Forward-Looking Space Programs Catalog — 2026-07-11 (comprehensive refresh)
Refresh of
forward-roadmap-2026-06-09.md, re-run 2026-07-11 from 6 parallel agency-scope research passes (China, Russia, ESA+JAXA, NASA+US-commercial, ISRO+newcomers, plus the June backlog). Intent changed: the June doc was a curation backlog for a minimum representative cut (24 missions). This doc is scoped for per-agency completeness — finalize each major program's forward roadmap, not just one flagship each. The June doc is kept for history; this one supersedes it as the working backlog.Confidence legend:
A= officially announced + funded, hardware/schedule exists.D= in active development.P= proposed / study / paper. Anything past ~2030 is aspirational regardless of tier.
→column maps each item to an orrery entry:M= mission (static/data/missions/{body}/), or a fleet category (launcher,crewed-spacecraft,lander,rover,station,surface-base,orbiter,observatory,space-suit,cargo-spacecraft,constellation,launch-site,ground-observatory).
Headline changes since the 2026-06-09 doc (verify at slice time)
- China recovered an orbital-class booster (CZ-10B, 10 Jul 2026) — legless sea-net catch; 2nd nation ever, beating every private startup.
- Mengzhou max-q in-flight abort test (11 Feb 2026); Mengzhou-1 uncrewed orbital debut targeted late 2026.
- China merged the crewed-lunar + robotic Chang'e programs (23 May 2026) into one Lunar Exploration Program; Tiangong 6-module/~180t expansion officially confirmed (23 Jun 2026).
- Tianwen-2 arrived at asteroid Kamoʻoalewa (4 Jul 2026) — sample return ~Nov 2027, then comet 311P by 2035.
- Russia's ROS reverted from the 96.8° near-polar orbit to the 51.6° ISS orbit (Apr 2026), assembled partly from separating ISS Russian-segment modules (Nauka included). The old 96.8° premise is stale.
- Soyuz-5 flew (30 Apr 2026); Nuklon/Zeus preliminary design done (Apr 2026, op after 2036); Korona SSTO green-lit to start 2026; Venera-D entered design (Jan 2026); Luna dates re-slipped (Luna-26→2028, -27→2029-30, -28→2034).
- ESA M7 = Plasma Observatory (Jun 2026); Ramses (Apophis) fully funded + contracted; Ariel slipped to 2031 (freed Comet Interceptor onto an independent 2028-29 launch); SMILE launched (19 May 2026); Hera arrives Didymos Nov 2026.
- JAXA H3 failed (Dec 2025) then returned to flight (Jun 2026), de-risking MMX's Nov-Dec 2026 launch; DESTINY+ rebased to H3+2028 riding with Ramses; ispace consolidated APEX+Series-3 into one "ULTRA" lander.
- NASA "Ignition" (24 Mar 2026) — the "Moon-then-Mars" announcement the user recalls: Gateway cancelled, ~$20B Shackleton-rim surface base by 2036, SR-1 Freedom nuclear-electric Mars demo (2028). Artemis III demoted to a LEO HLS-rendezvous demo; Artemis IV = first landing (early 2028). Artemis II flew 1 Apr 2026. MSR cancelled (Jan 2026). DRACO cancelled. LTV down-select = Lunar Outpost + Astrolab (May 2026). New Glenn LC-36 pad destroyed (28 May 2026). Starship V3 + Starlink V3 debut (May 2026).
- ISRO — Skyroot Vikram-1 (first Indian private orbital launch) window opened 12 Jul 2026; Gaganyaan G1 slipping H2-2026→possibly Q3-2027; BAS-01 module 2028; Chandrayaan-4 ~2028; Shukrayaan-1 (Venus) 2028.
