2024: Groundbreaking Advances in Space Exploration – Part 2

Kazi Abul Monsur, Journalist#
As we journey deeper into 2024, space exploration has continued to be a central theme of scientific achievement. This year has witnessed historic missions, new discoveries, and a deeper understanding of our universe. From Mars to the Moon, and beyond, space agencies and private companies have made leaps toward realizing humanity’s dream of interplanetary exploration. Here’s a closer look at some of the most exciting space exploration milestones of 2024.

Mars Exploration: A Historic Milestone
In 2024, a historic milestone was achieved in the field of Mars exploration. An international team of scientists and engineers successfully landed an autonomous rover on Mars as part of a collaborative mission led by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and other global space partners.

This mission, dubbed “Mars Discoverer”, marked a first-of-its-kind success in sending an entirely autonomous rover to the surface of the Red Planet. Equipped with advanced scientific instruments, the rover’s primary mission is to study Martian soil, atmosphere, and the potential for ancient microbial life. It is also tasked with paving the way for future human missions by assessing resources such as water and oxygen.

This achievement is a testament to the progress in autonomous technologies and AI, making it possible to explore Mars in ways that were previously unimaginable.

NASA’s Artemis Program: The Return to the Moon
2024 saw incredible advancements in NASA’s Artemis Program, which is set to return humans to the Moon for the first time since the Apollo missions. The Artemis II mission, launched in early 2024, successfully tested NASA’s new Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, setting the stage for future crewed missions to the Moon.

The Artemis II mission took astronauts on a journey around the Moon in an uncrewed test flight, proving that the spacecraft and rocket are ready for their first human crew. The mission’s primary goal is to establish sustainable lunar exploration, with a focus on building a lunar gateway that will serve as a space station orbiting the Moon, which will serve as a hub for deep-space exploration, including future missions to Mars.

NASA’s ambitious goal is to land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2025, as part of its larger mission to explore and colonize outer space.

James Webb Space Telescope: Unveiling the Mysteries of the Universe
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) continued to make groundbreaking discoveries in 2024. One of the most exciting revelations was the detection of the first galaxies formed after the Big Bang, thanks to JWST’s unprecedented ability to look further into the past than any other telescope before it.

In addition to examining the early universe, JWST provided scientists with a deeper understanding of exoplanets. By studying the atmospheres of distant exoplanets, scientists have begun to identify signs of habitability and the potential for life outside our solar system. This year, JWST’s observations hinted at the presence of water vapor and organic molecules in the atmospheres of exoplanets, opening up exciting possibilities for life beyond Earth.

JWST has truly set a new standard for space telescopes, and its discoveries are expected to continue reshaping our understanding of the cosmos for years to come.

Space Tourism: A Step Closer to Commercial Space Travel
2024 has been a major year for space tourism, with private companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic making huge strides in making space travel accessible to civilians. Blue Origin completed its most successful crewed spaceflight to date, taking a group of space tourists on a short journey into suborbital space.

Meanwhile, SpaceX launched its first commercial mission to the International Space Station (ISS), carrying civilians and private astronauts aboard its Dragon spacecraft. This mission was significant not only for its commercial value but also for showcasing the future of space tourism, where space travel could become a viable option for non-professional astronauts.

With each successful mission, space tourism becomes increasingly realistic, and industry leaders are working to lower costs, increase safety, and make trips to space more frequent and accessible.

China’s Lunar Exploration: Mission Chang’e-7
China’s Chang’e-7 lunar mission made significant strides in 2024 with its successful landing on the Moon’s south pole. The mission’s primary objective was to search for water ice and study the lunar surface to gather crucial data for future lunar habitation projects.

China’s space agency, CNSA, has been steadily increasing its space exploration capabilities, and Chang’e-7 is part of China’s broader plan to establish a lunar research base by the late 2020s. This mission also included the launch of a small rover designed to study the Moon’s volatile-rich regions, a key area for future lunar resource extraction.

Commercial Space Companies Lead the Charge in Space Innovation
2024 saw continued growth in private sector involvement in space exploration. Companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Rocket Lab have expanded their reach, not only launching satellites and cargo to low Earth orbit (LEO) but also setting ambitious goals for deep-space missions. SpaceX continued its dominance in the commercial spaceflight industry, securing contracts with NASA, other countries, and private entities to supply goods and crew to the ISS.

Blue Origin, with its New Glenn rocket, has aimed to challenge SpaceX’s dominance by offering reusable orbital launch systems. Meanwhile, Rocket Lab focused on providing cost-effective launch services for small satellite missions, democratizing access to space for smaller nations and private entities.

Looking Ahead: The Future of Space Exploration
As we move into the latter part of 2024 and beyond, space exploration is poised to enter an exciting new era. With manned missions to the Moon and Mars on the horizon, ongoing work with space telescopes, and the rise of space tourism, humanity’s reach into the cosmos is expanding at an unprecedented rate. The discoveries made in 2024 have set the stage for an even more thrilling future as we continue to unravel the mysteries of space.##