Space missions in 2023: From NASA to ISRO, here's a list of top space missions this year

The year 2023 is here and the whole world is preparing to achieve new milestones and set higher records. Similarly, the science world is ready to set new and higher benchmarks for the world.  Here is a list of crucial space missions in 2023 to look forward to. 

Gaganyaan mission

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will start the series of test flights from February 2023. The space agency is also planning to use a heavy-light Chinook helicopter and the C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft for testing the mission’s crew module. The module is designed to carry astronauts into orbit for three dates as part of the Gaganyaan mission.

The purpose of the crew module is to provide oxygen, remove carbon dioxide, remove humidity and maintain a living temperature as it transports the three astronauts on board.  Four candidates have already been chosen by the space agency and they have already received their initial training in Russia. Now, they are undergoing further training at the Astronaut Training Facility in Bengaluru.

Chandrayaan-3

ISRO's Chandrayaan 3 is a follow-up to the Chandrayaan-2 mission. The Chandrayaan-2 failed to achieve a soft landing on the Moon. The Chandrayaan-3 will also carry a lunar lander and a lunar rover to Earth’s lone natural satellite. The mission is scheduled to launch aboard a Launch Vehicle 3 (LVM3) rocket, earlier known as the GSLV 3, in June 2023.

Juice mission

The European Space Agency (ESA) is planning to launch the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer mission in April 2023. The Juice mission aims to complete 35 fly-bys near Jupiter and will make detailed observations about the gas giant and its three large ocean-bearing moons–Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. Along with observing Jupiter's environment in-depth, the Juice mission will also characterise its moons as both planetary objects and potential habitats. 

After it completes its 35 fly-bys near Jupiter and its Moons, it will also become the first spacecraft to shift its own orbit to another world by moving to Ganymede’s orbit.  Among the three moons, Ganymede is the largest moon in the Solar System and it is even larger than planets-- Pluto and Mercury. It is also the only moon to have its own intrinsic magnetic field. Mercury and Earth are the only other solid bodies that generate a dipole field like Ganymede.

OSIRIS-Rex mission

Launched in September 2016, the OSIRIS-REx mission is carrying samples of the asteroid Bennu. It is currently on the way to return them to Earth in September 2023. Once the spacecraft reaches at around 250 kilometres above the Earth's surface, it will release a sample capsule that will make a precise landing at the United States Air Force’s Utah Test and Training range.

NASA believes that asteroids like Bennu can act as time capsules for the earliest history of our solar system. They preserve chemical signatures from when the universe was a younger place and might even contain samples of the ancient building blocks of life. The space agency will distribute portions of the samples to scientists around the world but a large fraction of it will be preserved so that it can be studied by future generations with much more advanced technology.

Visiting Asteroid Psyche

NASA is planning to launch the Psyche mission to study the metallic asteroid 16 Psyche after the OSIRIS-REx’s return. 16 Psyche revolves around the sun in an orbit between Mars and Jupiter. This asteroid appears to be the exposed nickel-iron core of an early planet. 

Instruments aboard the Psyche spacecraft will include a Multispectral Imager, a Gamma Ray and Neutron Spectrometer, a Magnetometer and an X-band Gravity Science Investigation. The mission will also test a new laser communication technology that uses light at near-infrared wavelengths instead of radio waves to communicate with the Earth.

Bonus: Newly-developed rockets

In addition to the many science missions, various private space companies will also conduct the maiden flights of their new rockets, including, Arianespace’s Ariane 6, Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin’s New Glenn, Elon Musk-owned SpaceX’s Starship and the United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur.