NASA & International Space Missions

NASA and international partner space agencies have driven deep-space exploration across the solar system and beyond. Landmark historical achievements include the Apollo lunar landings (1969–1972) and the Voyager 1 and 2 probes, launched in 1977, which have entered interstellar space. Robotic Mars exploration includes NASA's Curiosity and Perseverance rovers, which deployed the Ingenuity helicopter—the first powered, controlled aircraft on another planet. NASA's Artemis program aims to return humans to the lunar surface and establish a sustained base camp, supported by the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System (SLS). Other major global initiatives include ESA's JUICE mission to Jupiter's icy moons and JAXA's Hayabusa sample returns.