Space tourism began in earnest in 2021, making it a memorable year for the space industry. There's always something exciting to look forward to in space, and in 2022, there are many essential launches scheduled to learn more about other planets, the moon, exoplanets, and other topics. With just a few days until the year 2022 begins, we look at some of the most significant space and science missions scheduled for the coming year.
1. SpaceX Starship Orbital Flight
Science Times said SpaceX would launch a giant rocket in January or February. The reusable Starship mega-rocket will be made up of the Super Heavy Booster 4 and the Starship prototype SN20, which will be the world's highest rocket at 394 feet (120 meters). The rocket will launch from SpaceX's Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, and enter Earth orbit, but will not complete a full revolution of the globe. The booster will land in the Gulf of Mexico, while the second stage will land near Hawaii in the Pacific.
During a joint virtual meeting of the National Academies of Sciences' Space Studies Board and the Board on Physics and Astronomy, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said there is a lot of risks connected with this first launch he predicts a disaster. However, he does anticipate that a Starship rocket will reach orbit in 2022 and that up to 12 Starship missions might occur that year. Progress will be critical since SpaceX is working on a rocket that will serve as the landing ship for NASA's future Artemis Moon missions.
2. NASA's Space Launch System Launch
NASA will try the first launch of the SLS rocket, which stands 332-feet tall (101 meters) and effectively kickstarts the Artemis age. Space.com said Mid-March and mid-April are the launch windows for Artemis 1.
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Artemis 2 (scheduled for 2023), in which a crewed Orion capsule will travel around the Moon and back (basically a repeat of Artemis 1, but with astronauts), and Artemis 3 (scheduled for no earlier than 2025), in which NASA astronauts will land on the Moon for the first time since 1972, will all be made possible by a successful launch of SLS.
3. Boeing's CST-100 Starliner Launch
All eyes will be on Boeing to see if it can finally move forward with its CST-100 Starliner, which delays have plagued. Boeing is developing the capsule as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. However, it is currently years behind schedule. In October 2021, a major setback occurred when 13 valves in the spacecraft's propulsion system failed to open, forcing Boeing Orbital Flight Test 2 (OFT-2) to be canceled. The Starliner's first test in 2019 was a complete disaster, making this current event even more humiliating. According to NASA, Boeing aims to launch Starliner in May 2022, pending spacecraft readiness and space station availability.
4. NASA Psyche Probe
According to Science Times, the Psyche probe will launch in August 2022 and arrive in 2026 at the metal-rich asteroid belt 'Psyche.' This potato-shaped asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter. NASA intends to study it in order to learn more about our solar system's creation. The asteroid belt is thought to be rich in metal, making it part of our solar system's initial generation of early metal cores.
5. New Mars Rovers
The Rosalind Franklin rover from the European Space Agency and Russia's Kazachok lander is set to launch on September 29. The Rosalind Franklin will gather surface samples and grind them into a fine powder once it arrives on Mars. Following that, its onboard laboratory will conduct extensive chemical, spectroscopic, and physical studies. Every Martian day, or sol, the rover's navigational capabilities should allow it to traverse roughly 100 meters (328 feet).
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