swap_horiz Akari Alternatives

1

Apollo 8

The Apollo 8 mission involved a three-man NASA crew – Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders – undertaking the f...

Lunar Nasa Apollo Past

9.7 Brilliant

2

Vostok 1

The Vostok 1 mission represents a pivotal moment in space exploration history. Launched by the Soviet Union in April 196...

Soviet Past Leo Crewed

9.7 Brilliant

3

Cosmic Background Explorer

The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) was a NASA space mission launched in 1989 to study the cosmic microwave background...

Survey Cosmology Nasa Microwave

9.4 Excellent

4

WMAP

The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) was a NASA space mission that studied the cosmic microwave background ra...

Survey Cosmology Nasa Microwave

9.3 Excellent

5

IRAS

The Infrared Astronomy Satellite (IRAS) operated from 1983 to 1989. This joint US, UK, and Dutch space mission conducted...

Survey Historic Infrared Observatory

9.1 Excellent

6

Herschel

The Herschel Space Observatory was a European Space Agency mission launched in 2009. It operated primarily in infrared w...

Astronomy Telescope Infrared Past

8.8 Great

7

Hayabusa

The Hayabusa mission, developed by JAXA, successfully retrieved microscopic samples from the asteroid Itokawa in 2010. T...

Past Asteroid Jaxa Sample Return

8.8 Great

8

Infrared Astronomical Satellite

The Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) was a joint space telescope mission developed by the United States, the Nethe...

Telescope Nasa Infrared Past

8.6 Great

9

Kaguya

Kaguya, officially designated as SELENE (Selenological and Engineering Explorer), was a lunar orbiter mission developed...

Past Moon Orbiter Jaxa

8.4 Great

10

IKAROS

IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) was an experimental spacecraft developed by the J...

Technology Past Venus Jaxa

8.1 Great

11

GALEX

GALEX (Galaxy Evolution Explorer) was a NASA space telescope designed to observe the sky in ultraviolet wavelengths. Lau...

Survey Nasa Galaxies Past

8.0 Great

12

Yohkoh

Yohkoh, originally designated as the Solar-A mission, was a Japanese solar observation satellite launched in 1991. The s...

Solar Observatory Past X Ray

8.0 Great

13

Infrared Space Observatory

The Infrared Space Observatory (ISO) was a European Space Agency space telescope launched by an Ariane 4 rocket in Novem...

Astronomy Telescope Infrared Past

7.9 Good

14

Spektr-R

Spektr-R was a Russian space radio telescope launched on 18 July 2011 as the centerpiece of the RadioAstron mission. It...

Astronomy Russia Telescope Radio

7.7 Good

15

SLIM

SLIM was Japan's lunar lander built by JAXA to demonstrate pinpoint landing, making Japan the fifth country to soft-land...

Precision Past Moon Lander

7.7 Good

16

Geotail

Geotail was a joint Japanese and United States space mission launched in 1992 to investigate Earth's magnetosphere, espe...

Nasa Past Magnetosphere Earth

7.6 Good

17

Akebono

Akebono, originally designated EXOS-D, was a Japanese scientific satellite launched in 1989 to investigate auroras and p...

Aurora Past Magnetosphere Earth

7.4 Good

18

Cheops

Cheops (Characterising Exoplanet Satellite) is a European Space Agency space telescope launched in December 2019, develo...

Survey Telescope Active Exoplanets

7.3 Good

19

Hitomi

Hitomi, also designated ASTRO-H, was a Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite launched by JAXA on 17 February 2016. Develope...

Astronomy Telescope Past X Ray

4.7 Poor

20

Nozomi

Nozomi, called Planet-B before launch, was Japan's first Mars probe, launched by the Institute of Space and Astronautica...

Planetary Mars Past Orbiter

3.4 Poor