1 · China (CNSA / CMSA / CAS / commercial) — target: complete coverage
Crewed lunar (Project 921, landing before 2030)
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China Crewed Lunar Landing | M (moon) | ~2029-30 | A | Twin CZ-10; Mengzhou + Lanyue dock in lunar orbit; ~6-hr surface stay. |
| Mengzhou (梦舟) | crewed-spacecraft | uncrewed orbital late 2026 | D | Modular reusable capsule; Y (lunar, 3) + T (LEO, 6-7) variants. Abort tests done. |
| Lanyue (揽月) | lander | uncrewed demo ~2027 | D | Two-stage crewed lander; doubles as surface hab; carries Tansuo + suits. |
| Wangyu (望宇) | space-suit | in test | D | Lunar EVA suit. |
| Tansuo (探索) | rover | prototype | D | Two-seat unpressurized crewed rover. |
| Long March 10 (CZ-10) | launcher | first 3-core ~2027 | D | Human-rated 3-core, ≥27t TLI. |
| Long March 10A | launcher | Mengzhou-1 late 2026 | D | Reusable single-core, tethered marine landing. |
| Wenchang LC-301 | launch-site | complete 2H 2026 | D | ~120m crewed-lunar tower. |
ILRS (International Lunar Research Station)
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ILRS (program) | surface-base | robotic 2026-35, crewed ~2036+ | A | China+Russia co-lead; 13+ national members. |
| Chang'e-7 | M (moon) | 2H 2026 (~Aug) | A | S-pole; orbiter+lander+rover+hopping ice probe (LUWA); 21 payloads. At Wenchang. |
| Chang'e-8 | M (moon) | ~2029 | A | ISRU: 3D-print regolith brick, sealed ecosystem, ~100kg humanoid robot; ILRS prototype. |
| ILRS construction landers (ILRS-1…5 / "Chang'e-9/10") | lander ×N | 2031-35 | P/D | Command center, sample return, ISRU, biomed, astronomy. Naming soft. |
| ILRS nuclear power plant | surface-base | ~2033-35 | A(RU-led) | Rosatom-led fission reactor. |
| Queqiao-2 relay + Queqiao/Tiandu/DRO constellation | constellation | operational→2030s | A/P | Lunar comms+nav backbone. |
Tiangong + crew + co-orbiting telescope
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tiangong 6-module expansion | station (update existing) | multifunctional module ~2027, labs by 2030 | A | 3→6 modules, ~90→180t. 4th module unnamed. |
| Xuntian / CSST | observatory | ~early 2027 | D | 2m serviceable survey telescope, co-orbits Tiangong. |
| Shenzhou-23 | M (leo) | flying (24 May 2026) | A | First Hong Kong astronaut; first Chinese 1-yr stay. |
| Shenzhou-24 | M (leo) | ~Oct 2026 | A | First Pakistani astronaut. |
| Shenzhou-25 | M (leo) | 2027 | P | Unannounced (gap). |
| Tianzhou-10/11/12 | cargo-spacecraft | 2026+ | A | Upgraded ~6.9t freighter. |
| Qingzhou / Haolong (commercial cargo) | cargo-spacecraft | 2026-27 | D | Low-cost freighter / reusable cargo spaceplane. |
Deep space / planetary / astrophysics
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tianwen-2 | M (asteroid) | in flight; return Nov 2027 | A | Kamoʻoalewa sample return → comet 311P (2035). |
| Tianwen-3 | M (mars) | 2× CZ-5 late 2028; return 2031 | A | World-first Mars sample return if on schedule; ESA invited. |
| Tianwen-4 | M (jupiter) | launch ~Sep 2029; Callisto 2038; Uranus flyby 2045 | A | Dual craft; Callisto orbiter+impactor + Uranus flyby. |
| Planetary-defense demonstrator | M (asteroid) | NET 2027 | A | DART-style impactor + observer (2015 XF261). |
| Chang'e-6 follow-ups / lunar sample science | (data updates) | — | — | Already flown; context only. |
| Solar Polar Obs (SPO/"Kuafu-2"), Xihe-2 (L5) | orbiter | 2028-29 | A/D | Solar polar + L5 space-weather. |
| Earth 2.0 (ET), Miyin, Tianlin, eXTP, Taiji, TianQin | observatory | 2028-2035 | D/P | Exoplanet + GW + X-ray flagships. |
| Interstellar Express (Shensuo), Neptune orbiter, Venus atmosphere SR | M (deep) | 2032-2039 | P | Voyager-class + nuclear Neptune + Venus-atmosphere SR. |
Launchers + commercial
