Apollo missions, robotic probe programs, and plans to build lunar and Mars bases
Humanity's steps beyond Earth
For millennia, the night sky has fascinated our ancestors, but only In the 20th century humanity has developed technologies that allow it to escape beyond the Earth's atmosphere. This became possible with the development of rocket technicians, for engineering and intensifying geopolitical competition. The result is Apollo Moon landings, permanent human station Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in space and ambitious robotic missions throughout the entire solar system.
The development of space exploration includes several eras:
- Early Rocket Era and the Space Race (1950-1970).
- Post-Apollo period: Space Shuttle, international cooperation (e.g. ISS).
- Robotic missions: travel to other planets, asteroids and beyond.
- Current efforts: commercial crew programs, Artemis missions to the Moon, planned human flights to Mars.
Below, we discuss each stage in more detail, highlighting the achievements, challenges, and future aspirations for humanity as it moves away from its home planet.
2. Apollo Missions: The Peak of Early Manned Flight
2.1 Context and the Space Race
XX In the 1950s and 1960s Cold War competition between the USA and the USSR led to intense space raceThe Soviet Union was the first to launch an artificial satellite (Sputnik 1, 1957) and sent the first man into orbit (Yuri Gagarin, 1961). In an effort to surpass these achievements, President John F. Kennedy in 1961 announced an ambitious goal: to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to Earth by the end of the decadeNASA Apollo programs The founding of the Institute of Science and Engineering became perhaps the greatest peaceful example of the mobilization of science and engineering in modern history [1].
2.2 Apollo program phases
- Mercury and Gemini: Previous programs that have tested orbital flight, spacewalks, in-orbit rendezvous, and longer missions.
- Apollo 1 fire (1967): A tragic accident on the ground claimed the lives of three astronauts, prompting major design and safety improvements.
- Apollo 7 (1968): The first successful manned Apollo spacecraft test in Earth orbit.
- Apollo 8 (1968): The first people to orbit the Moon, capturing Earthrise photos from lunar orbit.
- Apollo 11 (July 1969): Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first to land on the surface of the Moon, and Michael Collins remained in orbit. Armstrong's words - "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind" - became a symbol of the mission's triumph.
- Other landings (Apollo 12–17): Continued to deepen knowledge of the Moon, ending with Apollo 17 (1972). Astronauts used Lunar Rovers (LRVs), collected about 400 kg of lunar rocks and set up scientific experiments that revealed the secrets of the Moon's origin and structure.
2.3 Significance and legacy
The Apollo project was not only technological, but also cultural The program has significantly improved rocket engine (Saturn V), navigation computers, life support systems, paving the way for more advanced flights of the future.Although there has not been a new manned landing on the Moon since Apollo 17, the data accumulated continues to have a significant impact on planetary science, and the success of Apollo inspires current efforts to return to the Moon, particularly by NASA. Artemis in a program aimed at establishing a sustainable presence on the Moon.
3. Post-Apollo Innovations: Space Shuttle, International Station, and More
3.1 Space Shuttle era (1981–2011)
NASA Space Shuttle (Shuttle program) introduced a partially reusable spacecraft capable of flying to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) crew and cargo. Main achievements:
- Satellite launch/maintenance: For example, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched and repaired in orbit.
- International cooperation: Shuttle missions helped build International Space Station (ISS).
- Scientific experiments: The Spacelab, Spacehab modules flew.
However, this era also faced tragedies: Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2003) Although the Shuttle was an engineering marvel, its high operating costs and complexity led to its closure in 2011. At that time, NASA began collaborating with private companies and began to consider more ambitious missions to the Moon and Mars again [2].
3.2 International Space Station (ISS)
Since the late 1990s, the ISS has become a permanent manned orbital laboratory, in which astronauts from different countries work. Main features:
- Assembly: The modules were launched by Shuttle (USA) and Proton/Soyuz (Russia) rockets.
- International consortium: NASA, Roscosmos, ESA, JAXA, CSA.
- Scientific research: Microgravity experiments (biology, materials science, fluid physics), Earth observations, technology demonstrations.
Over the past two decades, the ISS has helped develop the concept of permanent human presence in orbit, as well as preparing for long-term missions (e.g., studying the human body's adaptation to Mars). The station has also paved the way for commercial manned flight (SpaceX Crew Dragon, Boeing Starliner), marking a transformation in human access to LEO.
3.3 Robotic missions: unmanned exploration
In addition to manned flights, robotic probes has greatly expanded our knowledge of the solar system:
- Mariner, Pioneer, Voyager (1960–1970) first visited Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, revealing the worlds of distant planets.
- Viking landings on Mars (1976) searched for traces of life.
- Galileo (Jupiter), Cassini-Huygens (Saturn), New Horizons (Pluto/Kuiper Belt), Mars rovers (Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity, Perseverance) testify to the progress of robotics.
- Comet and asteroid missions (Rosetta, Hayabusa, OSIRIS-REx) brought back samples from small bodies.
This robotic research paves the way for future human missions – collecting radiation, landing risks and local resources data that later serves human travel to other planets.
4. Present: Commercial Crews and the Artemis Program for Travel to the Moon
4.1 Commercial crew partnerships
After the retirement of the Space Shuttle, NASA began commercial initiativesto ensure the flight of astronauts into orbit:
- SpaceX Crew Dragon: from 2020transports astronauts to the ISS under NASA's Commercial Crew Program.
