Spacecraft launched in 2006

STS-116 (also known as ISS-12A) was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) flown by Space Shuttle Discovery. Discovery lifted off on December 9, 2006, for her 33rd flight at 20:47:35 EST. A previous launch attempt on December 7 had been canceled due to cloud cover. It was the first night launch of a Space Shuttle since STS-113 in November 2002.

STS-115 was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) flown by . It was the first assembly mission to the ISS after the Columbia disaster, following the two successful Return to Flight missions, STS-114 and STS-121. STS-115 launched from LC-39B at the Kennedy Space Center on September 9, 2006, at 11:14:55 EDT (15:14:55 UTC).

CoRoT (French: ; English: Convection, Rotation and planetary Transits) was a space telescope mission which operated from 2006 to 2013. The mission's two objectives were to search for extrasolar planets with short orbital periods, particularly those of large terrestrial size, and to perform asteroseismology by measuring solar-like oscillations in stars. The mission was led by the French Space Agency (CNES) in conjunction with the European Space Agency (ESA) and other international partners.

STS-121 was a 2006 Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) flown by on its 32nd flight. The main purposes of the mission were to test new safety and repair techniques introduced following the Columbia disaster of February 2003 as well as to deliver supplies, equipment, and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Thomas Reiter to the ISS. The European segment of the mission was called "Astrolab".

USA-193, also known as NRO Launch 21 (NROL-21 or simply L-21), was a United States military reconnaissance satellite (radar imaging) launched on 14 December 2006. It was the first launch conducted by the United Launch Alliance (ULA). Owned by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the craft's exact function and purpose were classified. On 21 February 2008, it was destroyed as a result of Operation Burnt Frost.

infrared astronomy satellite developed by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

soyuz space program mission

mission to the International Space Station

JAXA space observatory

CALIPSO was a joint NASA (US) and CNES (France) environmental satellite, built in the Cannes Mandelieu Space Center, which was launched atop a Delta II rocket on April 28, 2006. Its name stands for Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations. CALIPSO launched alongside CloudSat.

CloudSat is a Passivated NASA Earth observation satellite, which was launched on a Delta II rocket on April 28, 2006, and is awaiting disposal. It used radar to measure the altitude and properties of clouds, adding to the information on the relationship between clouds and climate to help resolve questions about global warming.

Japanese synthetic-aperture radar satellite launched in 2006

BelKA or BKA (an acronym from Belarusian: Беларускі Касмічны Апарат, Belarusian Cosmic Apparatus) is the first satellite of independent Belarus.

Chinese orbital carrier rocket

MetOp (Meteorological Operational satellite) is a series of three polar-orbiting meteorological satellites developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) and operated by the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). The satellites form the space segment component of the overall EUMETSAT Polar System (EPS), which in turn is the European half of the EUMETSAT / NOAA Initial Joint Polar System (IJPS). The satellites carry a payload comprising 11 scientific instruments and two which support Cospas-Sarsat Search and Rescue services. In order to provide data co

KOMPSAT-2 (Korean Multi-purpose Satellite-2), also known as Arirang-2, is a South Korean multipurpose Earth observation satellite. It was launched from Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russia at 07:45:43 UTC (16:05:43 KST) on 28 July 2006. It began to transmit signals at 14:00 UTC (23:00 KST) the same day. Like the earlier KOMPSAT-1 satellite, it takes its name from the popular Korean folk song Arirang. Its launch was the culmination of a project begun in 1995.

experimental space habitat, launched in 2006

Russian Earth observation satellite

Experimental space technologies

Spainsat is a Spanish telecommunications satellite used for military and government communications. It allows telecommunications the different missions of the Spanish Armed forces abroad by providing coverage on a wide area of the world ranging from the United States and South America to the Middle East, including Africa and Europe.

GeneSat-1 is a NASA fully automated, CubeSat spaceflight system that provides life support for bacteria E. Coli K-12. The system was launched into orbit on 16 December 2006, from Wallops Flight Facility. GeneSat-1 began to transmit data on its first pass over the mission's California ground station.

series of two Norwegian pico-satellites

KazSat-1 (, QazSat-1) is the first Kazakh communications satellite. It was launched on 17 June 2006, at 22:44:05 UTC by Proton-K / Blok DM-2M launch vehicle. This satellite was constructed by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center for the satellite bus and Thales Alenia Space (Italy) for the payload. Thales Alenia Space is also the provider of KazSat-2 and KazSat-3 payloads.

Russian cargo spacecraft

Russian cargo spacecraft

South Korean communications satellite

communications satellite

joint U.S.-Taiwanese research satellite constellation

Russian cargo spacecraft

series of weather and aviation control satellites

Russian military early warning satellite

U.S. Space Force weather satellite

communications satellite

Thai communications satellite

Russian GLONASS navigation satellite

JAXA Engineering Test Satellite ETS-VIII (Kiku 8) was the eighth technology test satellite in a series which started with ETS-1 in 1975 by NASDA. It was launched with the H-2A on December 18, 2006. ETS-VIII was developed by JAXA in cooperation with NICT and NTT. The aim of ETS-VIII was to enable satellite communications with small terminals. Unlike the Iridium satellites for mobile communication, ETS-VIII was positioned at GEO. However to fulfill the task, it was essential that the satellite carried two very large antennas. It was the first use of the 204 configuration (four strap-on boosters)

Russian GLONASS navigation satellite

thumb|MiTEx launching from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station|CCAFS on a [[Delta II.]] thumb|MiTEx mission patch

Russian GLONASS navigation satellite

Russian spy satellite

INSAT-4C was an Indian communications satellite which was lost in a launch failure in 2006. Had it reached orbit, it would have formed part of the Indian National Satellite System. Launched in 2007, it was intended to have operated in geostationary orbit at a longitude of 73.97° east. The INSAT-4CR satellite, launched in September 2007, replaced it.

TacSat-2 is the first in a series of U.S. military experimental technology and communication satellites.TacSat-2 (also known as JWS-D1 ((Joint Warfighting Space-Demonstrator 1) or RoadRunner) was an experimental satellite built by the USAF's Air Force Research Laboratory with an operational life expected to be not more than one year as part of the "Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration" program.

Badr-4 (a.k.a. Arabsat 4B) is an EADS Astrium-built communications satellite operated by Arabsat, launched 8 November 2006 on a Proton-M/Briz-M rocket. It provides fixed satellite communications services in C- and Ku-bands from the 26° East orbital position.