Planetary Science
Probes
2005 – Probes
Currently, ## scientific satellites are in orbit around the Earth. These satellites address a wide array of scientific issues. For example, NASA characterizes scientific satellites by the following types: astronomy, earth…
2007 – Probes
There are ## scientific satellites in orbit around Earth, as designated by the AGI satellite database. This number may vary slightly by source, as some satellites may be alternatively classified…
2008 – Probes
Other Earth-observing and space probe scientific payloads accounted for 10 payloads launched in 2008. These included NASA’s Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX), designed to image the boundary between the solar system…
2010 – Probes
NASA’s Kepler spacecraft was launched in March 2009 aboard a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Kepler’s mission is to monitor the brightness of more than 100,000…
2011 – Probes
The second category of space and robotic exploration systems involves seeing the Universe through the eyes of a satellite. The advantage is that the satellite is able to capture images…
2012 – Probes
Mars is attracting interest from other nations as well. India’s government announced in August 2012 that it approved plans for their country’s first mission beyond the Moon. The Mars Orbiter…
2013 – Probes
The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft was launched in November 2013. MAVEN is intended to examine Mars’ upper atmosphere and ionosphere, and will also serve as a data…