- Boeing Starliner: is being developed to achieve a similar role.
This collaborative scheme frees up NASA resources for further (beyond LEO) missions and encourages private sector development. SpaceX is also developing heavy-lift launch vehicles (Starships) capable of carrying cargo or crew to the Moon or Mars.
4.2 Artemis Program: Return to the Moon
NASA Artemis The initiative aims to send astronauts back to the lunar surface and establish a base there by 2020:
- Artemis I (2022): an uncrewed test flight using the Space Launch System (SLS) and the Orion spacecraft around the Moon.
- Artemis II (planned): will be with a crew that has orbited the Moon.
- Artemis III (planned): envisages a human landing near the Moon's south pole (most likely using the commercial landing system HLS).
- Lunar Gateway: the creation of a small station in lunar orbit, which will facilitate long-term exploration and scientific work, and will also serve as an intermediate station.
- Sustainable presence: After subsequent missions, NASA and partners will seek to establish a base, test indigenous resource utilization (ISRU), life support technologies, and gain experience for trips to Mars.
Artemis' goal is both scientific, by studying volatiles (e.g., water ice) discovered in the polar regions, and strategic, by creating an inter-institutional and international framework for a broader era of solar system exploration [3,4].
5. The future: humans on Mars?
5.1 Why Mars?
Mars stands out favorable access (38% of Earth's gravity), thin atmosphere, local resources (water ice), and day length (~24.6 hours). Historical traces of water flow, rock layers, and possible past habitability attract scientific curiosity. A successful human landing could become a new historical journey, similar to Apollo on the Moon, but on a much larger scale.
5.2 Key challenges
- Long journey: ~6–9 months flying, time windows open every ~26 months.
- Radiation: Large fluxes of cosmic rays during travel and on the surface of Mars (no global magnetosphere).
- Life Support and Local Resources (ISRU): It is necessary to produce oxygen, water or even fuel from local sources to reduce supplies from Earth.
- Departure and landing: The rarefied atmosphere makes aerodynamic braking difficult, especially for large loads, so a complex supersonic braking system or other technologies are necessary.
NASAMars Base Camp" concept, ESA's Aurora program, private projects (e.g. SpaceX Starship) envisage different strategies to overcome these challenges. The deadlines range from 2030-2040 to later, depending on international will, funding and technological progress.
5.3 International and commercial efforts
SpaceX, Blue Origin, and others are developing extremely high-lift rockets and unified space systems aimed at the Moon or Mars. Some countries (China, Russia) are also considering manned missions to the Moon or Mars. A combination of the public (NASA, ESA, CNSA, Roscosmos) and private sectors could accelerate the timeline if they can agree on the mission structure. However, a number of obstacles remain: financing, political continuity, technological readiness for a long stay of people in space.
6. Far-reaching Perspectives: Towards a Multi-Planet Civilization
6.1 Beyond Mars: Asteroid Resources and Visions for Long-Distance Missions
If humans succeed in building a robust infrastructure on the Moon and Mars, the next step could be human missions to asteroids resources (precious metals, volatiles) or outer planetary systems. Some propose creating orbital rotating stations or using nuclear-electric propulsion to fly towards the satellites of Jupiter or Saturn. Although these are still quite distant visions, successfully implemented projects on the Moon and Mars could become a springboard for further expeditions.
6.2 Interplanetary transport systems
Ideas like SpaceX Starship, NASA's nuclear fusion or high-specific impulse electric propulsion, as well as advanced radiation shielding and a closed life support system, would allow for shorter travel times and reduced risks. Over time (over centuries), if sustainable development were achieved, humans could colonize more than one planet, thus ensuring the continuity of humanity and developing interplanetary economies or research bases.
6.3 Ethical and philosophical dilemmas
Extraterritorial Terraforming a base or another planet raises questions about planetary protection, possible contamination by alien life, resource use, and the fate of humanity itself. In the near future, space agencies are approaching these issues with great caution, especially where life is likely to exist (e.g., Mars, ice worlds). However, the drive to explore (for scientific, economic, or survival reasons) inevitably shapes and will continue to shape space policy.
7. Conclusion
From of the legendary Apollo landings until current robotic missions and Artemis plans for a lunar base – human space exploration has become a coherent, multifaceted activity. Once dominated by purely state programs, today they are already collaborating with commercial partners and international players, paving the way for Moon and, perhaps, Mars At the same time, robots are traveling around the Solar System, gathering knowledge that will help better prepare for human flights.
Future — from permanent bases on the Moon to a permanent colony on Mars or perhaps further expeditions to asteroids — depends on technological progress, stable funding, and international unity. Despite the challenges on Earth, the drive to explore space has persisted since the Apollo era. Now, with another lunar landing approaching and preparations in earnest for trips to Mars, the coming decades could embody this move from the cradle of our home planet to the multiplanetary the reality of existence.
References and further reading
- NASA History Office (2009). "Apollo Program Summary Report." NASA SP-4009.
- Launius, R.D. (2004). Space Shuttle Legacy: How We Did It and What We Learned. AIAA.
- NASA Artemis (2021). "Artemis Plan: NASA's Lunar Exploration Program Overview." NASA/SP-2020-04-619-KSC.
- National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2019). "Pathways to Exploration: Rationales and Approaches for a US Program of Human Space Exploration." NAP.