Rocket Families

Europe's flagship launch-vehicle family, from the Ariane 1 of 1979 through the heavy-lift Ariane 5 and the current Ariane 6.

A long-running U.S. launch-vehicle family that evolved from an early ICBM into the modern Atlas V operated by United Launch Alliance.

A prolific U.S. launch-vehicle family spanning six decades, from the Thor-derived Delta through the Delta II and the hydrogen-fueled Delta IV, retired in 2024.

SpaceX's family of RP-1/LOX rockets — the retired Falcon 1, the reusable Falcon 9, and the Falcon Heavy — that made orbital-class booster reuse routine.

Japan's family of liquid-hydrogen launch vehicles — the H-I, H-II, H-IIA/H-IIB, and the current H3 — developed by JAXA and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

China's principal launch-vehicle family, spanning small to heavy lift — from the early hypergolic Long March 2/3/4 to the modern cryogenic Long March 5/6/7/8.

The most-launched rocket lineage in history — descended from the R-7, the world's first ICBM (1957), and continued today by the crew-carrying Soyuz.

NASA's family of heavy- and super-heavy-lift rockets developed for the Apollo program — the Saturn I, Saturn IB, and the Moon-launching Saturn V.

NASA's super-heavy-lift family for the Artemis program, planned in progressively more capable Block 1, Block 1B, and Block 2 configurations.

A U.S. family derived from the Titan ICBM — the crewed Titan II of Gemini, and the hypergolic Titan III and Titan IV heavy launchers for national-security and planetary missions.