# Spaceflight before 1951

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]]
Spaceflight as a practical endeavor began during World War II with the development of operational liquid-fueled rockets. Beginning life as a weapon, the V-2 was pressed into peaceful service after the war at the United States' White Sands Missile Range as well as the Soviet Union's Kapustin Yar. This led to a flourishing of missile designs setting the stage for the exploration of space. The small American WAC Corporal rocket was evolved into the Aerobee, a much more powerful sounding rocket. Exploration of space began in earnest in 1947 with the flight of the first Aerobee, 46 of which had flown by the end of 1950. These and other rockets, both Soviet and American, returned the first direct data on air density, temperature, charged particles and magnetic fields in the Earth's upper atmosphere.
By 1948, the United States Navy had evolved the V-2 design into the Viking capable of more than 100 miles (160 km) in altitude. The first Viking to accomplish this feat, number four, did so 10 May 1950. The Soviet Union developed a virtual copy of the V-2 called the R-1, which first flew in 1948. Its longer-ranged successor, the R-2, entered military service in 1950. This event marked the entry of both superpowers into the post-V-2 rocketry era.

## Origins and rocket development

The era of spaceflight began in 1942 with the development of the V-2 rocket (A-4) as a ballistic missile by Germany, the first vehicle capable of reaching the 100 kilometres (62 mi) boundary of space (as defined by the World Air Sports Federation). On 20 June 1944, a V-2 (MW 18014) was launched vertically, reaching a height of 174.6 kilometres (108.5 mi).
The post-war years saw rapid development in rocket technology by both superpowers, jumpstarted by the dozens of V-2s and hundreds of German specialists that ended up in the custody of the Soviet Union and the United States.$^{:216–7}$$^{:226}$$^{:43}$ The V-2, designed for carrying a warhead horizontally rather than vertical science missions, made an inefficient sounding rocket, while the wartime American WAC Corporal sounding rocket was too small to carry much scientific equipment.$^{:250}$ In 1946, the US Navy began development of its own heavy sounding rocket, the Viking, derived in part from the V-2.$^{:21–25}$$^{:236}$ The Aerobee was developed from the WAC Corporal to loft lighter payloads.$^{:250–51}$
The Soviet Union began military development of the R-1, a copy of the V-2 with modifications intended to improve reliability, in 1947.$^{:41,48}$ Flight testing of this first Soviet-made liquid-fueled missile began on 13 September 1948,$^{:129}$ and the rocket entered military service in 1950.$^{:149}$ Also from 1947, two advanced rockets with ranges of 600 kilometres (370 mi), the German émigré-designed G-1 (or R-10) and the Russian-designed R-2, competed for limited engineering and production staff, the latter winning out by the end of 1949$^{:65}$ and being put into service in 1951.$^{:274}$ The draft plan for the 3,000 kilometres (1,900 mi) range R-3 was approved on 7 December 1949,$^{:67}$ though it was never developed, later designs proving more useful and achievable.$^{:275–76}$

## Space exploration
### V-2, WAC Corporal, and R-1A

The V-2s captured from Germany at the end of World War II were used for engineering and scientific missions by the United States and the Soviet Union. The first 25 captured V-2s were launched in the 15 months commencing 15 March 1946.$^{:398}$ By the end of 1950, more than 60 had been launched by the Americans, most of them equipped with research instruments.$^{:6}$ The first biological payloads launched to high altitude were sent on V-2s, starting with seeds and fruit flies in 1947, followed by mice and monkeys from 1948 onward.
The V-2 was also used in early experiments with two-stage rockets: Project Bumper combined the V-2 first stage with the WAC Corporal as second stage. On 24 February 1949, Bumper 5 set an altitude record of 417 kilometres (259 mi).$^{:257–58}$ Around 10 WAC Corporals were also launched on their own in this period.$^{:6}$
The Soviet Union launched 11 captured V-2s in 1947.$^{:41}$ Three of the V-2s launched by the USSR in 1947 carried 500 kilograms (1,100 lb) experiment packages for measuring cosmic rays at high altitude; at least one returned usable data.$^{:56}$ Two Soviet R-1As (an experimental R-1 variant that tested nose cone separation at altitude) also carried scientific equipment during test launches in 1949, but neither returned usable data.

### Aerobee

First launched on 24 November 1947, the solid/liquid-fuel hybrid Aerobee quickly secured a reputation for reliability. With the development of these first generation purpose-built sounding rockets, the exploration of Earth's upper atmosphere and the nearest reaches of space began in earnest, a total of 46 Aerobee flights being launched through 1950. Aerobee flights measured the velocity and density of cosmic rays above 70 miles (110 km) and made high altitude measurements of the Earth's magnetic field. Cameras mounted on Aerobee rockets returned the first high quality photographs from space of sizeable regions of the Earth as well as large scale cloud formations.$^{:251}$

### Viking

Vikings 1 and 2, launched in 1949 from White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, both suffered from premature engine cutoff due to turbine leaks, significantly reducing their maximum altitude.$^{:98–102}$ The improved Viking 3, launched on 9 February 1950, reached 50 mi (80 km) and could have gone higher. However, after 34 seconds of accurately guided flight, the rocket veered westward and had to be destroyed by range safety.$^{:108–114}$
On 10 May 1950, Viking 4 was launched from a site in the Pacific Ocean between Jarvis Island and Christmas Island. The fourth Viking became the first sounding rocket ever launched from a sea-going vessel, the USS Norton Sound. This flight was perfect, reaching 106.4 mi (171.2 km), more than double that reached by the earlier Vikings.$^{:108–114}$
Viking 5, launched on 21 November 1950, carried a vast array of radiation detectors. The rocket also carried two movie cameras to take high altitude film of the Earth all the way to its peak height of 108 miles (174 km) as well as Pirani gauges to measure air densities in the upper atmosphere.$^{:148,236}$ Viking 6, launched on 11 December, underperformed, reaching a maximum altitude of 40 miles (64 km).$^{:151–153,236}$

