spaceflights
Trips beyond atmosphere
Spaceflights are journeys beyond Earth's atmosphere, whether crewed or uncrewed.
The term covers everything from brief suborbital hops to missions reaching the Moon or Mars.
A spaceflight begins at launch and ends at landing or reentry: The agency has conducted dozens of spaceflights since the 1960s.
Crew of spacecraft
- payloadCarried freight or charge
- capsuleEnclosed dose container
- moduleIndependent functional component
- dockingConnecting to a port
rendezvous · extravehicular · telemetry · crew · objectives · timeline · checklists · communications
Propulsion-driven spacecraft
- countdownBackward enumeration to zero
- liftoffMoment of ascent
- ignitionStarting combustion process
- thrustForceful forward motion
propulsion · booster · launchpad · staging · trajectory · fuel · combustion · throttle
Protective layer against friction
- ablationRemoval by cutting, melting
- splashdownSpacecraft's water landing
- touchdownSix-point gridiron play
- parachuteDrag-creating descent device
capsule · deceleration · blackout · plasma · landing · recovery · descent · drogue
Short-distance transport
- SoyuzRussian crewed spacecraft
- ApolloSun deity, moonshot namesake
- GeminiZodiacal sign of duality
- OrionCelestial hunter figure
Falcon · Vostok · lander · capsule · spaceplane · crewed · uncrewed · reusable
Red planet, war deity
- lunarOf the moon
- roverDrifter or space explorer
- probeThorough examination or tool
- flybyClose pass without landing
landing · planetary · asteroid · comet · Venus · Jupiter · Saturn · surveyor
Orbiting multinational research facility
- MirRussian space station
- SkylabPioneering American orbital habitat
- moduleIndependent functional component
- airlockTwo-doored pressure transition space
resupply · habitation · laboratory · cupola · truss · berthing · pressurization · gateway
Path of moving object
- apogeeHighest orbital point
- perigeeOrbit's closest point
- geostationaryFixed above one point
- ellipticalOval-shaped or indirect
inclination · eccentricity · Kepler · synchronous · stationkeeping · insertion · circularization · decay
astronauts
Crew of spacecraft
- payloadCarried freight or charge
- capsuleEnclosed dose container
- moduleIndependent functional component
docking · rendezvous · extravehicular · telemetry · crew · objectives · timeline · checklists · communications · experiments
rocket
Propulsion-driven spacecraft
thrust · propulsion · booster · launchpad · staging · trajectory · fuel · combustion · throttle · abort
heatshield
Protective layer against friction
- ablationRemoval by cutting, melting
- splashdownSpacecraft's water landing
- touchdownSix-point gridiron play
parachute · capsule · deceleration · blackout · plasma · landing · recovery · descent · drogue · retrorocket
shuttle
Short-distance transport
Orion · Falcon · Vostok · lander · capsule · spaceplane · crewed · uncrewed · reusable
Mars
Red planet, war deity
flyby · landing · planetary · asteroid · comet · Venus · Jupiter · Saturn · surveyor · orbiter
ISS
Orbiting multinational research facility
- MirRussian space station
- SkylabPioneering American orbital habitat
- moduleIndependent functional component
airlock · resupply · habitation · laboratory · cupola · truss · berthing · pressurization · gateway · depot
trajectory
Path of moving object
- apogeeHighest orbital point
- perigeeOrbit's closest point
- geostationaryFixed above one point
elliptical · inclination · eccentricity · Kepler · synchronous · stationkeeping · insertion · circularization · decay · altitude
spaceflightsaviation
Flying or operating aircraft
air travel · sea voyages · road trips · ground transportation · surface transportation
spaceflightsgroundings
Punishments limiting freedom
immobility · stasis · staying put · descents · landings
spaceflightslandings
Reaching the ground
descents · reentries · splashdowns · touchdowns · groundings
- manned spaceflightHuman space travel