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Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org: GCAT / Jonathan’s Space Report orbital launch attempts table, updated 12 October 2026, accessed 24 October 2026. USA, China and Russia; 78 annual observations. Includes failures and selected near-orbital tests. Running totals calculated once from 2000; native cumulative sum off. Country classification follows McDowell; Electron from Mahia belongs to New Zealand, not USA. Russia includes launches abroad. Latest raw table revises USA 2024 to 144 (February paper 145). No partial 2026 or gap filling; animated transitions are illustrative. Not all-time totals, satellite counts, payload mass, science or reliability. Full figures, definitions, changes and credits: /examples/space-race-20261025/sources.html
One orbital launch attempt is one rocket launch, not one satellite or a measure of payload mass. Failed and selected near-orbital flights are included; another definition can give another tally. The complete original table, including other countries and partial 2026, is retained as a source snapshot; only 2000–2025 for these three countries enters the chart. Values are cumulative from1 January 2000, not all-time. No missing years are filled.
The US first overtakes Russia at the2022 year-end observation, and China first overtakes Russia at 2025 year end. Interpolation is illustrative; it does not establish the day of either overtake. The earlier February 2026 review gives 145 US attempts in 2024; the later live table revises this to 144. All sums use the later table consistently.
Country attribution follows McDowell’s classification. Russian launches from Baikonur remain Russian; Electron launches from Mahia are counted as New Zealand, not the United States. The US series includes private operators, not only NASA.
Background: NASA/Keegan Barber, Crew-9 launch, 28 September 2024, a NASA federal photograph used under the NASA Image and Media Usage Guidelines. Crop, position, scale and opacity adjusted. It illustrates launch activity, not every country or year. No NASA endorsement. National flags from Flagcdn. No generated imagery.
Annual counts and cumulative totals (CSV). Supporting data and credits.