## Launches

* ← 1942
* 1943
* 1944
* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950 →

### 1942

1942 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 13 June — 12 December | V-2 | V-2 | | Peenemünde | Peenemünde | Wehrmacht | Wehrmacht |
| 13 June — 12 December | | | Wehrmacht | Suborbital | Missile test | Same day | Mixed |
| 7 V-2 rockets launched on test flights, 3 successfully ||||||

### 1943

1943 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 7 January — 30 December | V-2 | V-2 | | Peenemünde, Heidelager | Peenemünde, Heidelager | Wehrmacht | Wehrmacht |
| 7 January — 30 December | | | Wehrmacht | Suborbital | Missile test | Same day | Mixed |
| 39 V-2 rockets launched on test flights; at least 9 failures ||||||

### 1944

1944 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 20 June | V-2 | V-2 | | Greifswalder Oie | Greifswalder Oie | Wehrmacht | Wehrmacht |
| 20 June | | MW 18014 | Wehrmacht | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 June | Successful |
| First artificial object to cross 100 km (the boundary of space per the FAI). Vertical test, apogee: 174.6 kilometres (108.5 mi) ||||||
| 8 September | V-2 | V-2 | | Houffalize | Houffalize | Wehrmacht | Wehrmacht |
| 8 September | | | Wehrmacht | Suborbital | Missile attack | 8 September | Successful |
| First combat usage of V-2 after more than a hundred test flights; ~3000 combat launches followed until March 1945 (see List of V-2 test launches) ||||||

### 1945

1945 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 2 October 13:41 | V-2 | V-2 | | Cuxhaven | Cuxhaven | UK military | UK military |
| 2 October 13:41 | | | | Suborbital | | 2 October | Successful |
| First launch of Operation Backfire; apogee: 69.4 kilometres (43.1 mi) ||||||
| 4 October 13:15 | V-2 | V-2 | | Cuxhaven | Cuxhaven | UK military | UK military |
| 4 October 13:15 | | | | Suborbital | | 4 October | Partial failure |
| Apogee: 17.4 kilometres (10.8 mi) ||||||
| 15 October 14:06 | V-2 | V-2 | | Cuxhaven | Cuxhaven | UK military | UK military |
| 15 October 14:06 | | | | Suborbital | | 15 October | Successful |
| Press and international observers present; Apogee: 64 kilometres (40 mi) ||||||

### 1946

1946 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 16 April 21:47 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 2 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | General Electric / US Army | General Electric / US Army |
| 16 April 21:47 | | | WSPG | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation (Applied Physics Laboratory) | 16 April | Launch failure |
| First launch of Project Hermes, apogee: 8 kilometres (5.0 mi), guidance failure; carried Geiger counter designed by James Van Allen ||||||
| 10 May 21:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 3 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 10 May 21:15 | | | WSPG | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation (APL) | 10 May | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 112 kilometres (70 mi), First US spaceflight ||||||
| 29 May 21:12 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 4 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 29 May 21:12 | | | GE | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation (APL) | 29 May | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 112 kilometres (70 mi) ||||||
| 13 June 23:40 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 5 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 13 June 23:40 | | | GE | Suborbital | Solar Radiation / Ionospheric (Naval Research Laboratory) | 13 June | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 117 kilometres (73 mi) ||||||
| 28 June 19:25 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 6 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 28 June 19:25 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar Radiation / Aeronomy / Ionospheric$^{:336–337}$ | 28 June | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 108 kilometres (67 mi) ||||||
| 9 July 19:25 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 7 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 9 July 19:25 | | | GE | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric (NRL) / Biological (Harvard University)$^{:338–339}$ | 9 July | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 134 kilometres (83 mi), sent seeds to space ||||||
| 19 July 19:11 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 8 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 19 July 19:11 | | | GE | Suborbital | Ionospheric (NRL) | 19 July | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 4.8 kilometres (3.0 mi), explosion at 28.5 seconds ||||||
| 30 July 19:36 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 9 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 30 July 19:36 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric (NRL)$^{:342–343}$ | 30 July | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 167 kilometres (104 mi) ||||||
| 15 August 18:00 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 10 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 15 August 18:00 | | | Princeton University | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric$^{:344}$ | 15 August | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi), guidance failure at 13.9 seconds ||||||
| 22 August 17:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 11 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 22 August 17:15 | | | University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Sky Brightness$^{:345}$ | 22 August | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 0.1 kilometres (0.062 mi), guidance failure immediately after lift ||||||
| 10 October 18:02 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 12 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 10 October 18:02 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar Spectroscopy / Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Biological (Harvard)$^{:346–347}$ | 10 October | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 164 kilometres (102 mi), launched with seeds and cross jet attenuation transmitter and receiver ||||||
| 24 October 19:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 13 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 24 October 19:15 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Aeronomy / Photography | 24 October | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 105 kilometres (65 mi), first photo of Earth from space, short burning time (59 sec) ||||||
| 7 November 20:31 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 14 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 7 November 20:31 | | | Princeton University | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 7 November | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 0.4 kilometres (0.25 mi). Guidance failure at 2 seconds, missile turned sideways, flew horizontal and was destroyed.$^{:350}$ ||||||
| 21 November 16:55 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 15 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 21 November 16:55 | | | Watson Laboratories / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Sky Brightness / Voltage Breakdown$^{:351–352}$ | 21 November | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 102 kilometres (63 mi) ||||||
| 5 December 20:08 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 16 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 5 December 20:08 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Aeronomy / Photography | 5 December | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 167 kilometres (104 mi), guidance problems ||||||
| 18 December 05:12 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 17 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 18 December 05:12 | | Grenades | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Meteor Research / Biological (National Institute of Health) | 18 December | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 187 kilometres (116 mi), first night flight of a V-2. Released artificial meteors for photographic observation. Carried fungus spores. Extraordinary range due to guidance failure.$^{:355–356}$ ||||||

