Since the start of the space age satellites and probes have greatly enhanced our knowledge of astronomy.

Missions have gone to all the major planets except Pluto, and we are now starting to try and get samples returned to Earth from objects such as comets and asteroids

The missions on these pages are now over and it is interesting to note how things have changed over the decades

In the early years there were large numbers of missions which were very short and often failed. Today missions can last for several years and relatively few research probes are sent.

Please use the navigation buttons to the left to browse the missions in each decade.