Rocket launches in1970

In February, Japan's Lambda 4S puts Ohsumi into orbit; in April, China's Long March 1 follows with Dong Fang Hong 1 — two new orbital nations in ten weeks. Apollo 13 survives a tank rupture in April and the crew returns safely on nothing but improvisation and cold math.

Monthly Cadencecomplete

APRpeak16 launches

launches: 136
success · 124/136: 91%
provider: 1

1970 launch leaders

Countries

Russia

Countries

Russia

Rockets

Kosmos

1970 highlights

Apr 11Saturn V

Success

Apollo 13's crew survives an explosion on the way to the Moon

An oxygen tank exploded 56 hours into the flight and ended the Moon landing. The crew rode home using the lunar lander as a lifeboat.

Feb 11Lambda 4S

Success

Japan reaches orbit with its first satellite after four failed tries

Ohsumi, a 24-kilogram test satellite, made Japan the fourth country to put a satellite in orbit on its own rocket.

Apr 24Long March 1

Success

China becomes the fifth country to orbit a satellite on its own rocket

Dong Fang Hong 1 broadcast the song The East Is Red from orbit. It outweighed the first satellites of the other four countries combined.

Jun 1Soyuz 7K-OK

Success

Soyuz 9's crew stays in orbit for 18 days, longer than anyone before

Andriyan Nikolayev and Vitaly Sevastyanov beat the 14-day stay of Gemini 7 in 1965. Back on Earth, they could not walk unaided for days.

Aug 17Molniya M

Success

Venera 7 sends the first signals from the surface of another planet

The Soviet probe landed on Venus and radioed for 23 minutes. It measured a surface temperature of about 475 degrees Celsius.

Sep 12Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824

Success

Soviet Luna 16 is the first robot to bring Moon soil to Earth

Luna 16 drilled 35 cm into the Sea of Fertility. Its capsule parachuted into Kazakhstan with 101 grams of soil.

Nov 10Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824

Success

The Soviet Lunokhod 1 becomes the first rover on the Moon

Earth-based drivers steered Lunokhod 1 for over ten months, more than three times its planned life. It covered 10.5 km across the Sea of Rains.