### 1947

1947 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 10 January 21:13 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 18 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 10 January 21:13 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 10 January | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 116 kilometres (72 mi), roll at 40 seconds$^{:357–358}$ ||||||
| 24 January 00:22 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 19 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 24 January 00:22 | | | GE | Suborbital | Test Guidance System / Hermes A-2 Telemetry System Test$^{:359–360}$ | 24 January | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 50 kilometres (31 mi) ||||||
| 20 February 18:16 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 20 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 20 February 18:16 | | Blossom I | Air Materiel Command | Suborbital | Aeronomy (University of Michigan) / Ionospheric (AFCRC, University of Michigan) / Sky Brightness / Voltage Breakdown (AFCRC) / Biological$^{:361–362}$ | 20 February | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 109 kilometres (68 mi), guidance disturbance at 27 sec, roll at 37.5 seconds. Flew with rye seeds, cotton seeds, and fruit flies, the first animals in space. ||||||
| 7 March 18:23 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 21 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 7 March 18:23 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Aeronomy / Solar Radiation / Ionospheric (NRL) / Biological (Harvard) | 7 March | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 161 kilometres (100 mi), sent seeds to space$^{:363–365}$ ||||||
| 1 April 20:10 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 22 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 1 April 20:10 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV (APL, Yerkes Observatory) / Photography | 1 April | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 129 kilometres (80 mi)$^{:366–367}$ ||||||
| 9 April 00:10 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 23 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 9 April 00:10 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Photography | 9 April | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 103 kilometres (64 mi)$^{:368–369}$ ||||||
| 17 April 23:22 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 24 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 17 April 23:22 | | Grenades | GE | Suborbital | Aeronomy (Signal Corps Engineering Laboratories)$^{:370–371}$ | 17 April | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 140 kilometres (87 mi), roll at 57.5 seconds ||||||
| 15 May 23:08 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 26 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 15 May 23:08 | | Grenades | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy (SCEL) / Cosmic Radiation / Solar Radiation / Ionospheric (NRL)$^{:374–375}$ | 15 May | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 122 kilometres (76 mi), steering trouble from lift ||||||
| 29 May | V-2 | V-2 | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 29 May | | Hermes II | GE | Suborbital | Test of ramjet diffusers called "Organ" | 29 May | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 50 kilometres (31 mi), maiden flight of the Hermes II V-2 variant. Rocket flew south instead of north and landed in Mexico ||||||
| 10 July 19:18 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 29 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 10 July 19:18 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric / Biological (Harvard College Observatory) | 10 July | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 16.3 kilometres (10.1 mi), steering trouble from lift, cutoff triggered at 32 seconds$^{:383–384}$ ||||||
| 29 July 12:55 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 30 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 29 July 12:55 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Photography | 29 July | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 159 kilometres (99 mi), vane #4 ceased to operate at 27 seconds$^{:386–387}$ ||||||
| 6 September | V-2 | V-2 | | USS Midway, Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Bermuda | USS Midway, Atlantic Ocean, southeast of Bermuda | US Navy | US Navy |
| 6 September | | | US Navy | Suborbital | Missile test | 6 September | Launch failure |
| Operation Sandy, first shipboard missile launch, apogee: 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) ||||||
| 9 October 19:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 27 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 9 October 19:15 | | | GE | Suborbital | Aeronomy (University of Michigan) / Solar UV (NRL)$^{:376–378}$ | 9 October | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 156 kilometres (97 mi), steering disturbance at 48.4 seconds, roll at 52 seconds ||||||
| 18 October 07:47 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 18 October 07:47 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 October | Partial failure |
| Apogee: 86 kilometres (53 mi); destroyed during ballistic portion of flight ||||||
| 20 October 07:47 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 20 October 07:47 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 October | Partial failure |
| Apogee: 85 kilometres (53 mi); tore loose from launch stand; flew 180 kilometres (110 mi) left of planned target ||||||
| 23 October 14:05 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 23 October 14:05 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 October | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 14 kilometres (8.7 mi); payload destroyed, rocket disintegrated ||||||
| 28 October 14:05 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 28 October 14:05 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 October | Successful |
| Apogee: 87 kilometres (54 mi) ||||||
| 31 October 13:41 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 31 October 13:41 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 31 October | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 0 kilometres (0 mi); loss of control on longitudinal axis ||||||
| 2 November 15:14 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 2 November 15:14 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 2 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 88 kilometres (55 mi) ||||||
| 3 November 12:05 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 3 November 12:05 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 November | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 0 kilometres (0 mi); rolled after launch and lost stabilization ||||||
| 4 November 15:02 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 4 November 15:02 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 4 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 89 kilometres (55 mi) ||||||
| 10 November 09:39 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 10 November 09:39 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 November | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 11 kilometres (6.8 mi); lost guidance ||||||
| 13 November 08:30 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 November 08:30 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 89 kilometres (55 mi) ||||||
| 13 November 14:00 | V-2 | V-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 November 14:00 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 November | Partial failure |
| Apogee: 89 kilometres (55 mi); broke up on re-entry ||||||
| 20 November 23:47 | V-2 | V-2 | GE Special | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 20 November 23:47 | | | GE | Suborbital | Technology development flight for GE | 20 November | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 21 kilometres (13 mi), propulsion trouble at 36 seconds$^{:471}$ ||||||
| 24 November 17:20 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A4 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 24 November 17:20 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 24 November | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 55.8 kilometres (34.7 mi), maiden flight of the Aerobee RTV-N-8, although three booster tests with dummy upper stages occurred earlier in the year.$^{:260–261}$ Flew off course, flight terminated. ||||||
| 8 December 21:42 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 28 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 8 December 21:42 | | Blossom II | AMC | Suborbital | Aeronomy (University of Michigan, Boston University) / Solar X-Ray / Ionospheric (Boston University, WADC) / Sky Brightness (AFCRC)$^{:379–382}$ | 8 December | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 105 kilometres (65 mi) ||||||

