Rockets & Vehicles
Launch vehicles past and present: how they work, what they carry, and their flight records.
Starship
Starship is SpaceX's fully reusable super heavy-lift rocket and the largest ever flown, with twelve test flights since 2023 and a Version 3 debut in May 2026.
Ariane 6
Ariane 6 is Europe's expendable heavy launcher, flown since July 2024 in A62 and A64 versions. It launches Amazon Leo satellites and ESA missions.
Electron
Electron is Rocket Lab's small-lift launcher, a carbon composite rocket with electric-pump Rutherford engines that has flown 91 times since 2017.
Falcon 9
Falcon 9 is SpaceX's partially reusable two-stage rocket and the most-flown American launch vehicle, with 670 Falcon family flights as of June 2026.
Falcon Heavy
Falcon Heavy is SpaceX's three-core heavy-lift rocket, flown 12 times since its 2018 debut with launches including Psyche, Europa Clipper, and GOES-U.
New Glenn
New Glenn is Blue Origin's heavy-lift rocket with a reusable first stage. It reached orbit in January 2025 and landed its booster on its second flight.
Saturn V
Saturn V was the NASA rocket that launched the Apollo Moon missions and Skylab, flying 13 times from 1967 to 1973 without losing a crew or payload.
Soyuz
Soyuz is the Russian rocket family descended from the 1957 R-7 missile. With well over 1,700 flights it is the most-launched orbital rocket line in history.
Space Launch System
The Space Launch System is NASA's super-heavy Artemis Moon rocket. It flew uncrewed in 2022 and carried the Artemis II crew around the Moon in April 2026.
Vulcan Centaur
Vulcan Centaur is ULA's successor to Atlas V and Delta IV, flown since January 2024 with Blue Origin BE-4 engines and the Centaur V upper stage.