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Disclaimer. OO Insights is an independent, non-commercial project provided for informational and educational purposes only. Data is aggregated from third-party public sources (including GCAT, CelesTrak, and TheSpaceDevs Launch Library 2) and is provided ‘as is,’ without warranty; it may be incomplete, delayed, or inaccurate. Some content, including the weekly brief, is AI-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Figures are derived per our published methodology, which we recommend reviewing. It is not investment, financial, or professional advice. Any reliance on this content is at your own risk.

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Mass to orbit

1,805 t
YTD 2026 · 171 successful launches
+13.4% vs same point in 2025 (1,592 t through Jul 25)
Source: GCAT·Updated just now

How much payload — the satellites and cargo rockets carry, not the rockets themselves — has reached orbit so far this year, measured in tonnes.

Trajectory

Annual mass to orbit, t

Breakdowns (2026 YTD)

By launch provider

Top 8 · tonnes

Mass to orbit by launch provider (the company or agency that flew the rocket).

By vehicle

Top 8 · tonnes

Mass to orbit by launch vehicle type.

Top single launches

By payload mass · 2026 YTD
  1. Ship 39
    May 22, 2026 · Starship V3 · SpaceX
    120 t
  2. Ship 40
    Jul 24, 2026 · Starship V3 · SpaceX
    120 t
  3. Amazon LE-03
    Jun 17, 2026 · Ariane 64 · Arianespace
    20 t
  4. Tianzhou-10
    May 11, 2026 · Chang Zheng 7 · CALT (China)
    19 t
  5. Bluebird 8 to 10
    Jun 17, 2026 · Falcon 9 · SpaceX
    18 t

What this measures

“Mass” here means payload mass — the satellites and cargo a rocket carries, not the rocket itself. A Starlink stack, a crew capsule, a science probe: their weight adds up on this page; the rocket's own structure, propellant, and spent upper stages do not.

It's the total payload mass delivered to orbit by successful launches since January 1, measured in tonnes (t). Figures come from Jonathan McDowell's GCAT, which records a payload mass for each launch; failed and suborbital flights are excluded.

Related

Mass to orbit and Launches YTD look related but answer different questions — one weighs each launch by payload mass, the other counts launches equally. A single heavy lift can swing this page's number without moving the launch count at all.

See When two metrics disagree on the methodology page for the full reconciliation.

How I count this

Sum of payload mass on successful orbital launches since January 1 of the current year.

  • Source▾

    Jonathan McDowell’s GCAT (launch.tsv)

  • Includes▾

    Launches with LaunchCode = OS (Orbital Success) and a recorded payload mass

  • Excludes▾

    Failed launches, suborbital, missile/sounding rockets, deep-space missions

  • Limitations▾

    GCAT is maintained by hand and typically lags 1–2 weeks on the most recent launches. Some launches list partial-payload mass.

  • License▾

    Creative Commons CC-BY

Full methodology →
Data from GCAT (J. McDowell, planet4589.org/space/gcat), released under Creative Commons CC-BY.