List of first satellites by country

As of 15 March 2026, over eighty countries have operated artificial satellites.

   Denotes international organisations
   Denotes countries formerly part of another country which already had a spacecraft in orbit
   Denotes countries with disputed sovereignty or recognition and autonomous dependent territories
Country Satellite Operator Manufacturer Carrier rocket Launch site Date (UTC) Remarks
 Soviet Union Sputnik 1 OKB-1 OKB-1 Sputnik 8K71PS Baikonur 4 October 1957 First satellite launched
 United States Explorer 1 ABMA JPL Juno I RS-29 Cape Canaveral 1 February 1958
 United Kingdom Ariel 1 RAE NASA / SERC Thor DM-19 Delta Cape Canaveral 26 April 1962
 Canada Alouette 1 DRDC DRDC Thor DM-21 Agena-B Vandenberg 29 September 1962
 Italy San Marco 1 CNR CRA Scout X-4 Wallops 15 December 1964
 France Astérix CNES CNES Diamant A Hammaguir 26 November 1965
 Australia WRESAT WRE WRE Sparta Woomera 29 November 1967
10 European countries
  • Belgium
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Netherlands
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • United Kingdom
 ESRO 2B ESRO Hawker Siddeley Scout B Vandenberg 17 May 1968
 West Germany Azur DLR DLR / NASA Scout B Vandenberg 8 November 1969
 Japan Ohsumi ISAS ISAS Lambda-4S Kagoshima 11 February 1970
 China Dongfanghong I CAST CAST Chang Zheng 1 Jiuquan 24 April 1970
 Netherlands ANS SRON / NASA Philips Scout D-1 Vandenberg 30 August 1974
 Spain Intasat INTA Standard Electrica Delta 2310 Vandenberg 15 November 1974
 India Aryabhata ISRO ISRO Kosmos-3M Kapustin Yar 19 April 1975
 Indonesia Palapa A1 Perumtel Hughes Delta 2914 Cape Canaveral 8 July 1976
 Czechoslovakia Magion 1 IAP IG Kosmos-3M Plesetsk 24 October 1978
 Bulgaria Bulgaria 1300 BSA Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Vostok-2M Plesetsk 7 August 1981
 Saudi Arabia Arabsat-1A Arabsat Aérospatiale Ariane 3 Kourou 8 February 1985
 Brazil Brasilsat A1 Embratel Hughes
 Mexico Morelos 1 SCT Hughes Space Shuttle Discovery Kennedy 17 June 1985 Deployed using PAM-D during STS-51-G
 Sweden Viking SSC Boeing/
Saab		 Ariane 1 Kourou 22 February 1986
 Israel Ofek-1 IAI Shavit Palmachim 19 September 1988
 Luxembourg Astra 1A SES Astra GE Astrospace Ariane 44LP Kourou 11 December 1988
 Argentina Lusat AMSAT Argentina Ariane 40 Kourou 22 January 1990
Hong Kong AsiaSat 1 AsiaSat Hughes Chang Zheng 3 Xichang 7 April 1990 Hong Kong, a British Overseas Territory, became part of the People's Republic of China in July 1997
 Pakistan Badr-1 SUPARCO SUPARCO Chang Zheng 2E Xichang 16 July 1990
 Russia Kosmos 2175 Soyuz-U Plesetsk 21 January 1992 Successor state to the Soviet Union
 South Korea Kitsat-1 KAIST SSTL Ariane 42P Kourou 10 August 1992
 Portugal PoSAT-1 PoSAT SSTL Ariane 40 Kourou 26 September 1993
 Thailand Thaicom-1 Shin Satellite Hughes Ariane 44L Kourou 18 December 1993
 Turkey Turksat 1B Türksat Aérospatiale Ariane 44LP Kourou 10 August 1994
 Czech Republic Magion 4 IAP IAP Molniya-M Plesetsk 2 August 1995 Formerly part of Czechoslovakia
 Ukraine Sich-1 Tsyklon-3 Plesetsk 31 August 1995 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 Chile FASat-Alfa SSTL Failed to separate
 Malaysia MEASAT-1 MEASAT Hughes Ariane 44L Kourou 13 January 1996
 Norway Thor 2 Telenor Hughes Delta II 7925 Cape Canaveral 20 May 1997
 Philippines Mabuhay (Agila 1)
(former Palapa B2P)		 Mabuhay Delta-3920 Cape Canaveral 20 March 1987 Originally operated and launched for Indonesian company PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara. Acquired while on orbit by Mabuhay in 1996 making it the first Philippine owned satellite.
