The year 2024 saw the mission to return to the moon take a few steps back due to several delay issues from Boeing and SpaceX. But NASA can still be proud of the successful test of the interplanetary transfer system that was successfully tested. Chinese, Indian and private space agencies also recorded their own history showing that the war to return to space has now begun again in order to maintain the dignity of their respective countries.
1. Artemis Mission to Send Humans to the Moon Delayed to 2027
Orion spacecraft
NASA has announced that the Artemis III Mission, which was originally scheduled for 2026, has now been delayed to mid-2027. At the same time, the Artemis II mission that sent astronauts around the moon has been delayed from September 2025 to April 2026. The delay was done to ensure that the Orion capsule could be fully completed before the human crew could be sent.
The Artemis I mission was successfully carried out in 2022 with only three statues named Commander Moonikin Campos, Helga and Zohar. All three statues are equipped with radiation sensors, oxygen supply systems and pressure systems that ensure that human astronauts can safely carry out their missions in the future.
Since the beginning, the Artemis Mission has faced various issues such as the SLS rocket being delayed several times, the Orion spacecraft not being completed and also the failure of the Starship spacecraft test by SpaceX.
2. New World Record of 19 Astronauts in Space Simultaneously
In 1961, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to successfully go into space. This started the space war between the USSR and the United States which indirectly drove the development of computer, rocket, science, aerospace and semiconductor technology. On September 12, a new world record was recorded after 19 astronauts orbited the Earth simultaneously.
This beats the record of 17 astronauts simultaneously set in 2023. When the record was set, the ISS housed 12 astronauts: Don Pettit, Alexey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, Michael Barratt, Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Barry Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, Oleg Kononenko, Barry Wilmore and Suni Williams.
Meanwhile, 3 Chinese taikonauts – Li Cong, Li Guangsu and Ye Guangfu are currently on the Tiangong Space Station. Finally, 4 SpaceX astronauts – Jared Isaacman, Scott Poteet, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon orbited the Earth in the Crew Dragon spacecraft to carry out the Polaris Dawn mission. Polaris Dawn also became the first private mission to successfully perform extravehicular activity (EVA).
3. NASA Shares Plan for How the International Space Station Will Be Deorbited
USDV
The International Space Station (ISS) will be deorbited in 2031 after operating since 1998. SpaceX has been awarded the contract to build the United States Deorbit Vehicle (USDV) that will be used to push the ISS out of orbit and crash land at Point Nemo.
In July, NASA revealed plans for how the deorbiting process will be carried out. The USDV is initially just a modified SpaceX Dragon capsule with more fuel and higher thrust. NASA will dock the USDV to the ISS 18 months before deorbiting. The ISS will then be lowered from its original orbit of 400 km above the Earth's surface in stages until 2031.
The USDV will provide the final push for the ISS to return to Earth and disintegrate due to air resistance. NASA and ISS program partners will only bring back some of the ISS components as a reminder for future generations. But like Skylab, most of the ISS components will be left to burn up.
4.NASA Successfully Sends Laser Communication Signal 226 Million KM
The Deep Space Optical Communication (DSOC) laser-based space communication system made another history when it successfully sent data to Earth from a distance of 226 million kilometers on April 8. This is more than 7 times further than the record of 31 million kilometers that was successfully recorded in December last year.
This time, data from the Psyche spacecraft carrying DSOC was successfully sent back to Earth at a speed of 25 Mbps. This is also a speed that was beyond NASA's expectations, which only expected a speed of 1 Mbps in the tests carried out.
The radio communication system currently in use has a data transmission speed of only 5.2 Mbps, which is too slow for the communication needs between Earth and the Mars colony in the future. DSOC wants to increase the data transmission rate between 10-100 times to enable real-time video communication and faster transmission of large data.
5.Russian Astronauts Break the Oldest Record in Space
On September 24, Oleg Kononenko (59) spent 1,111 days in space. The Russian cosmonaut surpassed the record held by Gennady Padalka who spent 878 days, 11 hours, 29 minutes and 48 seconds in space. Kononenko set this space record on his fifth mission to the ISS after his first visit in 2008.
The record held by Kononenko is expected to remain for a long time because Russia has no plans to conduct long-term missions to the ISS after a dispute with NASA and its allies.
