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

Infrared Astronomical Satellite was a 1983 American, Dutch, and British mission, notable as the first space telescope to...

Telescope Nasa Infrared Past

8.6 Great

9

Kaguya

Kaguya, also called SELENE, was Japan's 2007 lunar orbiter that mapped the Moon in detail with subsatellites and high-de...

Past Moon Orbiter Jaxa

8.4 Great

10

IKAROS

IKAROS was a JAXA spacecraft launched in 2010, notable as the first successful interplanetary mission propelled by a sol...

Technology Past Venus Jaxa

8.1 Great

11

GALEX

GALEX was a NASA ultraviolet space telescope launched in 2003, notable for surveying star formation and galaxy evolution...

Survey Nasa Galaxies Past

8.0 Great

12

Yohkoh

Yohkoh was Japan's 1991 Solar-A observatory, notable for a decade of X-ray solar flare and corona observations with NASA...

Solar Observatory Past X Ray

8.0 Great

13

Infrared Space Observatory

Infrared Space Observatory was an ESA telescope launched in 1995, notable for infrared spectroscopy and imaging of cool...

Astronomy Telescope Infrared Past

7.9 Good

14

Spektr-R

Spektr-R was Russia's 2011 RadioAstron space radio telescope, notable for 10 m antenna interferometry with ground dishes...

Astronomy Russia Telescope Radio

7.7 Good

15

SLIM

SLIM was Japan's 2023 lunar lander, built by JAXA to demonstrate pinpoint landing and making Japan the fifth country to...

Precision Past Moon Lander

7.7 Good

16

Geotail

Geotail was a 1992 ISAS-NASA mission that studied Earth's magnetotail, notable for three decades of magnetosphere observ...

Nasa Past Magnetosphere Earth

7.6 Good

17

Akebono

Akebono was Japan's 1989 EXOS-D satellite for aurora and magnetosphere studies, notable for 26 years of observations bef...

Aurora Past Magnetosphere Earth

7.4 Good

18

Cheops

Cheops is an ESA space telescope launched in 2019 with Swiss leadership, built to measure the sizes of known exoplanets...

Survey Telescope Active Exoplanets

7.3 Good

19

Hitomi

Hitomi was a Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite launched in 2016, notable for brief high-resolution observations before...

Astronomy Telescope Past X Ray

4.7 Poor

20

Nozomi

Nozomi was Japan's first Mars probe, launched by ISAS in 1998, but propulsion and electrical problems prevented Mars orb...

Planetary Mars Past Orbiter

3.4 Poor