All 1970 launches

Quick filters

136 launches


January
Jan 9, 197009:20:00 UTC	Kosmos 318 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jan 14, 197018:43:00 UTC	OPS-6531 USA • Titan III(23)B	-	Titan III(23)B	Success
Jan 15, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 319 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jan 15, 197000:16:00 UTC	Intelsat 3-6 USA • Delta M	-	Delta M	Success
Jan 16, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 320 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jan 20, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 321 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jan 21, 197002:10:00 UTC	L-3H-6 Japan • Lambda 3H	-	Lambda 3H	Success
Jan 21, 197012:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 322 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jan 23, 197011:52:00 UTC	ITOS 1 USA • Delta N6	-	Delta N6	Success
Jan 30, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Kosmos 323a Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Failure
February
Feb 4, 197002:59:00 UTC	SERT 2 USA • Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	Success
Feb 6, 197004:16:00 UTCFailure	Luna E-8-5 #405 Russia • Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	-	Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	Failure
Feb 8, 197000:00:00 UTC	REV test USA • Atlas E/F-Trident	-	Atlas E/F-Trident	Success
Feb 10, 197012:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 323 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Feb 11, 197004:25:00 UTC	Ohsumi 5 Japan • Lambda 4S	-	Lambda 4S	Success
Feb 11, 197008:40:00 UTC	DMSP-5A-F1 USA • Thor Burner 2	-	Thor Burner 2	Success
Feb 19, 197018:57:00 UTC	Molniya-1-13 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success
Feb 27, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 324 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
March
Mar 4, 197012:14:00 UTC	Kosmos 325 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Mar 4, 197021:15:00 UTC	Suborbital test UK • Black Arrow	-	Black Arrow	Success
Mar 4, 197022:15:00 UTC	KH-4B USA • Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	Success
Mar 10, 197012:20:00 UTC	Mika / Wika France • Diamant B	-	Diamant B	Success
Mar 13, 197000:00:00 UTC	REV test USA • Atlas E/F-Trident	-	Atlas E/F-Trident	Success
Mar 13, 197008:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 326 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Mar 17, 197011:10:00 UTC	Meteor-1-3 Russia • Vostok 2M	-	Vostok 2M	Success
Mar 18, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 327 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Mar 20, 197023:46:00 UTC	NATO 1 USA • Delta M	-	Delta M	Success
Mar 27, 197007:37:00 UTC	ASAT test USA • Thor DSV-2J	-	Thor DSV-2J	Success
Mar 27, 197011:45:00 UTC	Kosmos 328 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
April
Apr 3, 197008:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 329 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Apr 7, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 330 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Apr 8, 197008:17:00 UTC	Nimbus 4 USA • Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	Success
Apr 8, 197010:15:00 UTC	Kosmos 331 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Apr 8, 197010:50:00 UTC	OPS-7033 USA • Titan IIIC	-	Titan IIIC	Success
Apr 11, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 332 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Apr 11, 197019:13:03 UTC	Apollo 13 USA • Saturn V	-	Saturn V	Success
Apr 15, 197009:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 333 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Apr 15, 197015:52:00 UTC	OPS-2863 USA • Titan III(23)B	-	Titan III(23)B	Success
Apr 23, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 334 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Apr 23, 197000:46:00 UTC	Intelsat 3-7 USA • Delta M	-	Delta M	Success
Apr 24, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 335 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Apr 24, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Satellite Inspection test USA • Thor DSV-2J	-	Thor DSV-2J	Failure
Apr 24, 197013:35:00 UTC	Dong Fang Hong 1 China • Long March 1	-	Long March 1	Success
Apr 25, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 336-343 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Apr 28, 197010:50:00 UTC	Meteor-1-4 Russia • Vostok 2M	-	Vostok 2M	Success
May
May 12, 197010:10:00 UTC	Kosmos 344 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
May 20, 197009:20:00 UTC	Kosmos 345 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
May 20, 197021:35:00 UTC	KH-4B USA • Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	Success
May 22, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Kosmos 346 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Failure
May 30, 197000:00:00 UTC	REV test USA • Atlas E/F-Trident	-	Atlas E/F-Trident	Success
June
Jun 1, 197019:00:00 UTC	Soyuz 9 Russia • Soyuz 7K-OK	-	Soyuz 7K-OK	Success
Jun 9, 197000:00:00 UTC	REV test USA • Atlas E/F	-	Atlas E/F	Success
Jun 10, 197009:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 346 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jun 12, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 347 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jun 13, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 348 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jun 17, 197012:59:00 UTC	Kosmos 349 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jun 19, 197011:37:00 UTC	AFP-720 USA • Atlas Agena D SLV-3A	-	Atlas Agena D SLV-3A	Success
Jun 23, 197014:15:00 UTC	Meteor-1-5 Russia • Vostok 2M	-	Vostok 2M	Success
Jun 25, 197014:50:00 UTC	OPS-6820 USA • Titan III(23)B	-	Titan III(23)B	Success
Jun 26, 197003:23:00 UTC	Molniya-1-14 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success
Jun 26, 197012:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 350 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jun 27, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 351 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Jun 27, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Kosmos 352 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Failure
July
Jul 7, 197010:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 352 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jul 9, 197013:35:00 UTC	Kosmos 353 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Jul 21, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Zenit-4 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Failure
Jul 23, 197001:25:00 UTC	KH-4B USA • Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	Success