Mabuhay 1 (Agila 2) SS/Loral Chang Zheng 3B Xichang 19 August 1997 First Philippine satellite to be launched from space
 Egypt Nilesat 101 Nilesat Astrium Ariane 44P Kourou 28 April 1998
 Singapore
 Taiwan		 ST-1 SingTel
Chunghwa		 Astrium Ariane 44P Kourou 25 August 1998
 Taiwan Formosat-1 NSPO TRW Athena I Cape Canaveral 27 January 1999
 South Africa SUNSAT Stellenbosch Stellenbosch Delta II 7920 Vandenberg 23 February 1999 Launched on same rocket as first Danish satellite
 Denmark Ørsted DMI CRI Launched on same rocket as first South African satellite
Georgia Reflektor Energia-GPI Space Energia-GPI Space Soyuz-U Baikonur Site 1/5 17 July 1999 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 United Arab Emirates Thuraya 1 Thuraya Boeing Zenit-3SL Odyssey 21 October 2000
 Belgium PROBA-1 ESA Verhaert Space Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle Satish Dhawan 22 October 2001
 Morocco Maroc-Tubsat TU Berlin Zenit-2 Baikonur 10 December 2001
 Tonga Esiafi 1
(formerly Comstar D4)		 TONGASAT SS/Loral Atlas SLV-3D Centaur-D1AR Cape Canaveral 21 February 1981 A private American satellite that transferred ownership to Tonga in April 2002
 Algeria AlSAT-1 SSTL Kosmos-3M Plesetsk 28 November 2002
 Greece Hellas-Sat 2 Hellas-Sat Astrium Atlas V 401 Cape Canaveral 13 May 2003
 Nigeria NigeriaSat-1 SSTL Kosmos-3M Plesetsk 27 September 2003
 Iran Sina-1 NPO Polyot Kosmos-3M Plesetsk 27 October 2005
 Kazakhstan KazSat-1 Khrunichev Proton-M/DM3 Baikonur 17 June 2006 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
 Colombia Libertad-1 Dnepr Baikonur 17 April 2007
 Mauritius Rascom-QAF 1 Rascom Alcatel Ariane 5GS Kourou 21 December 2007
 Vietnam Vinasat-1 Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group Lockheed Martin Ariane 5ECA Kourou 18 April 2008
 Venezuela Venesat-1 CAST Chang Zheng 3B/E Xichang 29 October 2008
Afghanistan Eutelsat 48D / Afghansat 1 Afghanistan Ministry of Communications and Information EADS Astrium Ariane 5ECA Kourou 20 December 2008 Satellite leased to the Afghanistan Ministry of Communications and Information in January 2014
 Switzerland SwissCube-1 PSLV-CA Satish Dhawan 23 September 2009
 Singapore X-Sat SATREC PSLV-C Satish Dhawan 20 April 2011
 Isle of Man ViaSat-1 ViaSat-IOM, ManSat, Telesat-IOM SS/Loral Proton-M/Briz-M Baikonur 19 October 2011 Isle of Man is a Crown Dependency of the British sovereign
 Hungary MaSat-1 BME Vega Kourou 13 February 2012
 Poland PW-Sat Warsaw University of Technology, Space Research Centre Deorbit on 28 October 2014
 Romania Goliat
 Belarus BelKA-2 Soyuz-FG/Fregat Baikonur 22 July 2012
 North Korea Kwangmyŏngsŏng-3 Unit 2 KCST Unha-3 Sohae 12 December 2012 Failed to operate in orbit
 Azerbaijan Azerspace-1/Africasat-1a Space Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos) Orbital Sciences Ariane 5ECA Kourou 7 February 2013 Independent since 1991
 Austria TUGSAT-1/UniBRITE UTAIS PSLV-CA Satish Dhawan 25 February 2013 Austria's first two satellites were launched together
 Bermuda Bermudasat 1
(former EchoStar VI)		 Bermudasat SS/Loral Atlas IIAS Cape Canaveral 14 July 2000 Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory; Bermudasat 1 (former private American EchoStar VI) satellite was transferred in April 2013 to Bermuda being at orbit
 Ecuador NEE-01 Pegaso EXA EXA Chang Zheng 2D Jiuquan 26 April 2013
 Estonia ESTCube-1 Vega Kourou 7 May 2013 Estonia was formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 Jersey O3b-1/O3b-2/O3b-3/O3b-4 O3b Networks Thales Alenia Space Soyuz-STB/Fregat-MT Kourou 25 June 2013 Jersey's first four satellites were launched together. Jersey is a Crown Dependency of the British sovereign
 France
 Qatar		 Eutelsat 25B / Es'hail 1 Eutelsat
Es'hailSat		 SS/Loral Ariane 5ECA Kourou 29 August 2013 Qatar's first satellite flew as a joint project with the French corporation Eutelsat
