Could ET be real? 2023 has seen Moon landings, asteroid samples, comets and crashes. But some think it might be a watershed year in the search for alien life.
Aliens, asteroids and atoms: 2023 in space
Waterworld: Jupiter’s moon Europa has a saltwater ocean 10 times deeper than Earth’s. Glossary
Meteor showers - A celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate, or originate, from one point in the night sky.
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.
Nasa - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, responsible for the US space programme.
Vessel - A ship or boat.
Astronomer - A scientist that studies the universe and space.
Cosmos - The universe, especially when it is understood as an ordered system.