| Item | → | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long March 9 (CZ-9) | launcher | D | Super-heavy ~150t, reusable 1st stage, maiden 2033. |
| Long March 8A / 12 / 12A / 12B, 6C, 7A | launcher | A/D | Guowang/commercial workhorses; 12B flew Jun 2026. |
| CZ-10B | launcher | A(1 flight) | Recovered booster 10 Jul 2026. |
| Commercial reusables | launcher | D | Zhuque-3 (LandSpace), Tianlong-3 (Space Pioneer), Pallas-1 (Galactic Energy), Kinetica-2 (CAS Space), Hyperbola-3 (iSpace), Gravity-2 (Orienspace), Nebula (Deep Blue), Yuanxingzhe-1 (Space Epoch). |
| Guowang, Qianfan (G60), Honghu-3 | constellation | A/D | ~13-15k-sat megaconstellations. |
| Deep Blue / InterstellOr suborbital tourism | crewed-spacecraft | D | Commercial suborbital ~2027-28. |
2 · Russia (Roscosmos + industry) — target: complete coverage (high slip-risk)
ROS — "their own station"
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROS (station) | station | first module 2027-28; core ~2030; full ~2033-35 | A | 51.6° now (was 96.8°), built from separating ISS modules; periodically (not continuously) crewed. |
| NEM (Science-Power Module) | station module | 2029 (Proton-M) | D | Furthest-along core element. |
| UUM (Universal Node Module) | station module | late 2028 | D | 4-6 port hub. |
| ShM (Airlock/Gateway Module) | station module | 2030 | D | EVA/assembly. |
| Base Module (NEM-derived), Target Modules ×2, Commercial + Inflatable modules | station module | 2029-2033+ | D/P | Phase-1 finale + Phase-2 expansion. |
Lunar (post Luna-25 crash)
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luna-26 | M (moon) | 2028 | D | Polar orbiter + relay. |
| Luna-27 | M (moon) | 2029-30 | D | S-pole lander (ESA PILOT removed, solo). |
| Luna-28 | M (moon) | ~2034 | P/D | Cryo sample return. |
| Luna-29 | M (moon) | mid-2030s | P | Heavy lander + rover; ILRS precursor. |
Crewed + launchers + nuclear + planetary
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orel (PTK NP) | crewed-spacecraft | uncrewed 2027-28 | D | Soyuz successor; lunar "Orelok" variant (P). |
| Soyuz-5 (Irtysh) | launcher | flew 30 Apr 2026 | A | Zenit successor; Kazakh Bayterek. |
| Angara A5M / A5V / A5P | launcher | 2027-2030 | D | Uprated / H2-stage / crew-rated (Orel). |
| Amur-SPG | launcher | ~2030 | D | Reusable methane, VTVL. |
| Yenisei (STK-1) / Don (STK-2) | launcher | 2033 / post-2035 | P | Super-heavy lunar; Korona SSTO (P, started 2026). |
| Zeus / Nuklon (nuclear tug) | orbiter | op after 2036 | D | ~500kW fission + electric propulsion. |
| Venera-D | M (venus) | 2034-36 | P/D | Orbiter+lander+balloon, solo. |
| Vostochny pads (1A Angara, 2A Amur, SHLV, light-class) | launch-site | 2026-2028 | D | Crewed + super-heavy infra. |
3 · ESA — target: complete coverage
Science
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plato | M (l2) | late 2026-early 2027 | A | 26-camera exoplanet photometer. |
| Ariel | M (l2) | H2 2031 | A | ~1000 exoplanet atmospheres. |
| Comet Interceptor | M (comet) | 2028-29 | A | L2 ambush of a pristine comet (w/ JAXA). |
| EnVision | M (venus) | Nov 2031 | D | Venus radar orbiter (NASA VenSAR at budget risk). |
| Vigil | M (sun/L5) | 2031 | D | First operational space-weather sat at L5. |
| LISA | M (heliocentric) | 2035 | A | Space GW observatory (3 sats, 2.5Mkm). |
| NewAthena | M (l2) | 2037 | D | Largest X-ray observatory (adoption 2027). |
| Ramses | M (asteroid) | spring 2028 | A | Apophis rendezvous pre-2029-flyby (w/ JAXA); rides H3 w/ DESTINY+. |
| Hera | (in flight) | arrives Nov 2026 | A | DART follow-up (context; may already have entry). |
| SMILE | M (earth) | launched 19 May 2026 | A | ESA+China magnetosphere imager. |
| Plasma Observatory | M (earth) | mid-2030s | P | New M7 selection (Jun 2026). |
