United States
NASA cancels VIPER Moon rover amid budget concerns
After $450 million and six years of work, NASA will not be exploring lunar ice with its new rover. The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) is already built, and the rocket is still scheduled to launch next year, but the rover will remain on Earth.
NASA, Boeing extract lode of data amid Starliner’s extended stay in space
Boeing Starliner Commercial Crew Module deemed safe to return astronauts to Earth for emergency return as engineers diagnose anomalies.
Volunteer crew emerges from year-long NASA Mars simulation
After 378 days, the CHAPEA crew emerged from its Mars Simulation at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
SpaceX expanding operations, increasing launches in Southern California
SpaceX is expanding its facility and renewing its lease at the Port of Long Beach to support an increased launch cadence out of Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Boeing Starliner accomplishes first crewed launch to ISS
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral with astronauts onboard for the first time. With this success, Starliner is poised to be only the second commercial crewed vehicle that is certified to bring astronauts to the ISS.
SpaceX reaches 50 launches at its fastest pace in three years
The 50th SpaceX Falcon 9 mission of the year launched successfully May 14 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The launch makes 2024 the third consecutive year the space company has achieved at least 50 annual launches.
Rocket Lab launches NASA solar sail test, South Korean observation satellite
Rocket Lab launched two satellites on April 24. One is an Earth observation satellites for a Korea university and the other is a solar sail technology demonstration.
Global space activity by category, 2007-2027
The global space economy totaled $546 billion in 2022, 8% higher than 2021 — and it could reach $772 billion by 2027, according to Space Foundation analysis. Commercial space continues to make up the majority (78%) of this total, but preliminary data shows that 81% of governments with space programs increased spending in 2023.
Astronauts by top nations
The majority of astronauts (95%) have also reached the Kármán line at 100 km — the internationally recognized boundary of space.
As launch failures grow, satellite operators are more resilient to risk
Increasing annual launches and new players in the launch market have led to several notable payload delivery failures over the past few years.