Rockets & Launch Vehicles

Every rocket in the encyclopedia, ordered by first flight — from the R-7 of 1957 to today's reusable heavy-lift vehicles.

The great multi-generation lineages — Saturn, Atlas, Delta, Titan, Falcon, Ariane, Long March, and more.

First-class booster, core, and upper stages of flagship vehicles, with their engines and propellants.

The engines that power the world's rockets, by combustion cycle and propellant.

The fuel and oxidizer combinations — kerolox, hydrolox, methalox, hypergolics, and solids.

The agencies and companies that build and fly launch vehicles.

The programs that flagship launch vehicles have served, from Apollo to Artemis.

The pads and complexes where rockets lift off, grouped under their launch sites.

Launch vehicles designed to recover and re-fly hardware, from the Space Shuttle to Falcon 9 and Starship.

Single-use launch vehicles whose stages are not recovered.

The most powerful launch vehicles — 50 tonnes or more to low Earth orbit (where the figure is documented).

Launch vehicles that place 20–50 tonnes into low Earth orbit (where documented).

Dedicated small-satellite launchers placing under 2 tonnes into orbit (where documented).

Launch vehicles certified to carry crews to space.

Launch vehicles currently in operational service.

Historic launch vehicles no longer flying.

Launch vehicles in development or planned.

Engines burning deeply-cold liquid propellants — hydrogen or methane with liquid oxygen.

High-efficiency engines using a staged-combustion or full-flow cycle.