View source for 1959 in spaceflight

{{Short description|none}} <!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]] -->
{{Use American English|date=August 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2014}}
{{Infobox Year in spaceflight
|year = 1959
|image =
|caption = [[Luna 2]] became the first spacecraft to reach the surface of the [[Moon]] in September
|first = 2 January
|last = 26 November
|total = 23
|success = 10
|failed = 11
|partial = 2
|catalogued = 14
|maidens = [[Thor-Agena]]<br/>[[Atlas-Able]]<br/>[[SM-65D Atlas|Atlas D]] (suborbital test)
|retired = [[Vanguard (rocket)|Vanguard]]
}}

[[Luna 1]] was the first spacecraft to leave the gravitational influence of Earth. Also in 1959, [[Luna 2]] was the first spacecraft to reach the surface of another celestial body, impacting the [[Moon]], and [[Luna 3]] returned the first images of the [[far side of the Moon]].
{{Infobox spaceflight
| programme          = [[Timeline of spaceflight]]
| previous_mission   = [[1958 in spaceflight|1958]]
| next_mission       = [[1960 in spaceflight|1960]]
}}

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== Overview ==

== Orbital and suborbital launches ==
{{Main|1959 in spaceflight (January–June)|1959 in spaceflight (July–December)}}

== Deep Space Rendezvous ==
{| class=wikitable width="100%"
!Date (GMT)
!Spacecraft
!Event
!Remarks
|-
|4 January    || [[Luna 1]]    || First Lunar flyby  || Failed impactor, closest approach: {{convert|6000|km}}
|-
|4 March      || [[Pioneer 4]] || Lunar flyby        || Closest approach: {{convert|60200|km}}
|-
|14 September || [[Luna 2]]    || First Lunar impact || Landed in ''[[Mare Imbrium]]'', first spacecraft to reach the surface of a celestial body
|-
|6 October    || [[Luna 3]]    || Lunar flyby        || First [[Circumlunar]] flight, returned 29 pictures including first images of the [[far side of the Moon]]; closest approach {{convert|6200|km}}
|}

==Orbital launch statistics==
===By country===
{{Pie chart
| radius = 120
| legend = false
| thumb = left
| [ 
 {"value":190, "color":"#484785", "label": "United States:19 (82.61%)"},
 {"value":40, "color":"#a52a2a", "label": "Soviet Union: 4 (17.39%) "},
]
}}

{| align="left" class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! scope=col colspan=2 | Country
! scope=col| Launches
! scope=col| Successes
! scope=col| Failures
! scope=col| Partial<br/>failures
|-
! scope=row style="background:#a52a2a;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{USSR}} 
|  4 || 2 || 1 || 1
|-
! scope=row style="background:#484785;" | || style="text-align:left;" | {{USA}}  
| 19 || 9 || 9 || 1

|-
! colspan="2" | World 
| {{sum|4|19}} || {{sum|2|9}} || {{sum|1|9}} || {{sum|1|1}}
|}

{{clear}}

===By rocket===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! scope=col| Rocket
! scope=col| Country
! scope=col| Launches
! scope=col| Successes
! scope=col| Failures
! scope=col| Partial failures
! scope=col| Remarks
|-
| [[Atlas-Able]]                    || {{USA}}  || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || Maiden flight
|-
| [[Juno II]]                       || {{USA}}  || 4 || 1 || 2 || 1 || 
|-
| [[Luna (rocket)|Luna]] 8K72       || {{USSR}} || 4 || 2 || 1 || 1 ||
|-
| [[Thor-Agena|Thor DM-18 Agena-A]] || {{USA}}  || 8 || 5 || 3 || 0 || Maiden flight
|-
| [[Thor-Able|Thor DM-18 Able-II]]  || {{USA}}  || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 
|-
| [[Thor-Able|Thor DM-18 Able-III]] || {{USA}}  || 1 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 
|-
| [[Vanguard (rocket)|Vanguard]]    || {{USA}}  || 4 || 2 || 2 || 0 || Final flight
|-
|}

===By orbit===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! scope=col| Orbital regime
! scope=col| Launches
! scope=col| Successes
! scope=col| Failures
! scope=col| Accidentally<br />Achieved
! scope=col| Remarks
|-
| [[Low Earth orbit|Low Earth]]       || 12 || 7 || 5 || 0 ||
|-
| [[Medium Earth orbit|Medium Earth]] ||  4 || 1 || 3 || 0 ||
|-
| [[High Earth orbit|High Earth]]     ||  2 || 2 || 0 || 0 || Including [[Highly elliptical orbit]]s
|-
| [[Heliocentric orbit|Heliocentric]] ||  5 || 3 || 2 || 0 ||
|}

==See also==
*[[Timeline of spaceflight]]

==References==
{{TLS-R}}

===Footnotes===
{{reflist|2}}

<br/>
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{{Orbital launches in 1959}}

[[Category:1959 in spaceflight]]
[[Category:Spaceflight by year]]