Jul 23, 197023:23:00 UTC	Intelsat 3-8 USA • Delta M	-	Delta M	Success
Jul 28, 197022:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 354 Russia • Tsyklon R-36-O	-	Tsyklon R-36-O	Success
August
Aug 7, 197000:00:00 UTC	Interkosmos 3 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Aug 7, 197009:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 355 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Aug 10, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 356 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Aug 17, 197005:38:00 UTC	Venera 7 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success
Aug 18, 197003:45:00 UTC	82-EV Russia • Proton K 8K82K	-	Proton K 8K82K	Success
Aug 18, 197014:45:00 UTC	OPS-7874 USA • Titan III(23)B	-	Titan III(23)B	Success
Aug 19, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 357 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Aug 19, 197012:11:00 UTC	Skynet-1B USA • Delta M	-	Delta M	Success
Aug 20, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 358 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Aug 22, 197005:06:00 UTCFailure	Kosmos 359 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Failure
Aug 26, 197010:01:00 UTC	Ferret 15 USA • Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2G Agena-D	Success
Aug 27, 197013:23:00 UTC	Transit-O 19 USA • Scout A	-	Scout A	Success
Aug 29, 197008:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 360 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
September
Sep 1, 197001:00:00 UTC	AFP-827 USA • Atlas Agena D SLV-3A	-	Atlas Agena D SLV-3A	Success
Sep 2, 197000:34:00 UTCFailure	Orba UK • Black Arrow	-	Black Arrow	Failure
Sep 3, 197008:39:00 UTC	DMSP-5A-F2 USA • Thor Burner 2	-	Thor Burner 2	Success
Sep 8, 197010:30:00 UTC	Kosmos 361 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Sep 12, 197013:35:00 UTC	Luna 16 Russia • Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	-	Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	Success
Sep 16, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 362 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Sep 17, 197008:10:00 UTC	Kosmos 363 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Sep 19, 197011:30:00 UTC	L-3H-5 Japan • Lambda 3H	-	Lambda 3H	Success
Sep 22, 197013:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 364 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Sep 24, 197012:54:00 UTC	Astronomy research flight USA • Thor DSV-2J	-	Thor DSV-2J	Success
Sep 25, 197005:00:00 UTCFailure	MS-F1 Japan • Mu 4S	-	Mu 4S	Failure
Sep 25, 197014:05:00 UTC	Kosmos 365 Russia • Tsyklon R-36-O	-	Tsyklon R-36-O	Success
Sep 29, 197008:14:00 UTC	Molniya-1-15 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success
Sep 30, 197020:06:00 UTC	RAM-C3 USA • Scout B	-	Scout B	Success
October
Oct 1, 197008:20:00 UTC	Kosmos 366 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Oct 3, 197010:26:00 UTC	Kosmos 367 Russia • Tsyklon 2	-	Tsyklon 2	Success
Oct 8, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 369 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Oct 8, 197012:39:00 UTC	Kosmos 368 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Oct 9, 197011:04:00 UTC	Kosmos 370 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Oct 12, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 371 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Oct 14, 197000:00:00 UTC	Interkosmos 4 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Oct 15, 197011:22:00 UTC	Meteor-1-6 Russia • Vostok 2M	-	Vostok 2M	Success
Oct 16, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 372 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Oct 20, 197005:38:00 UTC	Kosmos 373 Russia • Tsyklon 2	-	Tsyklon 2	Success
Oct 20, 197019:55:00 UTC	Zond 8 Russia • Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	-	Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	Success
Oct 23, 197004:42:00 UTC	Kosmos 374 Russia • Tsyklon 2	-	Tsyklon 2	Success
Oct 23, 197017:40:00 UTC	OPS-7568 USA • Titan III(23)B	-	Titan III(23)B	Success
Oct 30, 197002:36:00 UTC	Kosmos 375 Russia • Tsyklon 2	-	Tsyklon 2	Success
Oct 30, 197013:20:00 UTC	Kosmos 376 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
November
Nov 6, 197010:35:00 UTCPartial failure	OPS-5960 USA • Titan III(23)C	-	Titan III(23)C	partial failure
Nov 9, 197006:00:00 UTC	OFO USA • Scout B	-	Scout B	Success
Nov 10, 197014:44:00 UTC	Luna 17 Russia • Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	-	Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	Success
Nov 11, 197009:20:00 UTC	Kosmos 377 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Nov 17, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 378 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Nov 18, 197021:29:00 UTC	KH-4B USA • Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	-	Thor ad SLV-2H Agena-D	Success
Nov 24, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 380 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Nov 24, 197005:15:00 UTC	Kosmos 379 Russia • Soyuz L	-	Soyuz L	Success
Nov 27, 197015:47:00 UTC	Molniya-1-16 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success
Nov 30, 197022:40:05 UTCFailure	OAO-B USA • Atlas Centaur SLV-3C	-	Atlas Centaur SLV-3C	Failure
December
Dec 2, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 381 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Dec 2, 197017:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 382 Russia • Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	-	Proton K/D 8K82K/11S824	Success
Dec 3, 197013:55:00 UTC	Kosmos 383 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Dec 10, 197011:10:00 UTC	Kosmos 384 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Dec 11, 197011:35:00 UTC	NOAA-1 USA • Delta N6	-	Delta N6	Success
Dec 12, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 385 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Dec 12, 197010:53:00 UTC	Explorer 42 USA • Scout B	-	Scout B	Success
Dec 12, 197013:04:00 UTC	Péole France • Diamant B	-	Diamant B	Success
Dec 15, 197010:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 386 Russia • Voskhod	-	Voskhod	Success
Dec 16, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 387 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Success
Dec 18, 197000:00:00 UTC	Kosmos 388 Russia • Kosmos 2	-	Kosmos 2	Success
Dec 18, 197016:15:00 UTC	Kosmos 389 Russia • Vostok 2M	-	Vostok 2M	Success
Dec 22, 197000:00:00 UTCFailure	Kosmos 390 Russia • Kosmos 3M	-	Kosmos 3M	Failure
Dec 22, 197008:38:00 UTC	REV test USA • Atlas E/F-Trident	-	Atlas E/F-Trident	Success
Dec 25, 197003:50:00 UTC	Molniya-1-17 Russia • Molniya M	-	Molniya M	Success