Introduction

• 2023 Milestones: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission returned a sample from an asteroid, and India’s Chandrayaan-3 explored the lunar South Pole.
• 2024 Prospects: The year is set to be thrilling for space exploration, with several missions under NASA’s Artemis plan and Commercial Lunar Payload Services targeting the moon.

Key Missions to Follow in 2024

[1] Europa Clipper: Unveiling Jupiter’s Moon

• Mission Overview: NASA’s Europa Clipper aims to explore Europa, one of Jupiter’s largest moons, known for its icy surface and potential subsurface saltwater ocean.
• Scientific Goals: The mission will conduct close flybys to study Europa’s ice shell, geology, and subsurface ocean, seeking signs of habitability.
• Launch Window: Scheduled for October 10, 2024, with 21 days, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.

[2] Artemis II: Human Return to the Moon

• Program Background: Artemis II is part of NASA’s Artemis program, aiming to send humans back to the moon and establish a sustained presence for future Mars missions.
• Mission Details: Artemis II will carry four astronauts on a 10-day mission orbiting the Moon, building upon the uncrewed Artemis I mission.
• Launch Timeline: Planned for as early as November 2024, with potential delays to 2025.

[3] VIPER: Searching for Lunar Water

• Mission Purpose: VIPER, a golf cart-sized rover, will explore the moon’s south pole to search for water and other volatiles.
• Technical Challenges: The mission will navigate extreme lunar temperatures and shadowed regions during its 100-day mission.
• Launch Schedule: Set for November 2024, following a delay for additional lander system tests.

[4] Lunar Trailblazer and PRIME-1: Water Mapping and Drilling

• SIMPLEx Missions: As part of NASA’s low-cost planetary missions, Lunar Trailblazer will orbit the moon to map water locations, while PRIME-1 will test drilling technology.
• Launch Dependencies: Both missions are secondary payloads, with their launch timing contingent on the readiness of primary payloads.

[5] JAXA’s Martian Moon eXploration (MMX) Mission

• Mission Focus: MMX aims to study Mars’ moons, Phobos and Deimos, to determine their origin and collect a sample from Phobos.
• Scientific Objectives: The mission will spend three years conducting science operations around Mars and its moons.
• Launch Plan: Scheduled for around September 2024.

[6] ESA’s Hera Mission: Asteroid Defense Study

• Mission Context: Hera will follow up on NASA’s DART mission to the Didymos-Dimorphos asteroid system, where DART tested the kinetic impact technique for planetary defense.
• Research Goals: Hera will study the physical properties of the asteroids and assess the impact of the DART collision.
• Launch and Arrival: Set for October 2024, with arrival at the asteroid system expected in late 2026.

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