1972 Rocket Launch Recap

Our roundup of all the launches that happened in 1972, along with key stats, trends and info. You can learn more about our data, and how we present it here.

Include notable suborbital launches

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113

Total Launches

105

Successful Launches

8

Failed Launches

92.92%

Success Rate

6

Humans launched to space

Notable 1972 Achievements

🚀 First spacecraft to enter the asteroid belt

How 1972 Compares to Previous Years

There were 105 successful launch attempts in 1972 and 8 failed launch attempts. These figures include test/development launches, which are more prone to failure.

Rocket Launches by Year

By RocketLaunch.org

Launches by Nation in 1972

In 1972, companies and agencies from 3 Nations attempted launches. These Nations were Russia (79 launches), the United States (32 launches) and Japan (1 launch).

Total Rocket Launches by Nation in 1972

By RocketLaunch.org

Launches by Launch Service Providers in 1972

5 Launch Service Providers completed launches in 1972, including Soviet Space Program (79 launches), United States Air Force (27 launches) and NASA (5 launches).

Top Space Launch Service Providers in 1972 by total launch count

By RocketLaunch.org

Launches by Launch Vehicle in 1972

30 different Launch Vehicles launched off in 1972. The top 3 were the Voskhod (29 launches), Kosmos-3M (11K65M) (14 launches) and Kosmos 11K63 (13 launches) launch vehicles.

Top 10 Launch Vehicles in 1972 by total launch count

By RocketLaunch.org

Launches by Launch Sites in 1972

Rockets launched from 9 Launch Sites in 1972. The most active launch sites were Plesetsk Cosmodrome (55 launches), Baikonur Cosmodrome (22 launches) and Vandenberg SFB (21 launches).

Top Launch Sites in 1972

By RocketLaunch.org

Astronauts Launched by Nationality in 1972

In 1972, humans from only 1 nation were launched into space. This nation was and the United States (6 astronauts).

Astronauts Launched by Nationality in 1972

By RocketLaunch.org

Where we launched to in 1972

We launched off to 6 different locations beyond earth in 1972 (including flybys). Most launches were to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) (100 launches), Geostationary Orbit (GEO) (5 launches) and The Moon (3 launches).

Top Launch Destinations in 1972

By RocketLaunch.org

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