### 1948

1948 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 22 January 20:12 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 34 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 22 January 20:12 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric | 22 January | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 159 kilometres (99 mi)$^{:396–397}$ ||||||
| 6 February 17:17 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 36 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 6 February 17:17 | | | GE | Suborbital | Technology development flight for GE | 6 February | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 113 kilometres (70 mi)$^{:401–402}$ ||||||
| 5 March 22:51 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A5 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 5 March 22:51 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 5 March | Successful |
| Apogee: 117.5 kilometres (73.0 mi)$^{:262–263}$ ||||||
| 19 March 23:10 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 39 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 19 March 23:10 | | Blossom IIA | GE / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Magnetic Field | 19 March | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 5.5 kilometres (3.4 mi), air pressure failure caused early burnout$^{:408–409}$ ||||||
| 2 April 13:47 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 25 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 2 April 13:47 | | Grenades | USASC / University of Michigan / NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV | 2 April | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 144 kilometres (89 mi)$^{:372–373}$ ||||||
| 13 April 21:41 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A6 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 13 April 21:41 | | | APL / NOL | Suborbital | Magnetic field research | 13 April | Successful |
| Apogee: 114.3 kilometres (71.0 mi)$^{:264–265}$ ||||||
| 19 April 19:54 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 38 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 19 April 19:54 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Ionospheric | 19 April | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 56 kilometres (35 mi), guidance failure caused irratic flight and cutoff was triggered at 57.1 seconds$^{:406–407}$ ||||||
| 13 May 13:43 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 13 May 13:43 | | Bumper 1 | GE | Suborbital | Solar / Ionosphere | 13 May | Successful |
| Maiden flight of Bumper, apogee: 127.6 kilometres (79.3 mi) ||||||
| 27 May 14:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 35 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 27 May 14:15 | | | APL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Photography | 27 May | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 140 kilometres (87 mi)$^{:399–400}$ ||||||
| 11 June 10:22 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 37 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 11 June 10:22 | | Blossom III | AMC | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Ionospheric / Sky Brightness / Aeronomy / Biological | 11 June | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 63 kilometres (39 mi), premature valve closure caused an early engine cutoff.$^{:403–405}$ Carried the monkey Albert I. ||||||
| 26 July 16:47 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A7 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 26 July 16:47 | | | APL | Suborbital | Earth Imaging | 26 July | Successful |
| Apogee: 112.7 kilometres (70.0 mi)$^{:266–267}$ ||||||
| 26 July 18:03 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 40 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 26 July 18:03 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Aeronomy | 26 July | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 97 kilometres (60 mi), propulsion issues at 45.2 seconds$^{:411–412}$ ||||||
| 5 August 12:07 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 43 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 5 August 12:07 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Solar X-Ray / Ionospheric / Photography | 5 August | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 167 kilometres (104 mi)$^{:418–419}$ ||||||
| 6 August 01:37 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | NRL 1 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 6 August 01:37 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Solar Radiation / Aeronomy | 6 August | Successful |
| Apogee: 97 kilometres (60 mi)$^{:293–294}$ ||||||
| 19 August 14:45 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 19 August 14:45 | | Bumper 2 | GE | Suborbital | Solar UV | 19 August | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 13.1 kilometres (8.1 mi) ||||||
| 3 September 01:00 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 33 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 3 September 01:00 | | Grenades | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 3 September | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 151 kilometres (94 mi)$^{:394–395}$ ||||||
| 17 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 17 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 17 September | Launch failure |
| Maiden flight of the R-1 ||||||
| 30 September 15:30 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 30 September 15:30 | | Bumper 3 | GE | Suborbital | Solar UV / X-Ray | 30 September | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 150.6 kilometres (93.6 mi), 2nd stage failure ||||||
| 10 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 10 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 October | Successful |
| 11 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 11 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test, sounding rocket | 11 October | Successful |
| First Soviet spaceflight with scientific experiments ||||||
| 13 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 October | Successful |
| 21 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 21 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 21 October | Successful |
| 23 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 23 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 October | Successful |
| 1 November 14:24 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 1 November 14:24 | | Bumper 4 | GE | Suborbital | Test flight | 1 November | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 5 kilometres (3.1 mi), tail explosion at 28.5 seconds ||||||
| 1 November | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 1 November | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Successful |
| 2 November 00:15 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A8 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 2 November 00:15 | | | APL / NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar X-Ray | 2 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 90.9 kilometres (56.5 mi)$^{:268–269}$ ||||||
| 3 November | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 3 November | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 November | Successful |
| 4 November | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 4 November | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 4 November | Successful |
| 5 November | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 5 November | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 5 November | Successful |
| Last of nine launches in the first test series ||||||
| 18 November 22:35 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 44 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 18 November 22:35 | | | GE | Suborbital | Ramjet research / Aeronomy / Solar X-Ray / Biological | 18 November | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 145 kilometres (90 mi), carried seeds and tested a Hermes B-1 ramjet diffuser in place of the warhead$^{:420–421}$ ||||||
| 9 December 16:08 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 42 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 9 December 16:08 | | | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Solar X-Ray / Biological | 9 December | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 108 kilometres (67 mi), carried seeds$^{:416–417}$ ||||||
| 9 December 22:38 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 1 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 9 December 22:38 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 9 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 91.6 kilometres (56.9 mi), maiden flight of the XASR-SC-1$^{:188–189}$ ||||||

