Important
Which Earth observation satellite launches happened on a specific day? 🤔
Earth observation satellite launches, failures, and data collection events
| Date | Year | Event | Multi | Hyper | Thermal | SAR | LiDAR | Notes | More info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Jan. | 2003 | Launch: ICESat satellite (NASA) | x | It operated until 2006. | link | ||||
| 22 Jan. | 1975 | Launch: Landsat-2 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 8 Feb. | 2024 | Launch: PACE satellite (NASA) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 11 Feb. | 2000 | Start: SRTM mission (NASA, DLR) | x | data collection was from 11-22 Feb. 2000 | link | ||||
| 11 Feb. | 2013 | Launch: Landsat-8 satellite (NASA) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 1 March | 1984 | Launch: Landsat-5 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 5 March | 1978 | Launch: Landsat-3 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 7 March | 2015 | Launch: Sentinel-2B satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 3 April | 2014 | Launch: Sentinel-1A satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | video | ||||
| 15 April | 1999 | Launch: Landsat-7 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | x | Decommissioned on 04.06.2025 | news release | |||
| 25 April | 2016 | Launch: Sentinel-1B satellite (Copernicus) | x | Five and a half years in, the mission suffered an anomaly in Dec. 2021 and was decomissioned in Aug. 2022. | news release | ||||
| 27 April | 1999 | Launch failure: IKONOS-1 satellite (Space Imaging) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 29 April | 2025 | Launch: Biomass satellite (ESA) | x | ** | video | ||||
| 4 May | 2002 | Launch: Aqua satellite (NASA) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 23 June | 2015 | Launch: Sentinel-2A satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 14 July | 2022 | Launch: EMIT instrument (NASA) | x | VITALS repo, SBG VSWIR repo | link | ||||
| 16 July | 1982 | Launch: Landsat-4 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 30 July | 2025 | Launch: NISAR satellite (NASA, ISRO) | x | ** | video | ||||
| 23 July | 1972 | Launch: Landsat-1 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 29 Aug. | 2008 | Launch: RapidEye satellite constellation (RapidEye AG) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 5 Sept. | 2024 | Launch: Sentinel-2C satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 15 Sept. | 2014 | Launch: ICESat-2 satellite (NASA) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 18 Sept. | 2007 | Launch: WorldView-1 satellite (DigitalGlobe) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 24 Sept. | 1999 | Launch: IKONOS-2 satellite (Space Imaging) | x | Decommissioned on 31.03.2015 | link | ||||
| 24 Sept. | 2014 | SRTM 30m data (NASA) starts being released | x | previously, only 90m data were public | link | ||||
| 27 Sept. | 2021 | Launch: Landsat-9 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | x | ** | video | |||
| 5 Oct. | 1993 | Launch failure: Landsat-6 satellite (NASA, USGS) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 18 Oct. | 2001 | Launch: QuickBird-2 satellite (DigitalGlobe) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 28 Oct. | 2011 | Launch: Suomi NPP satellite (NASA, NOAA, DoD) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 4 Nov. | 2025 | Launch: Sentinel-1D satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | video | ||||
| 10 Nov. | 2022 | Launch: NOAA-21 (formerly JPSS-2) satellite (NASA, NOAA) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 20 Nov. | 2000 | Launch failure: QuickBird-1 satellite (DigitalGlobe) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 18 Nov. | 2017 | Launch: NOAA-20 (formerly JPSS-1) satellite (NASA, NOAA) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| 5 Dec. | 2018 | Launch: GEDI instrument (NASA) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 5 Dec. | 2024 | Launch: Sentinel-1C satellite (Copernicus) | x | ** | link | ||||
| 18 Dec. | 1999 | Launch: Terra satellite (NASA) | x | x | ** | link | |||
| **** | ** |
Various other noteworthy events in Earth observations
| Date | Year | Event | Notes | More info |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Feb. | 2005 | Establishment of the SERVIR program as the Regional Visualization & Monitoring System for Mesoamerica | ** | link |
| 20 March | 2019 | Signing of NASA-SICA Joint Statement | ** | link |
| 28 June | 2005 | Google Earth software launches | ** | link |
| 14 July | 2014 | Establishment of the SERVIR-West Africa program (SERVIR Afrique de l'Ouest) | ** | link |
| 31 July | 2003 | Establishment of the inter-governmental Group on Earth Observations (GEO) | this occurred at the Earth Observation Summit, which was hosted in Washington, DC, USA | fact sheet |
| 30 Sept. | 2025 | The SERVIR program officially ceases operations | ** | link |
| 2 Dec. | 2010 | Google Earth Engine platform officially launched (Google) | launched during the UNFCCC's COP-16 event in Cancun, Mexico | link |
| 6 Dec. | 2024 | Establishment of the SERVIR-Central America program (SERVIR Centroamérica) | ** | video |
| 10 Dec. | 1998 | Signing of NASA-CCAD Memorandum of Understanding | ** | link |
| **** | ** |