Could a lunar landing unite the world? The biggest space missions of 2025 raise hopes for a new age of international cooperation and scientific discovery. And by 2030, one astronaut could make one giant leap for womankind.
2030 forecast: woman walks on Moon
Long-awaited visit: The last man walked on the Moon on 14 December 1972. At the time, few believed that more than 50 years would pass before the next human stepped foot on the lunar surface. Glossary
Astronaut - Someone whose job it is to go into space.
Apollo - A US space programme which ran from 1961 to 1972 and took 12 astronauts to the moon and the ancient Greek god of the sun, poetry, and archery.
Nasa - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, responsible for the US space programme.
Artemis - In Greek mythology, Artemis was the goddess of hunting and the Moon, and the sister of Apollo.
Elon Musk - A South African-born entrepreneur whose companies have included the online payment service PayPal. He now controls Twitter, renamed 'X'.
Mars - The fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System.
Donald Trump - An American politician, media personality, and businessman serving as the 47th president of the United States since January 2025. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021.
SpaceX - Founded in 2002 by South African entrepreneur Elon Musk, SpaceX's mission is to reduce the cost of space transportation to make possible the colonisation of Mars.
Asteroid - A small body in space, made of metal and rock material. Asteroids usually orbit the sun, but if knocked off course they can be drawn into Earth’s gravity and fall towards it.
Colonies - Area or countries under the control of another nation.
Pandemics - When a disease spreads across an extremely large area, or the entire world. A pandemic is more severe than an epidemic.
Solar System - The Sun and the objects whose movement it controls.