### 1949

1949 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 14 January 20:26 | V-2 | V-2 | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | US Army | US Army |
| 14 January 20:26 | | Hermes II | US Army | Suborbital | Missile test | 14 January | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) ||||||
| 28 January 17:20 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 45 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 28 January 17:20 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar Radiation / Ionospheric / Photography / Biological | 28 January | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 60 kilometres (37 mi), carried seeds. Poor propulsion and control, fuel cutoff triggered at 56.4 seconds.$^{:423–424}$ ||||||
| 29 January 06:17 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | NRL 2 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 29 January 06:17 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Solar X-Ray | 29 January | Successful |
| Apogee: 97 kilometres (60 mi)$^{:295–296}$ ||||||
| 1 February 18:38 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | NRL 3 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 1 February 18:38 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Solar UV / Solar X-Ray | 1 February | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 0 kilometres (0 mi), booster exploded at ignition$^{:297}$ ||||||
| 17 February 17:00 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 48 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 17 February 17:00 | | | APL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Solar UV / Photography / Biological | 17 February | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 127 kilometres (79 mi), carried fruit flies$^{:431–432}$ ||||||
| 24 February 22:14 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 24 February 22:14 | | Bumper 5 | GE | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 24 February | Successful |
| Apogee: 393 kilometres (244 mi). The new altitude record. ||||||
| 2 March 00:15 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A9 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 2 March 00:15 | | | APL | Suborbital | Test for shipboard launch | 2 March | Successful |
| Dummy firing to evaluate shipboard launching procedures$^{:270}$ ||||||
| 17 March 23:20 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A10 | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | US Navy | US Navy |
| 17 March 23:20 | | | APL | Suborbital | Ionospheric | 17 March | Successful |
| Apogee: 105 kilometres (65 mi)$^{:271–272}$ ||||||
| 22 March 06:43 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 41 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 22 March 06:43 | | Blossom IVA | AMC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Solar X-Ray / Imaging / Ionospheric | 22 March | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 129 kilometres (80 mi)$^{:413–415}$ ||||||
| 22 March 17:30 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A11 | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | US Navy | US Navy |
| 22 March 17:30 | | | APL | Suborbital | Ionospheric | 22 March | Successful |
| Apogee: 105 kilometres (65 mi)$^{:273–274}$ ||||||
| 24 March 15:14 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A12 | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near South America | US Navy | US Navy |
| 24 March 15:14 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 24 March | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 6.0 kilometres (3.7 mi), pressure valve malfunction, booster separated on ignition$^{:275}$ ||||||
| 11 April 22:05 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 50 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 11 April 22:05 | | | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Solar X-Ray / Biological | 11 April | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 85 kilometres (53 mi), carried seeds and bacteria$^{:436–437}$ ||||||
| 22 April 00:17 | Bumper | Bumper | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 22 April 00:17 | | Bumper 6 | GE | Suborbital | Solar / Aeronomy | 22 April | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 50 kilometres (31 mi) ||||||
| 3 May 16:14 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 3 May 16:14 | | Viking 1 | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Imaging | 3 May | Partial launch failure |
| Apogee: 83 kilometres (52 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 5 May 15:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 46 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 5 May 15:15 | | | GE | Suborbital | Technology development for GE / Solar Radiation | 5 May | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 8.77 kilometres (5.45 mi), carried a Hermes B-1 ramjet diffuser in place of the warhead. Premature cutoff at 25.5 seconds.$^{:425–426}$ ||||||
| 7 May 03:12 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 7 May 03:12 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 7 May | Successful |
| Apogee: 109 kilometres (68 mi), maiden flight of R-1A, tested separable warhead ||||||
| 10 May 15:57 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 10 May 15:57 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 May | Successful |
| Tested separable warhead ||||||
| 15 May 02:48 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 15 May 02:48 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 15 May | Successful |
| Tested separable warhead ||||||
| 16 May 21:55 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 16 May 21:55 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 16 May | Successful |
| Tested separable warhead ||||||
| 24 May 01:40 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 24 May 01:40 | | FIAR-1 | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test / Aeronomy | 24 May | Partial Failure |
| Vertical flight, tested separable warhead, carried aeronomy experiments that were not recovered ||||||
| 28 May 01:50 | R-1A | R-1A | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 28 May 01:50 | | FIAR-1 | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test / Aeronomy | 28 May | Partial Failure |
| Final R-1A flight; vertical flight, tested separable warhead, carried aeronomy experiments damaged on landing and returned no usable data ||||||
| 2 June 13:10 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 2 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 2 June 13:10 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 2 June | Successful |
| Apogee: 78.4 kilometres (48.7 mi)$^{:190–191}$ ||||||
| 14 June 22:35 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 47 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 14 June 22:35 | | Blossom IVB | AMC | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Biological | 14 June | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 134 kilometres (83 mi), carried Albert II, the first mammal and monkey in space. Albert II died on impact after his capsule's parachute failed.$^{:427–430}$ ||||||
| 15 June 02:03 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | NRL 5 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 15 June 02:03 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Ozone Spectroscopy / Solar X-Ray | 15 June | Successful |
| Apogee: 109 kilometres (68 mi)$^{:300–301}$ ||||||
| 17 June 11:50 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A13 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 17 June 11:50 | | | APL | Suborbital | Aerodynamics test | 17 June | Successful |
| Apogee: 88 kilometres (55 mi)$^{:276}$ ||||||
| 23 June 23:21 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | A14 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 23 June 23:21 | | | APL / NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar X-Ray | 23 June | Successful |
| Apogee: 88 kilometres (55 mi)$^{:277–278}$ ||||||