 Qatar Es'hail 1 Es'hailSat SS/Loral Ariane 5ECA Kourou 29 August 2013 Full ownership of the joint France-Qatar satellite Eutelsat 25B / Es'hail 1 was sold to Es'hailsat in 2018
 Peru PUCP-Sat 1 Dnepr Dombarovsky 21 November 2013
Pocket-PUCP
 Bolivia Túpac Katari 1 CAST Chang Zheng 3B/E Xichang 20 December 2013
 Lithuania LitSat-1/Lituanica SAT-1 Antares 120 MARS LP-0A 9 January 2014 The first two Lithuanian satellites were launched together; both carried to the International Space Station and deployed later in the year. Lithuania was formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 Iraq Tigrisat MOST / La Sapienza La Sapienza Dnepr Dombarovsky 19 June 2014
 Uruguay ANTELSAT ANTEL UdelaR
 Turkmenistan TurkmenAlem52E/MonacoSAT TNSA Alcatel Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral 27 April 2015 Formerly part of the Soviet Union.
 Laos Laosat-1 Laos National Authority for Science and Technology CAST Chang Zheng 3B/E Xichang 20 November 2015
 Finland Aalto-2 Aalto University Aalto University Atlas V 401 Cape Canaveral 18 April 2017
 Bangladesh BRAC ONNESHA BRACU Kyushu Institute of Technology Falcon 9 Full Thrust Kennedy 3 June 2017 Launched on same rocket as first Ghanaian and Mongolian satellites
 Ghana GhanaSat-1 All Nations University Launched on same rocket as first Bangladeshi and Mongolian satellites
 Mongolia Mazaalai (satellite) National University of Mongolia Launched on same rocket as first Ghanaian and Bangladeshi satellites
 Latvia Venta 1 Ventspils University College Ventspils University College PSLV-CA Satish Dhawan 23 June 2017 Formerly part of the Soviet Union, Launched on same rocket as first Slovakian satellite
 Slovakia skCUBE SOSA SOSA Formerly part of Czechoslovakia, Launched on same rocket as first Latvian satellite
 Angola AngoSat 1 AngoSat RSC Energia Zenit-3F / Fregat-SB Baikonur 26 December 2017 Launch was successful but contact was lost quickly afterwards. On 28 December 2017, communication was restored and telemetry was received.
 New Zealand Humanity Star Rocket Lab Rocket Lab Electron Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 21 January 2018 First satellite launched by New Zealand launcher.
 Costa Rica Proyecto Irazú Costa Rica Institute of Technology Costa Rica Institute of Technology Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral 2 April 2018 First satellite of Central America. Manufactured in Costa Rica.
 Kenya 1KUNS-PF University of Nairobi University of Nairobi Launched on same rocket as first Costa Rican satellite.
 Bhutan Bhutan 1 Bhutanese students under Kyutech-led second Joint Global Multination Birds Project (Birds-2) Kyushu Institute of Technology Falcon 9 Full Thrust Cape Canaveral 29 June 2018
 Jordan JY1-SAT Jordanian students under the Crown Prince Foundation Falcon 9 Full Thrust Vandenberg 3 December 2018
 Nepal NepaliSat-1 NAST for Nepal Academy of Science and Technology Kyushu Institute of Technology Antares 230 MARS LP0A 17 April 2019
Sri Lanka Raavana 1 Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern Technologies Kyushu Institute of Technology
 Rwanda RWASAT-1 Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority Rwandan engineers with support from the University of Tokyo H-IIB Tanegashima Space Center Yoshinobu Launch Complex 24 September 2019 Decay from orbit 27 April 2022
 Sudan Sudan Remote Sensing Satellite 1 (SRSS-1) Sudan ISRA Long March 4B Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre LC-9 3 November 2019
 Ethiopia Ethiopian Remote Sensing Satellite 1 (ETRSS-1) Ethiopia  Ethiopia Ethiopian Space Science and Technology Institute Long March 4B Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre 20 December 2019
 Guatemala Quetzal-1 Universidad del Valle de Guatemala  Guatemala Students from the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral SLC-40 7 March 2020
Slovenia TRISAT University of Maribor University of Maribor Vega Kourou 3 September 2020 Launched on same rocket as first Monégasque satellite.
