As the year reaches its end, NASA is looking forward to celebrating its many innovative and inspiring accomplishments it had achieved this year, including many firsts, which would include landing new science and technology on the Moon with an American company, pushing the limits of space exploration by launching a new expedition to study Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon; maintaining 24 years of continuous human exploration off the Earth aboard the International Space Station, and the first look at its supersonic quiet aircraft for the advancement of humanity.
NASA also shared the optical spectacle of a total lunar eclipse with the world, conducted the concluding flight of its Ingenuity helicopter on the Red Planet, it also demonstrated its capability of communicating through deep space, which itself is another technological feat for humankind, conducted testing of its next generation solar sail, explored and made new scientific discoveries with the James Webber Space Telescope, successfully finished a year-long Mars simulation on Earth with a crew, unveiled the latest group of Artemis Generation astronauts, and much more.
“In 2024, NASA made leap after giant leap to explore, discover, and inspire—all while bringing real, tangible, and substantial benefits to the American people and to all of humanity,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “We deepened the commercial and international partnerships that will help NASA lead humanity back to the Moon and then to the red sands of Mars. We launched new missions to study our solar system and our universe in captivating new ways. We observed our changing Earth through our eyes in the sky – our ever-growing fleet of satellites and instruments—and shared that data with all of humanity. And we opened the doors to new possibilities in aviation, new breakthroughs on the International Space Station, and new wonders in space travel.”
The agency also moved forward with its Artemis campaign through its Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes its progress in its first mission around the moon in more than 50 years and continuing with the plan to explore the Moon beyond what has already been probed. Up to now in 2024, 15 countries have signed the Artemis Accords, pledging to explore space safely, transparently, and responsibly alongside the United States.
In its drive to monitor climate change, NASA has launched multiple satellites that help in studying our ever-changing planet and opened its second Earth Information Center to provide data to a much bigger audience.
In its latest Economic Impact Report, NASA highlighted the agency’s $75.6 billion contribution to the U.S. economy, its societal value, and the return on investment for taxpayers.
“To invest in NASA is to invest in American workers, American innovation, the American economy, and American economic competitiveness. Through continued investments in our workforce and our infrastructure, NASA will continue to propel American leadership on Earth, in the skies, and in the stars,” said Nelson.
Preparing for the Moon and Mars: Key Milestones in 2024
This year, NASA has made significant progress in preparing for the Artemis Generation of space exploration, advancing both lunar missions and long-term goals for Mars. Here’s a summary of the key developments:
Advancements for Artemis Missions
NASA has continued to make strides toward its goal of returning astronauts to the Moon under the Artemis program, while laying the groundwork for eventual human missions to Mars.
Artemis II Progress: NASA took major steps toward the first crewed Artemis mission, Artemis II, including the release of results from the Orion heat shield investigation and updates to mission timelines for both Artemis II and III.
Space Launch System (SLS) Rocket: NASA’s teams delivered crucial components of the SLS rocket, including the core stage and the launch vehicle stage adapter, to the Kennedy Space Center. Booster segments for the rocket were also stacked in preparation for the upcoming test flights.
Mobile Launcher Testing: At Kennedy’s Launch Pad 39B, engineers completed vital tests of the mobile launcher and related systems. A new emergency egress system was also installed to ensure crew safety during launches.
Orion Spacecraft Testing: Integrated testing of the Orion spacecraft, which will carry astronauts around the Moon and back, included altitude chamber tests simulating deep space conditions.
Crew Training: Astronauts and mission teams participated in critical training, including sea recovery operations, launch countdown rehearsals, and mission simulations.
Lunar and Mars Missions
NASA has continued to make significant strides in its exploration of the Moon and Mars, marking several milestones this year.
Lunar Exploration through CLPS: NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative made its first Moon landing in February, with Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander successfully delivering science instruments to the lunar surface. The data collected will improve our understanding of the Moon’s environment and enhance landing precision.
Lunar South Pole Missions: In August, NASA revealed plans for new science experiments and technology demonstrations to land at the lunar South Pole by 2027, as part of its expanding CLPS initiative.
Mars Sample Return Planning: NASA is actively seeking innovative solutions to return Mars samples to Earth. A new strategy review team has been formed to assess designs that could lower costs and reduce risks for this mission.
MAVEN Anniversary: NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft, which has been studying Mars’ upper atmosphere for the past decade, marked its 10-year milestone in 2024.
Ingenuity’s Mars Mission: NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter completed its mission in January after conducting far more flights than originally planned, exceeding expectations.
Lunar Relay System: In September, NASA awarded a contract to Intuitive Machines to help develop lunar relay systems, enhancing communications as part of the Near Space Network managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
Strategic Partnerships and Collaborations
NASA has formed new international partnerships and expanded its collaboration with private companies to ensure the success of its Artemis missions and lunar exploration.
International Partnerships: Two key international agreements were formalized—one with the United Arab Emirates for the Gateway airlock module and another with Japan to provide a pressurized rover for lunar exploration.
Testing and Technology Development: Astronauts and engineers took part in numerous field tests simulating conditions on the Moon, including practicing moonwalks in Arizona’s geologically similar terrain. In addition, human factors testing for Gateway and hardware evaluations for lunar missions were conducted.
Lunar Landers: NASA continues to work closely with SpaceX and Blue Origin on developing human lunar landers for the Artemis missions. Both companies are also working on cargo variants of their landers as part of ongoing contracts.
Lunar Terrain Vehicle Development: NASA has selected three companies to advance lunar terrain vehicles, which Artemis astronauts will use to explore the Moon’s surface.
VIPER Rover Mission: In August, NASA announced it would seek proposals from American companies to conduct a mission using the VIPER rover, which will explore the Moon’s South Pole to investigate the presence of water ice and other valuable resources.
Infrastructure and Testing
NASA also made key investments in infrastructure and conducted critical testing to support future space exploration.
Mobile Launcher and SLS Core Stage: NASA completed a critical design review for the second mobile launcher, designed to support the more powerful Block 1B version of the SLS rocket. Meanwhile, the Artemis III and IV Orion crew modules were outfitted at Kennedy Space Center, and several components of the SLS core stages were received and stored for future missions.
RS-25 Engine Testing: The agency completed its second series of RS-25 engine certification tests at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, setting the stage for the production of new engines to power future Artemis missions.
CHAPEA Mission: NASA’s CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog) 1 mission, which simulated life on Mars for 378 days, concluded successfully at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. This mission provided valuable data on the physical and psychological challenges of long-duration space travel.
(Includes inputs from online sources)
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