/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/elespectador/SY3T3XNTMBGG3IWRFQ2U2JPQVY.jpg "What’s Next in 2022 for Space Travel")
The SpaceX Ariane 5 rocket is seen with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope on the launch pad, Thursday, December 23, 2021, at the European Spaceport, Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.
Photo: NASA/Kris Jean
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This year will be full of historical events and space missions. From returning to the moon, to the first planetary defense missions training how to ward off asteroids, or seeking access to Mars. These are some things that should not be missed.
2022 is expected to be an important year for space exploration and travel. In recent days, we’ve seen how the James Webb Telescope completed its most difficult feat of 900,000 km from Earth, and this year we hope to receive its first images. (We recommend: One of the more complex steps for the James Webb Telescope has been successfully completed)
But that’s not the only one. Space forces also have many purposes. The United States will seek to return to the Moon, carrying out a series of tasks to establish a “moon colony”. Europe and Russia, after several failed attempts, will try to land a spacecraft on Mars. China, India, South Korea and Japan are also planning to send various missions into space.
NASA also expects good news. It will test, for the first time, the defense capabilities of our planet with the DART mission. It will explore black holes and other cosmic objects with X-ray lights, searching for the first unmanned Artemis mission around the moon and back to Earth.
But its biggest efforts will focus on the Space Launch System (SLS), the most advanced rocket technology that will seek to send astronauts to the Moon and beyond as part of a space exploration program. The first release date will be set for February.
NASA 2022: The future is now
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visit the moon
NASA will also launch a massive robotic mission program to the Moon. The first mission will begin this year and will aim to map underground water reservoirs, study the depths of the moon’s interior, and use rover vehicles to explore the lunar surface.
Earth on Mars
This year’s joint Europe-Russia mission, ExoMars, hopes to land a roving robot on a muddy plain on the Red Planet called Oxia Planum. The rover, named after Rosalind Franklin, a British chemist and DNA pioneer, will be equipped with drills capable of exploring several meters below the surface in search of primitive life forms or the remains of extinct organisms. The launch date is set for September 22, and it is expected to land on June 10, 2023.
planet defense
This is sure to be one of the most followed missions of the year it starts. Like science fiction, NASA will test its own planetary defense system. The DART mission aims to demonstrate a method for asteroid deflection, called the kinetic effect. In October 2022, DART will impact the moon of the small asteroid Dimorphos, which orbits its larger companion, Didymos, in a binary asteroid system to change its orbital period. (You can read: From the movie: NASA’s First Planetary Defense Mission Takes Off)
spatial tourism
The two giants, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, will continue to pursue further achievements of the private sector in space tourism. Last year, they were able to launch a sub-orbital flight where passengers were in space for a few minutes. This year, both companies hope to embark on regular missions.
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