NEMO-HD Space-SI UTIAS / Space-SI
Monaco OSM-1 Cicero Orbital Solutions Monaco Orbital Solutions Monaco Launched on same rocket as first two Slovenian satellites.
Paraguay GuaraniSat-1 Paraguayan Space Agency and Kyutech-led fourth Joint Global Multination Birds Project Kyushu Institute of Technology Antares 230 MARS LP0A 20 February 2021 Launched on same rocket as first Myanma satellite.
Myanmar Lawkanat-1 Myanmar Aerospace Engineering University Hokkaido University / Myanmar Aerospace Engineering University Launched on same rocket as first Paraguayan satellite.
Tunisia Challenge-1 Telnet Tunisie Telnet Tunisie Soyuz-2.1a / Fregat Baikonur Site 31/6 22 March 2021
Kuwait QMR-KWT Orbital Space Kuwait Orbital Space Kuwait Falcon 9 CCSFS SLC-40 30 June 2021
Bahrain
 United Arab Emirates		 Light-1 New York University Abu Dhabi Engineers from Bahrain's space agency, NSSA, in collaboration with Khalifa University Falcon 9 CCSFS 21 December 2021 Bahrain's first satellite flew as a joint project with the UAE Space Agency
Armenia
Spain 		ARMSAT_1 Satlantis / Geocosmos Satlantis Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral SLC-40 25 May 2022 Joint satellite between Satlantis and Geocosmos
Moldova TUMnanoSAT Technical University of Moldova Technical University of Moldova Falcon 9 Kennedy LC-39A 15 July 2022 Formerly part of the Soviet Union
Uganda PearlAfricaSat-1 Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation Kyushu Institute of Technology Antares MARS LP-0A 7 November 2022 Launched on the same rocket as the first Zimbabwean satellite
Zimbabwe ZIMSAT-1 Zimbabwe National Geospatial and Space Agency Kyushu Institute of Technology Launched on the same rocket as the first Ugandan satellite
Albania Albania-1 State Authority for Geospatial Information Satellogic Falcon 9 Cape Canaveral SLC-40 3 January 2023 First Albanian satellites, launched as a pair
Albania-2
Macau Macao Science-1A Macau University of Science and Technology Macau University of Science and Technology Long March 2C Jiuquan LA-4 21 May 2023 First Macanese satellites, launched as a pair
Macao Science-1B
Vatican City
Italy 		SpeiSat Dicastery for Communication/ASI ASI Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 12 June 2023 Joint satellite between the Italian Space Agency and the Vatican Dicastery for Communication
Oman AMAN-1 ETCO SatRev Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 11 November 2023 Launched on the same rocket as the first Djiboutian satellite
Djibouti Djibouti-1A University of Djibouti University of Montpellier Launched on the same rocket as the first Omani satellite
Armenia Hayasat-1 Bazoomq Space Research Laboratory Bazoomq Space Research Laboratory, Center of Scientific Innovation and Education Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 1 December 2023 Formerly part of the Soviet Union. Launched on the same rocket as the first Irish satellite
Ireland EIRSAT-1 University College Dublin University College Dublin Launched on the same rocket as the first Armenian satellite
Senegal GAINDESAT-1A SenSat University of Montpellier Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 16 August 2024
Croatia CroCube Društvo EVO EVO/ Spacemanic Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 21 December 2024
Botswana BOTSAT-1 Botswana International University of Science and Technology EnduroSat Falcon 9 Vandenberg SLC-4E 15 March 2025
Montenegro Luča Montenegro Space Research AIVT by Sputnix Soyuz-2.1b / Fregat-M Vostochny Site 1S 28 December 2025
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