(Image credit: Pixabay)
With the James Webb Telescope launch and NASA's successful Artemis 1 mission to the moon, 2023 is ramping up to be a busy year for space exploration and civilian missions. These include missions to study the Moon, Mars, and other bodies in our solar system, as well as missions to study the Sun, planets, asteroids, and comets. Some focus on studying the universe and its origins, while others look at improving our understanding of the Earth and its climate. Below are several of the more exciting missions that are on track to be carried out this year.
ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer
The European Space Agency's JUICE will study Jupiter's Galilean moons, including Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa. (Image credit: ESA)
Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) is a mission planned by the European Space Agency (ESA) to study the Jupiter system, including its atmosphere, moons, and environment. The primary focus of JUICE is to explore three of Jupiter's Galilean moons – Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa – all of which are believed to have subsurface oceans of liquid water and, thus, could potentially host life.
JUICE is scheduled to be launched in April 2023 and is expected to arrive at Jupiter in 2029. During its mission, JUICE will perform multiple flybys of the Galilean moons, studying their surfaces, interiors, magnetic fields and the environment surrounding Jupiter. JUICE will also make observations of Jupiter's atmosphere, ring system, and magnetic environment. JUICE is expected to greatly advance our understanding of the Jupiter system and provide new insights into the formation and evolution of our solar system and the potential for life elsewhere in the universe.
dearMoon Project
The dearMoon Project aims to send ten multinational artists to the moon and back, where the artists will create new projects based on their experiences. (Image credit: dearMoon)
The dearMoon Project is a lunar tourism mission financed by Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa and chartered by SpaceX that intends to send private passengers on a trip around the moon aboard the company's Starship spacecraft. The mission was initially planned for 2023, and it will take passengers on a six-day journey around the moon and back. The journey is expected to take six days and includes a loop around the moon and a return trip to Earth.
Eleven civilian artists, including Maezawa, were expected to launch sometime this year (2023) after Space X successfully trials its Starship, which is still under development. At this point, it's unclear when that may happen; however if successful, it will be the first civilian mission to go beyond low-earth orbit, circle the moon, and head back to Earth. Maezawa expects this flight to inspire the artists in their creation of new art, which will be presented sometime after their return to Earth, which he hopes will help promote peace around the world.
NASA's OSIRIS-Rex
NASA's OSIRIS-Rex is currently on its way back to Earth after taking a sample from asteroid Bennu in 2018. (Image credit: NASA)
OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer) is a NASA mission to study the asteroid Bennu and return a sample to Earth for analysis. The spacecraft was launched in 2016 and reached Bennu in 2018. The mission's main objectives are to investigate the composition, physical properties, and geological history of Bennu and gather data to help answer questions about the early solar system and the origins of life. The mission is expected to return the sample to Earth in 2023.
The OSIRIS-REx is equipped with a suite of scientific instruments, including a camera, spectrometers, a laser altimeter, and a touch-and-go sample acquisition mechanism. The spacecraft conducted a series of surveys and measurements of Bennu over several months and selected a site to collect a sample. On October 20, 2020, OSIRIS-REx successfully collected a sample of Bennu's surface material, and it is on its way back to Earth.
Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-S
Skyroot Aerospace looks to be the first private Indian company to launch satellites into space. (Image credit: Skyroot Aerospace)
Skyroot Aerospace is an Indian aerospace company that aims to become the first Indian company to launch satellites. The company specializes in developing and manufacturing rocket engines and satellite launch vehicles. Their goal is to provide cost-effective and reliable space launches to support India's growing space industry, and they are currently developing a family of rockets capable of delivering small satellites to low Earth orbit.
Skyroot successfully launched its Vikram-S rocket last year (2022) and reached an altitude of 90km, a distance that needs to be improved before launching satellites into orbit. The Vikram-S is a small satellite launch vehicle designed to carry small satellites into low Earth orbit, delivering payloads weighing up to 500 kg. The Vikram-S aims to provide an affordable and reliable launch solution for small satellites and help advance India's capabilities in the space sector. To that end, the company is expected to launch its first satellite this year, with a goal of undercutting other private space companies by producing 3D printed rockets in days rather than months and years.
SpaceX Starship
2023 could be the year SpaceX launches a test flight of its reusable Starship vehicle that would send astronauts to the moon, Mars and beyond. (Image credit: SpaceX)
The SpaceX Starship is designed to be a multi-purpose vehicle capable of carrying people and cargo to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. It is also intended to be used for point-to-point Earth travel, providing fast and efficient transportation around the globe. The vehicle is designed to be fully reusable and can land back on Earth after each mission. This is a significant departure from traditional spacecraft, which are typically designed for single use and cannot be reused. The goal of the Starship is to reduce the cost of space missions and make it possible for people to live and work in space.
SpaceX has been developing and testing prototypes of the Starship and plans to begin crewed missions in the near future. The company is also working towards making the Starship the primary vehicle for all its missions, including satellite launches and crewed missions to the International Space Station. Although no date has been announced yet by SpaceX, its first orbital test flight is expected to occur at some point this year.
Overall, 2023 is expected to be an exciting year for space exploration, with a continued focus on expanding our knowledge and capabilities in space and taking steps toward establishing a permanent human presence in the solar system.
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