2009 in spaceflight

2009 in spaceflight
Year	2009
Summary	Major launches, milestones, failures, and commercial developments in spaceflight

2009 in spaceflight

2009 in spaceflight saw a dense schedule of orbital launches, historic interplanetary encounters, notable human spaceflight activities, and accelerating commercial initiatives led by private companies and national agencies. The year featured landmark missions from NASA, Roscosmos, European Space Agency, China National Space Administration, and private firms such as SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation, alongside scientific results from missions involving Hubble Space Telescope, Cassini–Huygens, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Launches

The year opened with a Proton-M launch by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center carrying a Yamal-300K satellite for Gazprom Space Systems, while Arianespace flew multiple Ariane 5 missions deploying INSAT and Gabon satellites for operators including Indian Space Research Organisation and Eutelsat. Launch cadence included Long March 2F missions by China National Space Administration for Shenzhou 7, Delta II launches by United Launch Alliance placing GPS and Kepler payloads, and Soyuz-FG flights from Baikonur Cosmodrome ferrying crews for Expedition 18 and Expedition 19. Private-sector activity grew with the maiden flight of Falcon 1 orbital attempts by SpaceX and multiple launches by Dnepr and Rockot vehicles operated by Kosmotras and Eurockot. Launch sites active included Guiana Space Centre, Vostochny Cosmodrome (planning), Tanegashima Space Center, and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Mission milestones and achievements

Scientists celebrated Kepler (spacecraft)'s successful launch and commissioning by NASA to begin the exoplanet survey, while Cassini–Huygens continued twilight observations of Saturn and Enceladus plumes, producing high-impact results cited by Jet Propulsion Laboratory teams. Chang'e 1 and Chang'e 2 technology developments influenced China National Space Administration's lunar roadmap, concurrent with Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter imaging campaigns that supported Mars atmospheric studies and Mars Exploration Rover operations. The Hubble Space Telescope celebrated servicing legacy results through archival science in collaboration with Space Telescope Science Institute and European Space Agency partners, and Chandra X-ray Observatory teams published discoveries about galaxy clusters and black holes.

Spacecraft and satellites deployed

Key deployments included Kepler (spacecraft), geostationary satellites such as Eutelsat W3B, Intelsat 14, and AsiaSat 5, Earth-observation platforms like Sentinel-class planning by European Space Agency predecessors, and military payloads including SBIRS components for United States Air Force. Scientific probes and smallsats launched encompassed Picard (spacecraft) solar studies, STEREO extended heliophysics operations, and university cubesats from institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology and California Institute of Technology under programs involving NASA Ames Research Center and University of Colorado Boulder teams.

Human spaceflight

Human missions centered on Shenzhou 7, which included China’s first extravehicular activity performed by Zhai Zhigang with support from Jing Haipeng and Liu Boming, advancing China National Space Administration's human spaceflight capabilities. Soyuz TMA flights continued crew rotations to International Space Station expeditions led by commanders from Roscosmos and NASA, while Space Shuttle missions such as STS-125 performed the final servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope with astronauts from European Space Agency partner nations and Smithsonian Institution-affiliated scientists. Crew training and international cooperation involved flight surgeons and payload specialists from Canadian Space Agency and JAXA.

Launch failures and anomalies

The year experienced high-profile anomalies including failure investigations by State Commission-style bodies for Proton-M and Long March family malfunctions, satellite deployment issues prompting warranty claims involving International Telecommunications Union filings, and operational anomalies tracked by United States Space Surveillance Network and Joint Space Operations Center analysts. Recovery efforts engaged contractors such as Energia and Boeing alongside technical reviews by European Space Agency and NASA reliability teams to mitigate recurrence across vehicle fleets.

Orbital and deep-space exploration

Deep-space achievements included Dawn (spacecraft) development progress toward the Vesta and Ceres rendezvous, sustained science from Voyager heritage teams, and planning milestones for Mars Science Laboratory supported by Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineering. Planetary science results from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Odyssey, and MESSENGER contributed to comparative studies led by research groups at Caltech, Brown University, and University of Arizona. Observational campaigns by Spitzer Space Telescope and XMM-Newton complemented Hubble Space Telescope work to advance knowledge of star formation, active galactic nuclei, and transiting exoplanet atmospheres.

Commercial spaceflight developments

Commercial developments accelerated with SpaceX achieving operational progress on the Falcon 1 and early work toward Falcon 9 contracts with NASA under procurement initiatives, while Orbital Sciences Corporation advanced the Taurus and Antares concepts and Sierra Nevada Corporation revived work on lifting-body vehicles. Policy and procurement engagements involved National Space Council-adjacent discussions, contracts from NASA Commercial Crew Program predecessors, and investment rounds from firms including Google-linked ventures and aerospace investors in Silicon Valley. Partnerships between legacy primes such as Lockheed Martin and new entrants fostered suborbital and orbital service proposals targeting scientific, telecommunications, and ISS cargo markets.

Category:Spaceflight by year