Valeri Polyakov, also a Russian cosmonaut, holds the record for the longest continuous spaceflight. He spent almost 438 days in the Mir spacecraft in 1995. The mission to stay in space for a long time was carried out by Russia to see the effects on the human body. As we previously reported, among the impacts detected were the brain's white matter shrinking and the destruction of 54% of red blood cells, which is higher than on Earth.
6. SpaceX Finally Successfully Launches Starship
SpaceX finally succeeded in launching the Starship spacecraft on its third attempt last March. Like the previous two attempts, Starship was launched from Boca Chica Texas. Starship successfully separated from the Super Heavy rocket it was using and it reached its targeted orbit.
In the previous two attempts, Starship exploded and lost contact with SpaceX's control center, forcing it to be detonated. Throughout 2024, Starship was successfully launched four times, with the third launch successfully completing its mission and being recaptured using a clamping stick mechanism.
Despite the success achieved, SpaceX is still behind schedule in meeting its original plan. As a result, as we mentioned above, the Artemis III Mission using Spaceship has been postponed to 2027.
7. Mission to Mars May Be Impossible and It's All About the Kidneys
Elon Musk once said that humans will reach the surface of Mars by 2025. This has not happened yet because the necessary technology has not yet been invented. But the space agencies of China, Russia and the United States each have their own plans to send their astronauts to the Red Planet within a generation. But all hopes may not be achieved due to the weakness of human kidneys.
Scientists from University College London published a study on the effects of microgravity and exposure to galactic cosmic radiation (GCR) on astronauts' kidneys. Based on kidney health data from mice and astronauts who have spent long periods on the International Space Station (ISS), researchers found that there is a risk of permanent damage to the kidneys when traveling to Mars.
Microgravity causes astronauts to suffer from kidney stones because the body processes salt and calcium differently than on Earth. When simulated exposure to Martian radiation for 1.5 to 2.5 years was done on mice, permanent damage was detected in the kidneys until they failed to function.
There is still time to find a solution to these two problems. If not, perhaps among the tools that need to be sent to Mars are dialysis machines and replacement kidneys because humans cannot live without kidneys.
8. Japanese Billionaire Cancels Moon Orbiting Mission Due to SpaceX Delay
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa announced that the Dear Moon Project mission that wanted to take eight individuals around the moon has been canceled. This is because the mission that was supposed to be carried out in 2023 has been delayed because the Starship spacecraft is still in the testing stage to this day.
This mission has received a lot of attention because it is the first mission using Starship announced by Elon Musk and Yusaku Maezawa in 2018. Among the individuals selected to be part of the crew are DJ Steve Aoki and KPOP star TOP (Choi Seung Hyun). Maezawa said the decision to cancel the mission had to be made because there is currently no date when it will be launched.
9. NASA Develops Floating Rail System on the Moon
Before Mars can be explored, the moon will be the location for human space station experiments. The Artemis mission to the moon is expected to be a stepping stone for humans to eventually live off Earth. To support lunar settlement, NASA has contributed funds to the development of a floating rail system on the moon's surface.
The Flexible Levitation on a Track (FLOAT) project aims to develop a floating rail system that does not require humans to operate by 2030. The rails for FLOAT come in the form of coils that are unrolled when needed. Self-propelled robots will float using magnetic repulsion, each carrying up to 30 kilograms of cargo.
With FLOAT, samples of lunar rocks and minerals can be sent to the station for testing in a self-propelled manner. It will also be used to deliver
With FLOAT, samples of lunar rocks and minerals can be sent to the base for self-guided testing. It will also be used to deliver cargo supplies from the landing site to the base.
10. China Wants to Launch an Asteroid Deflection Mission Like the Movie Armageddon
Asteroid Comet
The China National Space Agency (CNSA) announced that they will also conduct an asteroid deflection mission in 2030. CNSA's target is the asteroid (NEO) 2015 XF261, which is 30 meters in diameter. Although it can be considered small, if an asteroid of this size were to hit the Earth, it could cause as much damage as an atomic bomb explosion.
In the upcoming mission, a probe will approach (NEO) 2015 XF261 before launching a kinetic impactor onto its surface. The probe will then remain with the asteroid for between 6-12 months to see if its direction changes from its original direction. In addition, this mission also has a secondary mission to analyze the asteroid's composition and what is produced after it is hit.
This Chinese mission is similar to the DART satellite that crashed into the surface of the asteroid Dimorphos in 2022 and successfully diverted the asteroid the size of this stadium. The only difference is that NASA crashed the DART, which is the size of an icebox, directly onto the asteroid's surface.