Hidden side of the Moon, rocket capable of going to Mars, orbital planes: 2024 is a particularly fertile year for space firsts. Here are five events to follow.
Posted at 1:13 a.m.
Updated at 5:00 a.m.
The setbacks of Starliner
PHOTO MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
The capsule Starliner of Boeing, on top of a rocket Atlas Vat the Cape Canaveral space station launch site, Florida
Boeing was competing with SpaceX for private transportation to the International Space Station (ISS). The suspense lasted until May 2020, when SpaceX achieved the first manned flight of its capsule Dragon. Four years later, the capsule Starliner of Boeing continues to lag behind. Its first manned flight, scheduled for early May, then mid-May, then last Saturday, should take place this Wednesday. The problems that Boeing is experiencing with its airliners raise many doubts about Starliner. Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk will supervise the mission from Houston.
The ambitions of Starship
PHOTO VERONICA CARDENAS, REUTERS ARCHIVES
Rocket prototype Starship of SpaceX at the launch area near Brownsville, Texas, last May
The fourth flight of Starship should also take place this week, from Texas. After two explosions before reaching orbit in 2023, SpaceX’s giant rocket experienced relative success last March, with only the re-entry into the atmosphere having been a failure. Elon Musk now wants to prove that his “failure-success” approach is the right one to explore the cosmos in an affordable way. In recent weeks, astrophysicists have proposed that Starship can be used to bring back to Earth the Martian samples gleaned by the rover Perseverance. And an Artemis lunar program based solely on Starship is also mentioned.
China on the hidden side
IMAGE TAKEN FROM CCTV SITE
Artist’s impression of the Chinese lunar probe Chang’e 6
The Chinese lunar probe Chang’e 6 landed on the far side of the Moon in early June. This is the second Chinese mission to land there – no other nation has set foot there. The objective of Chang’e 6 is to bring back lunar samples, which could notably explain why 1% of the far side is made up of volcanic plains covering 31% of the visible side of the Earth. In early May, NASA chief Bill Nelson expressed concern that China was laying claim to the Moon’s resources, including its water, with its exploration program expected to culminate with a human mission by the end of the decade .
Watch a video of the moon landing Chang’e 6 (in English)
The shuttles
PHOTO TAKEN FROM THE DREAM CHASER SITE
The first private space shuttle, Dream Chaserbefore a suborbital test
The first private space shuttle, Dream Chaser, should experience its first orbital flight during the summer. Financed by the American Department of Defense, it will not be habitable. This is not the only space shuttle tested in orbit. The American and Chinese armies have been testing their shuttles since 2010 and 2020, respectively. X-37 And Shenlong. The sixth flight of X-37which set a record of 908 days, ended in 2022. For its part, the Middle Kingdom made headlines with mysterious tests of the third flight of Shenlong (divine dragon) this spring.
A private spacewalk
IMAGE TAKEN FROM THE POLARIS SITE
Artist’s impression of Polaris Dawn’s spacewalk
Since 2021, the capsule Dragon of SpaceX is used for private manned missions. During the summer, tech billionaire Jared Isaacman will use it for the first private spacewalk, as part of the Polaris Dawn mission. The Polaris program plans two more private missions and signed a non-financial agreement with NASA in 2022 to explore the possibility of a Polaris mission saving the space telescope Hubble. Launched in 1990, it should die within less than 10 years. The final upgrade mission Hubblewith the space shuttle Atlantisdates from 2009.
