Moments in 2023 that made us gaze in awe at the universe

In 2023, space exploration reached many big moments. Samples from asteroids far away were brought back to Earth. Isro made history by being the first to land near the Moon's south pole. Elon Musk's SpaceX also launched the biggest rocket ever made, but it exploded two times. (Photo: PTI)

In April, a private Japanese company named Ispace tried to land a commercial vehicle, the Hakuto-R lander, on the moon. Sadly, it ended up crash-landing. (Photo credit: Lexica art)

Russia’s space agency, Roscosmos, followed with yet another blunt force impact when its Luna-25 mission crashed into the moon’s surface in August. (Photo: TOI)

India’s space agency Isro then swooped in days later with the successful touchdown of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander on August 23. India became the fourth county to successfully land a spacecraft on the Moon, and the first to land in the moon’s south pole region.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, also has a spacecraft headed for the lunar surface, with a landing attempt expected early next year. (Photo: Reuters)

SpaceX tried two times to launch an incredibly powerful rocket. The first try in April didn't go well as the rocket started spinning out of control. They had to destroy it. The second attempt happened in November and went better. The huge 400-foot rocket flew higher, even reaching outer space by firing all its engines. But sadly, both the spacecraft and rocket booster exploded in the end. (Photo: Reuters)

Space tourism began with the Axiom-2 mission. It happened in May and took decorated former Nasa astronaut Peggy Whitson along with three paying customers to the International Space Station. This was the second private mission to the space station. More trips like this, which might cost around $55 million per seat, are expected in the coming years. (Photo: Reuters)

Virgin Galactic, created by British billionaire Richard Branson, started providing frequent journeys to the edge of space for affluent adventure-seekers, fulfilling its commitments after twenty years. During 2023, Virgin Galactic completed six trips to the edge of space using its rocket-powered space plane. These trips accommodated company staff, test pilots, and customers. The price for a seat on these flights is about $450,000, though initial ticket buyers may have paid less. (Photo: Reuters)

In April, Nasa revealed that astronauts Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Christina Koch will be part of the Artemis II mission. This mission, scheduled for a flyby around the moon, is a historic event set to launch in November 2024. Artemis II is significant as it marks the initial crewed journey in Nasa's series of missions. These missions aim to establish a permanent base on the moon where astronauts can reside and work. Ultimately, Nasa hopes these endeavors will pave the way for manned trips to Mars. (Photo: Reuters)

In September, a remarkable delivery from outer space arrived in the Utah desert, leaving astronomers with an enigmatic cosmic puzzle to decipher over the coming years. Following its successful collection of samples from the near-asteroid Bennu in 2020, Nasa's OSIRIS-REx mission safely released a capsule filled with valuable rocks and dust while passing by Earth on September 24. (Photo: Reuters)