The U.S. orbital or deep space launch total for 2019 seems all but certain to be at least in the high 20’s, will most likely be in the low 30’s and, if Rocket Lab really goes on a tear, could even top 40, but that seems unlikely. Still, never say never. ZimmerBob will, as usual, keep us all informed as things go along and do his usual year-end launch report in very early Jan. 2020.
DavidK,
This is from January, summarizing orbital/deep space launches from 1980 through last year. It includes those who had few launches, and it includes Robert’s thoughts on the topic.
https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/essays-and-commentaries/the-2018-global-launch-race-plus-predictions-for-2019/