2026 is poised to be a transformative year for space exploration, with a series of ambitious missions set to redefine our understanding of the cosmos and our place within it. From crewed lunar flybys to asteroid investigations and the deployment of groundbreaking space telescopes, the coming year promises a wealth of scientific discoveries and technological advancements.
One of the most anticipated events is the Artemis II mission, scheduled to carry four astronauts on a flyby around the Moon. This mission, the first time humans have ventured beyond low Earth orbit since 1972, will test the Orion spacecraft's life-support systems in deep space, paving the way for future lunar landings. The Artemis II crew will travel farther than any human has before, even surpassing Apollo 13's record in 1970.
China also has ambitious lunar exploration plans for 2026, with the Chang'e-7 mission targeting the lunar south pole. This mission will include an orbiter, a relay satellite, a lander, a rover, and a mini-flying probe to search for water ice and study moonquakes in one of the Moon's most challenging terrains.
In addition to lunar missions, 2026 will see significant progress in the exploration of asteroids. The European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the binary asteroid system Didymos in November 2026. Hera will investigate the aftermath of NASA's 2022 DART impact, which successfully altered the orbit of the moonlet Dimorphos. The spacecraft will conduct high-resolution mapping of the impact crater, measure the asteroid's mass and internal structure, and deploy two cubesats for close-up observations of surface properties and debris. Furthermore, Japan's Hayabusa-2 will conduct a flyby of the asteroid 98943 Torifune as part of its extended mission. China's Tianwen-2 is expected to reach a "quasi-moon" asteroid.
Several new space telescopes are slated for launch in 2026, promising to revolutionize our understanding of the universe. China plans to launch Xuntian, a large space telescope that will co-orbit with the Tiangong space station. ESA plans to launch the PLATO space telescope for the discovery and characterization of exoplanets. NASA plans to launch the Pandora small space telescope to study exoplanet atmospheres and the SunRISE mission consisting of six CubeSats for studying solar activity. The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope may also launch in late 2026 or 2027.
2026 will also be a year of significant milestones for commercial space ventures. Sierra Space's Dream Chaser space plane is scheduled to make its first flight to orbit in late 2026. The uncrewed mission will test Dream Chaser's ability to launch atop a conventional rocket, operate autonomously in orbit, and return to Earth with a runway landing similar to a conventional aircraft. Several companies plan to launch lunar landers, including Intuitive Machines' IM-3 mission and Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 2. Blue Origin plans to launch the first uncrewed mission of the Blue Moon Mark 1 lunar lander. SpaceX may conduct the first orbital flight of its Starship vehicle and test its Human Landing System for the Artemis III mission.
Other notable missions in 2026 include the ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission entering orbit around Mercury. Japan's Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission will launch to perform a sample-return mission on the Martian moon Phobos and a flyby of Deimos. India's Aditya-L1 solar mission will observe the Sun during its "solar maximum," a period of intense activity.
With so many exciting missions on the horizon, 2026 is set to be a year of unprecedented progress in space exploration. These missions promise to expand our knowledge of the solar system, the universe, and our place within it, while also driving technological innovation and inspiring future generations of scientists and explorers.
