Key points from the graphic
- The graphic draws every orbital launch attempt of 2024 as a rocket, to a common height scale, grouped into boxes by launch provider or country.
- SpaceX’s box is by far the largest and holds more rockets than every other box combined.
- China’s state space programme (CNSA) is second, and seven more Chinese companies have their own small boxes.
- Wikipedia’s tally for 2024 is 261 orbital launch attempts worldwide: 253 successes, 6 failures and 2 partial failures [2].
- By country of the rocket, the United States made 156 attempts, China 68 and Russia 17 [2].
Orbital launches 2024 in text
Title: Orbital Launch Attempts of 2024. Each rocket drawing stands for one launch attempt and is drawn in its real livery. A scale bar at the bottom left, labelled Scale, Meters, runs from 10 to 130 metres, with a tiny mark labelled Human at its base for comparison. The graphic prints no totals or numbers for each box, so the sizes below describe the boxes rather than official counts. Box names are spelled as on the graphic.
| Box on the graphic | Country | Rockets drawn | Size of box |
|---|---|---|---|
| SpaceX | United States | Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy (2) and Starship (4) | the largest box, three long rows of Falcon rockets |
| CNSA | China | Long March family | the second largest box, three rows |
| Roskosmos | Russia | Soyuz-2 and Angara | two rows |
| Rocket Lab | United States and New Zealand | Electron | one row of small black rockets |
| ULA | United States | Vulcan Centaur, Atlas V and Delta IV Heavy | 5 rockets |
| ISRO | India | PSLV, GSLV and SSLV | 5 rockets |
| JAXA | Japan | H-IIA and H3 | 5 rockets |
| Galactic Energy | China | Ceres-1 | 5 rockets |
| ExSpace | China | Kuaizhou | 5 rockets |
| CAS Space | China | Kinetica-1 | 4 rockets |
| Iran | Iran | Iranian launchers | 4 rockets |
| ESA | Europe | Ariane 6 and Vega | 3 rockets |
| Academy of Launch Vehicle Tech | China | small solid fuel launchers | 2 rockets |
| Space One | Japan | KAIROS | 2 rockets |
| OrenSpace | China | Gravity-1 | 1 rocket |
| Landpace (LandSpace) | China | Zhuque | 1 rocket |
| ispace | China | Hyperbola-1 | 1 rocket |
| Firefly | United States | Alpha | 1 rocket |
| DPRK | North Korea | North Korean launcher | 1 rocket |
In the SpaceX box, the four Starship rockets are the tallest drawings on the graphic, reaching about 120 metres on the scale bar. The creator drew Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches slightly differently depending on whether the boosters were reused or expended, a detail other Reddit users pointed out [1].
The official count of orbital launches in 2024
Wikipedia’s 2024 in spaceflight article counts orbital launches by the country of origin of the rocket, not by launch provider or launch site [2]. That is a different grouping from the graphic, which splits countries into providers, but the totals tell the same story.
| Country of the rocket | Orbital launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 156 | 155 | 1 | 0 |
| China | 68 | 65 | 2 | 1 |
| Russia | 17 | 17 | 0 | 0 |
| Japan | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| India | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Iran | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Italy | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| France | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| North Korea | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| World | 261 | 253 | 6 | 2 |
Wikipedia describes 2024 as a new world record for orbital launch attempts and for successful orbital launches, for the fourth year running [2]. Its rocket by rocket breakdown shows 127 launches of reused Falcon 9 boosters, 5 of new Falcon 9 boosters and 2 Falcon Heavy launches [2], which is why the SpaceX box fills the bottom of the graphic. Rocket Lab’s Electron is counted under the United States in this table, including its launches from New Zealand [2].
The year also saw new rockets. Wikipedia lists the first successful launches of the American Vulcan Centaur and of China’s Gravity-1 and Long March 12, and the first flight of the European Ariane 6, which was a partial failure [2]. Vulcan Centaur appears twice in the ULA box, Gravity-1 is the single OrenSpace rocket and Ariane 6 is in the ESA box.
Notes on this infographic
- Starship flights. The graphic shows four Starship launches. Wikipedia does not count the fourth and fifth Starship flight tests as orbital attempts, because they were not trying to reach a positive perigee, and includes two Starship flights in its orbital tally [2]. Counts based on the graphic may therefore come out slightly higher than 261.
- Spelling. The box labelled Landpace refers to the Chinese company LandSpace, maker of the Zhuque rockets.
- Grouping. The ESA box mixes Ariane 6 and Vega rockets. Wikipedia’s table, which goes by the country of origin of each rocket, shows Italy with 2 launches and France with 1 partial failure, the first Ariane 6 flight [2].
Questions about orbital launches in 2024
How many rocket launches were there in 2024?
Wikipedia counts 261 orbital launch attempts in 2024, of which 253 succeeded, 6 failed and 2 were partial failures [2]. That total leaves out suborbital flights, including two of the Starship flight tests.
Which country made the most orbital launches in 2024?
The United States, with 156 orbital launches, most of them by SpaceX. China was second with 68 and Russia third with 17 [2].
How many Falcon 9 launches did SpaceX make in 2024?
Wikipedia's rocket by rocket breakdown for 2024 shows 127 launches of reused Falcon 9 boosters and 5 of new Falcon 9 boosters, plus 2 Falcon Heavy launches [2]. It also includes two Starship flights in its orbital tally [2]. On the graphic, SpaceX's box is by far the largest and holds more rockets than every other box combined.
What new rockets launched for the first time in 2024?
Wikipedia lists the first successful launches of the American Vulcan Centaur and of China's Gravity-1 and Long March 12 in 2024, and the first flight of the European Ariane 6, which was a partial failure [2]. On the graphic, Vulcan Centaur appears twice in the ULA box, Gravity-1 is the single OrenSpace rocket and Ariane 6 is in the ESA box.
Sources
- u/DobleG42, Orbital launch attempts of 2024, r/space, the creator’s post of this graphic and replies.
- Wikipedia, 2024 in spaceflight, orbital launch statistics by country and by rocket.
Last reviewed 29 October 2026