| 21 July 16:01 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 4 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 21 July 16:01 | | | USASC / University of Michigan / NRL | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy | 21 July | Successful |
| Apogee: 76.1 kilometres (47.3 mi)$^{:194–195}$ ||||||
| 6 September 16:57 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 6 September 16:57 | | Viking 2 | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Imaging | 6 September | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 51 kilometres (32 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 10 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 10 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 September | Successful |
| First flight of second series of tests ||||||
| 11 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 11 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 11 September | Successful |
| 13 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 September | Successful |
| 14 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 14 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 14 September | Successful |
| 16 September 23:19 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 32 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 16 September 23:19 | | Blossom IVC | AMC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Cosmic Radiation / Solar X-Ray / Biological | 16 September | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 4.2 kilometres (2.6 mi), carried Albert III. Rocket tumbled after two explosions in the tail section at 10.7 and 24.2 seconds.$^{:391–393}$ ||||||
| 17 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 17 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 17 September | Successful |
| 19 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 19 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 19 September | Successful |
| 20 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 20 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 September | Launch failure |
| 20 September 17:03 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 5 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 20 September 17:03 | | | USASC / University of Michigan / NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Solar X-Ray | 20 September | Successful |
| Apogee: 58.6 kilometres (36.4 mi)$^{:196–197}$ ||||||
| 23 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 23 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 September | Launch failure |
| 25 September 11:16 | R-2E | R-2E | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 25 September 11:16 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 25 September | Successful |
| Maiden flight of R-2E, a modified R-1 missile to test R-2 concepts: integral fuel tank and separable warhead ||||||
| 28 September | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 28 September | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 28 September | Successful |
| 29 September 16:58 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 49 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 29 September 16:58 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation / Ionospheric / Meteoric Dust Collectors | 29 September | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 151 kilometres (94 mi)$^{:433–434}$ ||||||
| 30 September 11:49 | R-2E | R-2E | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 30 September 11:49 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 30 September | Successful |
| 2 October 11:00 | R-2E | R-2E | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 2 October 11:00 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 2 October | Partial failure |
| Fire in tail compartment ||||||
| 3 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 3 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 3 October | Successful |
| 6 October | V-2 | V-2 | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | US Army | US Army |
| 6 October | | Hermes II | US Army | Suborbital | Missile test | 6 October | Launch failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) ||||||
| 8 October 06:05 | R-2E | R-2E | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 8 October 06:05 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 8 October | Successful |
| 8 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 8 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 8 October | Successful |
| 10 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 10 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 10 October | Successful |
| 11 October 12:45 | R-2E | R-2E | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 11 October 12:45 | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 11 October | Partial failure |
| Fire in tail compartment, last of five R-2E launches ||||||
| 12 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 12 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 12 October | Successful |
| 13 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 October | Successful |
| 13 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 13 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 13 October | Successful |
| 15 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 15 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 15 October | Successful |
| 18 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 18 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 18 October | Successful |
| 19 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 19 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 19 October | Successful |
| 22 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 22 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 22 October | Successful |
| 23 October | R-1 | R-1 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | NII-88 Section 3 | NII-88 Section 3 |
| 23 October | | | NII-88 Section 3 | Suborbital | Missile test | 23 October | Successful |
| Last of second series of twenty firings ||||||
| 18 November 16:03 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 56 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 18 November 16:03 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Cosmic Radiation | 18 November | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 124 kilometres (77 mi)$^{:450–451}$ ||||||
| 2 December 22:20 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 1 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 2 December 22:20 | | | AFCRL / Boston University / WADC | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy / Imaging | 2 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 96.1 kilometres (59.7 mi), maiden flight of the RTV-A-1$^{:46–47}$ ||||||
| 6 December 18:32 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 3 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 6 December 18:32 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 6 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 64.9 kilometres (40.3 mi)$^{:192–193}$ ||||||
| 7 December 00:16 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 7 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 7 December 00:16 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 7 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 60.0 kilometres (37.3 mi)$^{:200–201}$ ||||||
| 8 December 19:15 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 31 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 8 December 19:15 | | Blossom IVD | AMC | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Solar X-Ray / Biological | 8 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 127 kilometres (79 mi), carried Albert IV$^{:388–390}$ ||||||
| 15 December 17:10 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 2 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 15 December 17:10 | | | AFCRL / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy | 15 December | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 0.3 kilometres (0.19 mi), exploded shortly after leaving tower$^{:48–49}$ ||||||

