Since the Cold War between the USA and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), the struggle for domination on the Moon continues to be the goal of humanity. Many countries allocate a significant part of their budgets to space investments. In the coming years, countries such as the USA, Russia and China are expected to establish bases on the Moon for astronauts to live. Turkiye is among the countries that plan to send a vehicle into space in 2023.
It has been 53 years since Neil Armstrong first set foot on the Moon. But humanity’s desire to dominate the Moon never ceased. In 2023, many countries will increase their investments in space.
INDIA
India will launch the Chandrayaan 3 program in June 2023 to explore the Moon’s surface.
The Asian country first reached the Moon on Chandrayaan 1 in 2008.
TURKIYE
In February, Turkiye announced its space program, which includes the 2023 Moon mission.
Turkish Space Agency (TUA) aims to land a vehicle on the Moon towards the end of 2023 with international cooperation. The second phase of the program is planned to be carried out in 2028.
SPACE X
SpaceX, the space company owned by Elon Musk, is planning a trip to the Moon in 2023.
Space X’s Starship vehicle will take Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa and eight other passengers on a DearMoon journey around the Moon in late 2023.
EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY
The European Space Agency (ESA), supported by 22 European countries, plans to launch the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) in April 2023.
ESA aims for humanity to reach the orbit of another satellite other than the Moon.
The instrument will search for signs of life in water ice believed to lie beneath the surface of Jupiter’s three moons, Ganymede, Callistro and Europa.
CHINA
China plans to place a telescope called Xuntian into Earth orbit in December 2023 to map distant stars and black holes.
In addition, China wants to continue its cooperation in space with Russia.
China has announced plans to establish a joint base on the Moon with Russia by 2035. However, an exact date has not been determined yet.
RUSSIA
Russia aims to launch the Luna 25 mission in July 2023 to collect samples from the south polar region.
United States of America
The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will launch the Psyche spacecraft in 2023 to explore an asteroid called 16 Psyche, which is thought to be the remnant of an ancient planet in the Solar System.
It aims to launch its next Moon mission in 2024, with the vehicle it calls Artemis II.