2025 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for space exploration, with ambitious missions to the Moon and other celestial bodies planned by the United States, China, Japan, and the European Space Agency (ESA). These missions promise to advance scientific knowledge and inspire future generations to look to the stars.
NASA is central in the array of space missions scheduled for 2025. With the Artemis program, NASA aims to lay the foundations for human exploration of the Moon and Mars. NASA is spearheading several initiatives that will not only explore the lunar surface but also test technologies critical for future missions.
Under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, NASA plans to deliver scientific and technological payloads to the Moon using commercial landers. Companies such as Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines, and Firefly Aerospace are key players in this effort, with several missions planned for 2025.
One notable mission is the Blue Ghost Mission One, which will test technologies for future lunar exploration under NASA's Artemis program. Set to launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, the mission focuses on navigation and precision landings. As reported by mint, Blue Ghost Mission One will send ten science and technology payloads to Mare Crisium on the Moon.
In addition to lunar exploration, NASA plans to launch the Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx) observatory in February 2025. VnExpress notes that SPHEREx will be the first all-sky spectral survey to map the origins of the universe. Over two years, it will create a map of the sky in 102 colors, collecting data on over 450 million galaxies and more than 100 million stars. Astronomers will use this data to answer major questions about the origins of galaxies and the distribution of water and organic molecules in star-forming regions.
China is also making strides in space exploration. In May 2025, China plans to launch the Tianwen-2 mission, an asteroid sample return and comet probe mission. According to Live Science, the mission will target the near-Earth asteroid 469219 Kamoʻoalewa, a quasi-satellite of Earth discovered in 2016. Kamoʻoalewa has a diameter of 40 to 100 meters and may be a fragment of the Moon ejected into space by a past impact event.
The Tianwen-2 spacecraft will employ both touch-and-go and anchor-and-attach techniques to collect samples from Kamoʻoalewa's surface. After returning the samples to Earth, the spacecraft will set course for its second target, the main-belt comet 311P/PANSTARRS. This extended mission aims to provide insights into the early solar system and the processes that shaped it.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has plans for 2025 as well. In the third quarter of the year, ESA intends to conduct an orbital test flight of its uncrewed Space Rider spacecraft. As reported by CBS News, Space Rider is a reusable spacecraft designed to carry out scientific experiments in low Earth orbit, including research in microgravity. It will demonstrate new technologies for future missions, such as telecommunications systems and robotic exploration tools.
Another mission is the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE). While JUICE launched earlier, it will perform a Venus flyby in August 2025 to gain the necessary speed and trajectory for its journey to Jupiter. Once it arrives, JUICE will study Jupiter's icy moons to understand their potential for harboring life.
Additionally, ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are collaborating on the BepiColombo mission to Mercury. In January 2025, BepiColombo will make its sixth flyby of Mercury, helping it enter orbit around the planet by November 2026. Science Alert notes that BepiColombo aims to study Mercury's composition, atmosphere, and surface geology.
Several space agencies plan to perform deep-space flyby missions in 2025, which promise to expand our understanding of the universe. In March 2025, NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft will perform a flyby maneuver at Mars. This maneuver will help it gain the necessary speed and trajectory for its long voyage to Jupiter's moon Europa, considered one of the best places in our solar system to search for alien life.
NASA's Lucy mission will also continue its journey to explore the Jupiter Trojan asteroids. A key event is its flyby of the inner main-belt asteroid 52246 Donaldjohanson, scheduled for April 20, 2025. The asteroid is named after the paleoanthropologist who discovered the famous "Lucy" fossil.
Japan plans to contribute to lunar exploration with the M2/Resilience mission, scheduled for January 2025. According to Science Alert, this mission will launch a lander and micro-rover to the lunar surface. The M2/Resilience mission will study lunar soil to understand its composition and properties. By testing new technologies such as positioning systems for precise landing and automated robotic operation systems, the mission supports future lunar exploration and could be used in missions to Mars and beyond.
Private companies are also playing a vital role in 2025's space exploration efforts. SpaceX plans to conduct a test in March 2025 to transfer propellant from one Starship to another while docked in low Earth orbit. As reported by Live Science, this test is a step in demonstrating that Starship can be used to reach the Moon and eventually Mars.
Intuitive Machines, a Texas-based company, hopes to land its IM-2 spacecraft at the Moon's south pole in February 2025. The mission aims to measure the regolith's volatiles using a drill and mass spectrometer. These efforts align with NASA's goals under the CLPS program to involve commercial partners in lunar exploration.
CBS News, ANSA, and Scienze Notizie reported on the space plans for 2025.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.