### 1950

1950 launches :
| Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | Launch site | LSP | LSP |
| Date and time (UTC) | | Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome |
| Remarks ||||||
| 15 January 23:45 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | A15 | USS Norton Sound, Gulf of Alaska | USS Norton Sound, Gulf of Alaska | US Navy | US Navy |
| 15 January 23:45 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 15 January | Successful |
| Ship-launched; Apogee: 72 kilometres (45 mi), maiden flight of the RTV-N-10$^{:279–280}$ ||||||
| 18 January 23:17 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | A16 | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near the state of Washington | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean near the state of Washington | US Navy | US Navy |
| 18 January 23:17 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 18 January | Successful |
| Ship-launched; Apogee: 80 kilometres (50 mi)$^{:281–282}$ ||||||
| 9 February 21:44 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 9 February 21:44 | | Viking 3 | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Solar Radiation / Aeronomy / Imaging | 9 February | Launch failure |
| Veered off-course, failed to reach space, apogee: 80 kilometres (50 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 14 February 23:14 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | Aerobee RTV-N-8 | NRL 4 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 14 February 23:14 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation / Aeronomy | 14 February | Successful |
| Apogee: 87.5 kilometres (54.4 mi), final flight of the RTV-N-8$^{:298–299}$ ||||||
| 17 February 18:00 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 53 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 17 February 18:00 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Cosmic Radiation / Aeronomy | 17 February | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 148 kilometres (92 mi)$^{:444–445}$ ||||||
| 22 February 00:54:30 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 9 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 22 February 00:54:30 | | | USASC / University of Michigan / NRL | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy | 22 February | Successful |
| Apogee: 49.1 kilometres (30.5 mi)$^{:204–205}$ ||||||
| 4 March 00:36 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 6 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 4 March 00:36 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 4 March | Successful |
| Apogee: 72 kilometres (45 mi)$^{:198–199}$ ||||||
| 14 March 20:43 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 3 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 14 March 20:43 | | | AFCRL / University of Rhode Island | Suborbital | Solar Radiation / Sky Brightness | 14 March | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi), premature fuel cutoff after 4.75 seconds.$^{:50–51}$ ||||||
| 26 April 01:11 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 11 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 26 April 01:11 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 26 April | Successful |
| Apogee: 99.5 kilometres (61.8 mi), maiden flight of the XASR-SC-2$^{:208–209}$ ||||||
| 12 May 03:08 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean, near Jarvis Island | USS Norton Sound, Pacific Ocean, near Jarvis Island | US Navy | US Navy |
| 12 May 03:08 | | Viking 4 | NRL | Suborbital | Ionospheric / Aeronomy | 12 May | Successful |
| Apogee: 169 kilometres (105 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 12 May 12:30 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | A17 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 12 May 12:30 | | | APL | Suborbital | Cosmic Radiation | 12 May | Successful |
| Apogee: 88.1 kilometres (54.7 mi)$^{:283–284}$ ||||||
| 26 May 19:43 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 4 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 26 May 19:43 | | | AFCRL / University of Rhode Island | Suborbital | Solar Radiation | 26 May | Successful |
| Apogee: 67 kilometres (42 mi)$^{:52–53}$ ||||||
| 2 June 17:07 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 5 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 2 June 17:07 | | | AFCRL | Suborbital | Sky Brightness | 2 June | Partial launch failure |
| Apogee: 24.8 kilometres (15.4 mi), nose cone broke off at 2.8 seconds and rocket continued flying without nose. Some telemetry received and instruments operated satisfactorally, but experiments returned no data due to short flight duration.$^{:54–55}$ ||||||
| 20 June 15:38 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 6 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 20 June 15:38 | | | AFCRL / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 20 June | Successful |
| Apogee: 92.5 kilometres (57.5 mi)$^{:56–57}$ ||||||
| 14 July 08:39 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | SC 8 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 14 July 08:39 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 14 July | Successful |
| Apogee: 69 kilometres (43 mi)$^{:202–203}$ ||||||
| 24 July 14:29 | Bumper | Bumper | | Cape Canaveral LC-3 | Cape Canaveral LC-3 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 24 July 14:29 | | Bumper 8 | GE | Suborbital | Low angle speed test | 24 July | Launch failure |
| First missile launch from Cape Canaveral; apogee: 20 kilometres (12 mi) ||||||
| 29 July 11:25 | Bumper | Bumper | | Cape Canaveral LC-3 | Cape Canaveral LC-3 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 29 July 11:25 | | Bumper 7 | GE | Suborbital | Low angle speed test | 29 July | Successful |
| Apogee: 35.2 kilometres (21.9 mi) ||||||
| 3 August 23:52 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | NRL 6 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 3 August 23:52 | | | NRL | Suborbital | Sunfollower Spectroscopy / Solar X-Ray | 3 August | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 5.6 kilometres (3.5 mi), fuel line rupture caused sustainer to produce no useful thrust$^{:302}$ ||||||
| 17 August 15:45 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | Aerobee RTV-N-10 | A18 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 17 August 15:45 | | | APL | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 17 August | Successful |
| Apogee: 101 kilometres (63 mi)$^{:285–286}$ ||||||
| 31 August 17:09 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 51 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 31 August 17:09 | | Blossom IVG | AMC | Suborbital | Solar X-Ray / Aeronomy / Ionospheric / Sky Brightness / Biological | 31 August | Successful |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 137 kilometres (85 mi), carried a mouse which did not survive due to a parachute failure$^{:438–440}$ ||||||
| 1 October | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 October | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 October | Partial failure |
| Maiden flight of the R-2 prototype missile; missed target ||||||
| 1 October | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 October | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 October | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 12 October 19:36 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 7 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 12 October 19:36 | | | AFCRL / WADC / Boston University | Suborbital | Photography / Temperature | 12 October | Successful |
| Apogee: 91.2 kilometres (56.7 mi)$^{:58–59}$ ||||||
| 17 October 04:00 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 10 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 17 October 04:00 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 17 October | Successful |
| Apogee: 80 kilometres (50 mi)$^{:206–207}$ ||||||
| 18 October 04:30 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 12 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 18 October 04:30 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 18 October | Successful |
| Apogee: 85.6 kilometres (53.2 mi)$^{:210–211}$ ||||||
| 21 October | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 21 October | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 21 October | Partial Failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 26 October 23:02 | V-2 | V-2 | V-2 No. 61 | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | GE / US Army | GE / US Army |
| 26 October 23:02 | | | Ballistic Research Laboratory | Suborbital | Technology development | 26 October | Partial failure |
| Project Hermes launch: 8.1 kilometres (5.0 mi), rocket exploded at 50 seconds, but experiment still considered successful.$^{:460–462}$ ||||||
| 27 October 13:30 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 13 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 27 October 13:30 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 27 October | Successful |
| Apogee: 80.1 kilometres (49.8 mi)$^{:212–213}$ ||||||
| 1 November | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 November | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 November | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 November | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 November | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 November | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 November | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 November | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 November | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 November | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 November | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 2 November 16:29 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 8 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 2 November 16:29 | | | AFCRL / University of Colorado / University of Denver | Suborbital | Airglow | 2 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 92 kilometres (57 mi)$^{:60–61}$ ||||||
| 9 November | V-2 | V-2 | | White Sands LC-33 | White Sands LC-33 | US Army | US Army |
| 9 November | | Hermes II | US Army | Suborbital | Missile test | 9 November | Partial Failure |
| Project Hermes launch, apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi), final flight of the Hermes II ||||||
| 21 November 17:18 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 21 November 17:18 | | Viking 5 | NRL | Suborbital | Ionospheric / Solar Radiation / Aeronomy | 21 November | Successful |
| Apogee: 174 kilometres (108 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 1 December | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 December | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 December | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 December | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 December | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 December | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 1 December | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 1 December | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 1 December | Partial failure |
| Missed target ||||||
| 11 December 17:04 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 15 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 11 December 17:04 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 11 December | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 0.3 kilometres (0.19 mi)$^{:216}$ ||||||
| 12 December 04:06 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 14 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 12 December 04:06 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 12 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 83.8 kilometres (52.1 mi)$^{:214–215}$ ||||||
| 12 December 07:04 | Viking (first model) | Viking (first model) | | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | White Sands LC-33 – Army Launch Area 1 | US Navy | US Navy |
| 12 December 07:04 | | Viking 6 | NRL | Suborbital | Aeronomy / Solar Radiation / Ionospheric | 12 December | Launch failure |
| Apogee: 64 kilometres (40 mi)$^{:236}$ ||||||
| 12 December 09:10 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 16 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 12 December 09:10 | | Grenades | USASC | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 12 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 77.7 kilometres (48.3 mi)$^{:217–218}$ ||||||
| 12 December 18:26 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | Aerobee RTV-A-1 | USAF 9 | Holloman LC-A | Holloman LC-A | US Air Force | US Air Force |
| 12 December 18:26 | | | AFCRL / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 12 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 106 kilometres (66 mi)$^{:62–63}$ ||||||
| 19 December 18:52 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | SC 17 | White Sands LC-35 | White Sands LC-35 | US Army | US Army |
| 19 December 18:52 | | | USASC / University of Michigan | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 19 December | Successful |
| Apogee: 81.9 kilometres (50.9 mi)$^{:219–220}$ ||||||
| 20 December | R-2 | R-2 | | Kapustin Yar | Kapustin Yar | OKB-1 | OKB-1 |
| 20 December | | | OKB-1 | Suborbital | Missile test | 20 December | Partial failure |
| Final flight of 12 mission prototype series; missed target ||||||
* ← 1942
* 1943
* 1944
* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950 →