Lunar / Mars / launchers / human
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argonaut / EL3 (ArgoNET) | lander | ~2030-31 | D | European logistics lander (Ariane 64). |
| Moonlight / LCNS + Lunar Pathfinder | constellation | Pathfinder 2026; full 2030 | D | Lunar comms+nav; Pathfinder on Blue Ghost M2. |
| Gateway I-Hab / Lunar Link / Lunar View | station module | redefine (Rome Ministerial Dec 2026) | D-uncertain | Post-Gateway-cancellation limbo. |
| ExoMars Rosalind Franklin | rover | launch Oct 2028 (Falcon Heavy), land 2030 | A | 2m-drill astrobiology rover (already PLANNED in data). |
| Ariane 6 (Block 2, Icarus, Ariane 64) | launcher | ramping | A | 6-8 flights 2026; heavy variant debuts. |
| Ariane Next / Themis / Prometheus | launcher | 2030s / hops 2026 | D/P | Reusable successor + demonstrator. |
| Vega-C / Vega-E | launcher | op / 2027 | A/D | Avio sole operator. |
| ELC winners (Isar, RFA, PLD, MaiaSpace) | launcher | 2026-2027 | D | Sovereign commercial launch seed. |
| Susie / LEO Cargo Return / European crew autonomy | crewed-spacecraft | concept-2028 | P/D | Rome Ministerial decides crew ambition. |
4 · JAXA — target: complete coverage
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MMX | M (mars) | Nov-Dec 2026 | A | Phobos sample return (already PLANNED in data); IDEFIX rover. |
| LUPEX (Chandrayaan-5) | M (moon) | 2027-28 | D | JAXA rover + ISRO lander, S-pole water-ice. |
| Lunar Cruiser | rover | ~2031 | D | Pressurized crewed rover; Japan's Artemis contribution (2 surface seats). |
| DESTINY+ | M (asteroid) | 2028 | D | Phaethon flyby; rides H3 w/ Ramses. |
| Hayabusa2♯ (SHARP) | (in flight) | KY26 rendezvous 2031 | A | Micro-asteroid (context/extended). |
| LiteBIRD | M (l2) | FY2032 | D | CMB B-mode inflation test. |
| Solar-C (EUVST) | M (sun) | FY2028 | D | EUV solar spectroscopy. |
| H3 / Epsilon S | launcher | op (RTF Jun 2026) / delayed | A/D | Flagship + small solid. |
| ispace ULTRA lander | lander | ~2027-28 | D | Consolidated commercial lunar lander. |
5 · NASA + US commercial — target: complete coverage
Artemis + surface + HLS + nuclear
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Artemis II | M (moon) | flew 1 Apr 2026 | A | First crewed beyond-LEO since Apollo 17 (may already have entry). |
| Artemis III (LEO HLS-rendezvous demo) | M (moon/leo) | NET late 2027 | A | Demoted; no landing (update existing artemis3). |
| Artemis IV | M (moon) | early 2028 | A | First crewed landing post-reset. |
| Artemis V | M (moon) | late 2028 | D | 2nd landing; Blue Moon Mk2 inaugural. |
| Artemis VI+ | M (moon) | ~annual 2029+ | P | Surface-base buildup. |
| Moon Base (Shackleton rim) | surface-base | 2028-2036 | D | ~$20B permanent base ("Ignition"). |
| Fission Surface Power / Lunar Reactor | surface-base | ≥100kWe by 2030 | D | NASA-DOE; 3 commercial teams. |
| Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV) | rover | winners May 2026 | A | Lunar Outpost "Pegasus" + Astrolab FLEX (unpressurized). |
| Starship HLS | lander | demo TBD | D | Gated on Starship V3 + refueling. |
| Blue Moon Mk1 (VIPER) / Mk2 | lander | 2026-27 / ~2030 | D | Cargo (VIPER) + crewed. |
| SR-1 "Freedom" | M (mars) | launch end-2028 | D | Nuclear-electric demo + 3 "Skyfall" helicopters (ex-Gateway PPE). |
| Crewed Mars | M (mars) | late 2030s-40s | P | Base is proving ground (update starship-mars-crew). |
CLPS + planetary + observatories + suits
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IM-3, IM-4, Blue Ghost 2/3, Griffin-1, APEX (Draper) | M (moon) + lander | 2026-2028 | D | CLPS deliveries; new lander variants. |
| Dragonfly | M (titan) | launch Jul 2028 | A | Nuclear Titan rotorcraft (build started 2026). |
| DAVINCI / VERITAS | M (venus) | 2030-2031 | D | Venus probe + radar orbiter. |
