spaceflight
Beyond the atmosphere
Spaceflight is travel beyond Earth's atmosphere, whether by crewed or uncrewed vehicles.
The term covers everything from brief suborbital hops to interplanetary missions: The era of commercial spaceflight has arrived.
A spaceflight is also a particular instance of such travel: Her first spaceflight lasted six months aboard the International Space Station.
Moment of ascent
- countdownBackward enumeration to zero
- ignitionStarting combustion process
- thrustForceful forward motion
- propulsionForce driving movement forward
trajectory · stage · separation · fuel · burn · pad · tower · clamps
Working team aboard
- taikonautChinese space traveler
- EVAActivity outside spacecraft
- spacewalkVenturing outside a spacecraft
- moduleIndependent functional component
ISS · Soyuz · capsule · telemetry · splashdown · lunar · Apollo · Gemini
Orbiting celestial body
- geostationaryFixed above one point
- trajectoryPath of moving object
- perigeeOrbit's closest point
- apogeeHighest orbital point
elliptical · inclination · geosynchronous · reentry · deorbit · circularization · rendezvous · docking
Absence of apparent mass
- microgravityExtremely weak gravitational force
- freefallUnimpeded downward motion
- zero-gInformal term for weightlessness
- geesPlural of grand, slangily
acceleration · inertia · centrifugal · g-force · orientation · floating
Between celestial bodies
- galaxyGravitationally bound stellar mass
- nebulaInterstellar gas formation
- starshipFictional interstellar vessel
- exoplanetPlanet outside our system
light-year · asteroid · comet · celestial · universe · cosmos · extraterrestrial · alien
Journey by sea
- discoveryAct of finding something
- frontierEdge of settlement
- pioneeringFirst to explore territory
- interplanetaryBetween celestial bodies
Mars · lunar · probe · rover · lander · flyby · Voyager · colonization
liftoff
Moment of ascent
- countdownBackward enumeration to zero
- ignitionStarting combustion process
- thrustForceful forward motion
propulsion · trajectory · stage · separation · fuel · burn · pad · tower · clamps · nozzle
crew
Working team aboard
- taikonautChinese space traveler
- EVAActivity outside spacecraft
- spacewalkVenturing outside a spacecraft
module · ISS · Soyuz · capsule · telemetry · splashdown · lunar · Apollo · Gemini · Mercury
satellite
Orbiting celestial body
- geostationaryFixed above one point
- trajectoryPath of moving object
- perigeeOrbit's closest point
apogee · elliptical · inclination · geosynchronous · reentry · deorbit · circularization · rendezvous · docking
weightlessness
Absence of apparent mass
- microgravityExtremely weak gravitational force
- freefallUnimpeded downward motion
- zero-gInformal term for weightlessness
gees · acceleration · inertia · centrifugal · g-force · orientation · floating
interstellar
Between celestial bodies
- galaxyGravitationally bound stellar mass
- nebulaInterstellar gas formation
- starshipFictional interstellar vessel
exoplanet · light-year · asteroid · comet · celestial · universe · cosmos · extraterrestrial · alien · SETI
voyage
Journey by sea
- discoveryAct of finding something
- frontierEdge of settlement
- pioneeringFirst to explore territory
interplanetary · Mars · lunar · probe · rover · lander · flyby · Voyager · colonization · settlement
- aerospaceairplane, helicopter, rocket, rockets, astronauts
spaceflightsea travel
Transport across water
ocean voyage · aviation · surface transportation · driving · walking
spaceflightearthbound
Confined to terra firma
grounded · landlocked · stationary · staying put · terrestrial
- manned spaceflightHuman space travel