## Suborbital launch summary (1945–1950)
### By country

Launches by country :
| Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures |
| United Kingdom | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| United States | 120 | 84 | 32 | 4 |
| Soviet Union | 64 | 38 | 7 | 19 |

### By rocket

* V-2 (British)
* V-2 (American)
* V-2 (Soviet)
* Bumper
* Viking (first model)
* Aerobee RTV-N-8
* Aerobee RTV-N-10
* Aerobee XASR-SC-1
* Aerobee XASR-SC-2
* Aerobee RTV-A-1
* R-1
* R-1A
* R-2E
* R-2
Launches by rocket :
| Rocket | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
| V-2 | United Kingdom | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Maiden flight, retired |
| V-2 / Hermes II | United States | 59 | 40 | 17 | 2 | Maiden flight, first US spaceflight |
| Bumper | United States | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | Maiden flight, retired |
| Viking (first model) | United States | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | Maiden flight |
| Aerobee RTV-N-8 | United States | 16 | 13 | 3 | 0 | Maiden flight, retired |
| Aerobee RTV-N-10 | United States | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | Maiden flight |
| Aerobee XASR-SC-1 | United States | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | Maiden flight |
| Aerobee XASR-SC-2 | United States | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | Maiden flight |
| Aerobee RTV-A-1 | United States | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | Maiden flight |
| V-2 | Soviet Union | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | Maiden flight, retired |
| R-1 | Soviet Union | 30 | 27 | 3 | 0 | Maiden flight, first Soviet spaceflight |
| R-1A | Soviet Union | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | Maiden flight, retired |
| R-2E | Soviet Union | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | Maiden flight, retired |
| R-2 | Soviet Union | 12 | 0 | 0 | 12 | Maiden flight |