July 11 – America's first space station, Skylab, is deliberately allowed to burn up on
atmospheric entry over the Indian Ocean due to its decaying orbit and the lack of time to build a new spaceship to boost it up.
September 1 – The American Pioneer 11 becomes the first spacecraft to visit
Saturn when it passes the planet at a distance of 21,000 km.
December 24 – The maiden launch of
Ariane 1, the first rocket in the
Ariane launcher family.