Space exploration has always demanded patience. In years past, we’ve sent a man to the moon, developed the world’s first reusable spacecraft for access to Earth orbit, and landed rovers on Mars.
However, it has been years since the United States has truly made significant progress in space exploration. Finally, 2026 is projected to be a year of immense space travel and innovation, one that many have been eagerly awaiting. From NASA’s planned return to the moon to SpaceX’s uncertain future under Elon Musk, this upcoming year will very likely determine the rate at which future space exploration either accelerates or declines.
First, NASA’s return to the moon marks one of the most significant events in upcoming space exploration. The Artemis II mission will be the first crewed mission beyond low-Earth orbit in over 50 years. It will be a 10-day lunar flyby mission, not a full landing. Instead, it will loop around the moon and return to Earth on a free-return trajectory. Essentially, the mission’s goals are to confirm that life support and communication systems still function even in deep space. They plan to test Orion’s performance during each stage, and ultimately provide data for Artemis III’s plan of landing on the moon sometime later in this decade. For this mission, the crew consists of only four: Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. This group creates historic firsts, as individual members will be the first Black, first woman, and first non-American to embark on such a mission. This mission will be a massive victory and milestone not only for Americans but for humanity as a whole. Safiya Sloan (12) shares: “I think this mission will be exciting and something to continue to watch and see how it progresses through the year.”
Although NASA will be the major player in this mission, SpaceX also has a vital role. The NASA agency chose SpaceX to land the next two American astronauts on the moon through the Artemis program. They plan to use SpaceX’s HLS Starship, which is designed to land on the moon and be reused for travel to other destinations in space. However, questions arise with Elon Musk’s recent status (controversial and under intense scrutiny): Is he the right person to serve as the public face of SpaceX in a year of so many upcoming projects for the company?
Aside from the notable launch of Artemis II, 2026 holds another groundbreaking piece of technology. NASA is currently prepares to launch its newest Roman Space Telescope, which will utlize infrared vision to further understand galaxies beyond our own and the complexity of dark energy. This new technology holds major importance in human understanding of the world around us. Because dark energy makes up about 70% of the universe, but is largely incomprehensible to scientists, Roman will help solve the mystery surrounding dark energy and reveal a hidden universe that humans have yet to see. Michael Saucedo (12) says, “I find dark energy interesting because it controls so many unexplainable laws, it controls the fate of the universe, and we still barely even understand it.”
(Isabelle Gregg)
As we look to the near future, the rapid advancement of space exploration will start to answer the timeless questions humans have always asked: Where do we come from? Where are we going? What is in store for our universe long-term? This year will not only be a year of increased knowledge, innovation, and perspective, but most importantly, a year closer to these answers that seem unanswerable and closer to a deeper understanding of our own species and the vast world beyond us.
