NASA's 7 Most Exciting Projects Currently Underway

Many people would argue that NASA ’s bang-up sidereal day are behind it . Its budget is a shadow of what it once was during the Apollo era , and it seems that it ’s constantly being upstaged by individual company like SpaceX and Blue Origin . Still , we give NASA $ 19.3 billion a twelvemonth , and it is n’t just using it toscore Scott Kelly a bunch of new Instagram followers . What is it up to , exactly ? Here are some of the most ambitious undertaking presently underway at the Kennedy Space Center and beyond .

The Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft

What it is : The rocket and gang vessel that will get us to MarsStatus : OngoingThere are countless projects that must win in order for NASA to make good on its mission to eventually put humans on Mars , but the most critical of them all is plausibly the innovativeSpace Launch System ( SLS)– the most muscular arugula NASA has ever built . It will be the launch fomite for theOrion spacecraft , also currently under developing , and designed to safely transport a small work party of spaceman further into space than humans have ever locomote before . Both systems have undergo a litany of tests for years now ( the Orion has even made a test flight into Earth ’s orbit ) , and as of now appear to be on caterpillar tread for a November 2018 ( crew - less ) launch into electron orbit around the moonshine – a so - called " dress rehearsal " for the more ambitious manned missions going frontwards .

Asteroid Redirect Mission

What it is : Rerouting an asteroid to orbit around the moon in ordering to explore its surface and train astronaut for MarsStatus : Anticipated launch in the 2020sThis sounds a luck likeArmageddon , but it ’s not quite the Bruce Willis Judgement Day - averting missionary work you ’re probably imaging . Rather , this is NASA ’s plan to set down an remote-controlled craft on a approximate - Earth asteroid , collect lots ( literally ) of surface samples , airt the asteroid into a stable arena around the moon , and retort to Earth .

So what ’s the point of redirecting the asteroid at all ? Well , it ’s actually go to be used for grooming purposes . astronaut already in space aboard the Orion will use this chance to practice landing on the asteroid and explore the surface , testing the capableness necessitate to successfully pilot a manned mission to Mars .

Lunar base

What it is : An astronaut colliery stop and refuel depot on the moonStatus : Unconfirmed , but potentially former 2030sIt ’s been a few since we stepped substructure on the lunation ( 43 years and some change ) , but a NASA - funded studyhas laid out a fairly comprehensive plan to get us there again– and this fourth dimension , for quite a foresighted stay . While there are no formal plan to progress such a base , the study indicate that NASA could quite easily shoot down human on the moonlight in the short term and build a basis in the next 10 - 15 years .

A lunar base would be implemental in advance human outer space travel . It would not only provide a pit catch of sorts for crews to prepare for prolonged traveling ( to Mars or beyond ) , but the moon ’s gelid ice-skating rink detonating equipment could be mined for hydrogen , which could then be turned into rocket engine fuel .

NExSS

What it is : A special team of scientist explore for aliensStatus : OngoingActively hunt for life on other satellite is of licit interest to NASA , so much so that it has a coalition of scientist to meditate not only what conditions must be present to support life on other planets , but also to confirm the habitability of the never - ending stream of newly discovered planets . The Nexus for Exoplanet System Science ( NExSS ) is made up of Earth and planetary scientists and physicists from lead American university , process in partnership with NASA to consider one of the biggest questions of our sentence : are we alone ?

Europa Mission

What it is : A flyby of Jupiter ’s ( potentially ground - like ) moonStatus : Anticipated 2020s launchExploring Jupiter ’s icy moon Europa is on NASA ’s unretentive tilt for one main rationality : the ocean beneath its deoxyephedrine sheets may be very to similar to those on Earth , and thus its aura may be unambiguously beseem to support human life . Right now , the design call for sending a slyness to conduct a flyby mission(or technically , 45 flybys at various elevation ) , during which it will be capable to gather up enough info to justify further exploration .

The James Webb Space Telescope

What it is : An incredibly powerful space scope that will run circuit around the HubbleStatus : Launching October 2018Touted as the replacement to the Hubble Telescope , the JWST has been in development for nearly 20 years at this point . It will be our centre into deep space for at least a decade , getting a tight flavor at some of the most distant objects in the creation – including some of the first stars and galaxies to mold after the Big Bang . It ’s so potent that some astrophysicist are n’t even quite trusted what crazy clobber they ’ll be capable to see . After an absurd number of black eye and never - terminate budget overage , it seems to be on track to get out there and do its thing in just a duo age .

The Journey to Mars

What it is : The initiatory crewed , recollective - draw missionary work to the Red PlanetStatus : on-going with possible human touchdown in the 2030sSo what exactly is the sight with NASA ’s Mars plans , now that upstarts like SpaceX and Blue Origin are nipping at its heel ? It ’s laid out a fairly comprehensive vision ( that ’s more than can be said about Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos ) , which involves pull out off a series of successful " essay ground " missions ( for instance , the aforesaid SLS / Orion launch and Asteroid Redirect Mission ) before greenlighting any further movement or name any serious progress on aMars outpost .

NASA’s SLS and orion launching through clouds