| Roman Space Telescope | observatory | Aug 30 2026 | A | Wide-field IR at L2. |
| NEO Surveyor | observatory | 2027-28 | A | Planetary-defense IR at L1. |
| Europa Clipper | (in flight) | arrive 2030 | A | Context. |
| AxEMU | space-suit | Artemis III/IV | D | Already PLANNED (axemu). |
Commercial LEO stations + launchers
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vast Haven-1 / Haven-2 | station | 2027 / 2028+ | D | First commercial station. |
| Axiom Station | station | ~2028 | D | ISS-attached → free-flyer. |
| Orbital Reef (Blue Origin+Sierra) | station | ~2027+ | P | Still active. |
| Starlab (Voyager+Airbus) | station | 2029 | D | Single-launch on Starship. |
| Gravitics StarMax / Orbital Carrier | station | 2026+ | D | Module + DoD carrier. |
| Starship V3 | launcher | debut May 2026 | A | Mars/Moon prerequisite. |
| New Glenn | launcher | RTF ~end-2026 | D | LC-36 pad destroyed May 2026. |
| Neutron (Rocket Lab), Nova (Stoke), Terran R (Relativity) | launcher | Q4 2026-27 | D | Reusable medium/heavy debuts. |
| Dream Chaser Tenacity | cargo-spacecraft | Q4 2026 | D | Free-flyer demo (no ISS dock). |
6 · ISRO + newcomers + private — target: welcoming + complete coverage
ISRO
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaganyaan G1/G2/G3 (uncrewed) | M (earth) | 2026-27 | D | Vyommitra humanoid; date unstable. |
| Gaganyaan H1 (crewed) | M (earth) | ~2027 | A | First indigenous Indian crewed flight. |
| Gaganyaan (crew vehicle) | crewed-spacecraft | — | D | Already PLANNED (gaganyaan). |
| Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS) + modules | station | first module 2028, full 2035 | A | First Indian station (5 modules). |
| Chandrayaan-4 | M (moon) | ~2028 | A | Indigenous lunar sample return. |
| Shukrayaan-1 (Venus Orbiter) | M (venus) | 2028 | A | First Indian Venus mission. |
| Mangalyaan-2 (MOM-2) | M (mars) | NET 2030 | P | Lander+rover+heli; funding pending. |
| NGLV "Soorya" | launcher | 2030-32 | A | Reusable-1st-stage heavy. |
| Skyroot Vikram-1 | launcher | maiden ~Jul 2026 | D | First Indian private orbital launcher. |
Newcomers
| Item | → | Date | Conf | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAE MBR Explorer | M (asteroid) | launch Q1 2028 | A | 7 asteroids + Justitia land 2035; first Arab belt mission. |
| UAE Rashid Rover 2 | rover | H2 2026 | D | Far-side, on Blue Ghost 2. |
| UAE Emirates Airlock | station module | ~2030 | D | (Gateway airlock; status tied to redefinition.) |
| Korea KSLV-III | launcher | 2030 | D | Reusable methalox (Hanwha). |
| Korea Lunar Lander + rover | lander | 2032 | A | First Korean surface landing. |
| Brazil VLM-1 | launcher | NET 2028 | D | First Brazilian orbital launcher (Alcântara). |
| Rocket Lab Neutron | launcher | Q4 2026 | D | (also in §5.) |
| Launch sites: Alcântara, Naro, (+ Vostochny/Wenchang in agency sections) | launch-site | op | A | Newcomer spaceports. |
| First-astronaut/first-launch firsts | (context) | 2025-26 | — | Poland/Hungary (Ax-4), Gilmour (AU), Innospace (BR), Turkey, Saudi Shams cubesat. |
Gap analysis vs current data (115 missions / 251 fleet; only 7 planned missions + 5 planned fleet)
Already-present forward entries: missions artemis3, artemis4, blue-moon-mk1, mmx, starship-demo, starship-mars-crew; fleet axemu, gaganyaan, htv-x, sokol-m, exomars-rosalind-franklin. (apollo-1 is mis-flagged PLANNED — fix.) Everything else in this catalog is a gap.
Comprehensive-coverage delta (announced A + in-dev D only, private incl.): on the order of ~90-110 new missions + ~90-120 new fleet entries across the eight program families, before adding the P (proposed) tail. See PRD-025 for the tiered finalization scope (which A/D/P to include, and the slice plan).