Moon landings, asteroid missions and new telescopes: Here are the top spaceflight moments to look forward to in 2026
2026: A Pivotal Year for Space Exploration
As the world eagerly awaits the next major milestones in space exploration, 2026 is shaping up to be a landmark year for both governments and private companies. From NASA's Artemis 2 mission to the moon to the European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera mission to the Didymos asteroid system, numerous space agencies and commercial providers are targeting a wide range of milestones that could redefine how humans live and work in space, deepen our understanding of the solar system, and push exploration farther than it's gone in decades.
1. Artemis 2 Sends Astronauts Around the Moon
The Artemis 2 mission will carry four astronauts on a roughly 10-day journey around the moon, marking humanity's first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. Flying aboard the Orion spacecraft atop the Space Launch System (SLS) megarocket, Artemis 2 will test life-support systems, navigation, and communications in deep space ahead of future lunar landings. The crew includes NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot), and Christina Koch (mission specialist), along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist). The mission is currently targeting a launch no earlier than February 5, 2026, though the exact date will depend on technical readiness, with the available launch window extending into April.
2. SpaceX Pushes Starship Toward Mars-Ready Milestones
SpaceX hopes to make 2026 a breakout year for its Starship megarocket by flying the vehicle to Earth orbit for the first time and demonstrating in-orbit cryogenic propellant transfer, a critical capability for future deep-space missions, such as journeys to the moon and Mars. While company founder and CEO Elon Musk has suggested a Mars launch attempt in 2026 is possible, he has also acknowledged the odds are roughly "50-50," making orbital operations and refueling demonstrations the more likely near-term goals.
3. Blue Origin's Mark 1 Lunar Lander Demonstration
Blue Origin plans to launch its Blue Moon Mark 1 (MK1) lunar lander on a robotic demonstration mission to the moon in early 2026, with the spacecraft targeting a landing near Shackleton Crater at the moon's south pole. Standing about 26 feet (8 meters) tall, the lander is designed to deliver heavy cargo to the lunar surface and will fly atop the company's New Glenn rocket. MK1 is the largest commercial lunar cargo lander ever built, capable of carrying significantly more payload than any of the vehicles sponsored by NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program.
4. Boeing's Starliner-1 Mission to the International Space Station
Boeing's next Starliner flight, known as Starliner-1, is now planned as an uncrewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS), with launch targeted for no earlier than April 2026. The change follows issues encountered during Starliner's first crewed flight test in 2024, when thruster problems prevented the spacecraft from returning its astronauts to Earth as planned. Rather than carrying astronauts, Starliner-1 will focus on validating spacecraft upgrades, testing systems performance, and delivering cargo to the orbiting lab as Boeing and NASA work toward full crew certification.
5. Haven-1 Launches First Commercial Space Station
Vast Space's Haven-1 space station, which is scheduled to launch in 2026, will be the world's first privately developed stand-alone space station. The single-module station is designed to host short-duration crewed missions of up to 30 days, supporting research experiments, commercial activities, and technology demonstrations. Haven-1 will ride into orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with astronauts traveling to and from the station in Crew Dragon capsules.
6. China's Tianwen-2 Reaches a 'Quasi-Moon' Asteroid
China's Tianwen-2 spacecraft is expected to arrive at the near-Earth asteroid Kamo'oalewa in July 2026. The tiny object is often called a "quasi-moon" because its orbit around the sun closely tracks Earth's path. Tianwen-2 will attempt to collect surface samples, which are planned to return to Earth in late 2027, providing rare material for scientists to study the early solar system.
7. Rocket Lab Debuts Its Neutron Rocket
Rocket Lab plans the first launch of its Neutron rocket in mid-2026, marking a major expansion of the company beyond small-satellite launches. Standing roughly 131 feet (40 meters) tall, Neutron is designed to be partially reusable, with the first stage capable of landing vertically for rapid turnaround between flights.
8. China Launches the Chang'e 7 Mission to the Lunar South Pole
China's Chang'e 7 mission is scheduled to launch in mid- to late 2026, targeting the moon's south pole, a region believed to contain water ice in permanently shadowed craters. The mission features a combination of spacecraft: an orbiter to map the lunar surface, a lander and rover to explore and analyze resources on the ground, and a small hopping probe capable of traversing challenging terrain that conventional rovers cannot reach.
9. ESA's Hera Mission Arrives at the Didymos Asteroid System
The European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the binary asteroid system Didymos in November 2026 to investigate the aftermath of NASA's 2022 DART impact, which successfully altered the orbit of the moonlet Dimorphos. Hera 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.
10. BepiColombo Finally Reaches Mercury
After an eight-year journey involving multiple gravity-assist flybys of Earth, Venus, and Mercury, ESA and JAXA's BepiColombo mission will enter orbit around Mercury in November 2026. Over the course of its long cruise, the spacecraft has returned valuable science data and close-up images while testing its instruments in the extreme environment near the sun.
11. China Launches the Xuntian Space Telescope
China's Xuntian space telescope, also known as the Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST), is slated to launch in late 2026. The observatory houses a 2-meter-wide (6.6 feet) primary mirror, giving it light-gathering power comparable to and in some survey modes surpassing NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.
12. Dream Chaser Makes Its First Orbital Flight
Sierra Space's Dream Chaser space plane is scheduled to make its first flight to orbit in late 2026, marking a major milestone for the reusable spacecraft after years of development and delays. 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.
13. NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Launches
NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is expected to launch in fall 2026, though the mission schedule allows for a margin extending into 2027. Roman will feature a field of view about 100 times larger than Hubble's, enabling massive surveys of galaxies and stars, and making it one of NASA's most powerful space observatories to date.
As the world eagerly awaits the next major milestones in space exploration, 2026 is shaping up to be a landmark year for both governments and private companies. From NASA's Artemis 2 mission to the moon to the European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera mission to the Didymos asteroid system, numerous space agencies and commercial providers are targeting a wide range of milestones that could redefine how humans live and work in space, deepen our understanding of the solar system, and push exploration farther than it's gone in decades.
