1959 in spaceflight


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.

Launches

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Deep Space Rendezvous

Orbital launch summary

By country

CountryLaunchesSuccessesFailuresPartial
failures
Remarks
4220
19892

By rocket

By orbit

Footnotes