The past two years have seen a series of milestones in lunar exploration. In February 2024, a commercial lander built by Intuitive Machines in Houston, Texas, did what only superpowers had achieved before: touch down on the Moon and deliver NASA science payloads. Four months later, China’s Chang’e-6 returned the first samples from the far side of the Moon, a site that China plans to build a radio telescope on, in partnership with African nations.
Why space exploration must not be left to a few powerful nations
The next few years could be just as momentous. In the United States, President Donald Trump proposed US$7 billion for lunar exploration in 2026. His administration’s 2027 priorities go further, calling for investments that “unlock new mission capabilities, enable discoveries, and achieve exploration goals”, including nuclear power, local-resource use and biotechnology in space (see go.nature.com/4812vla).
It’s a new era for space exploration, motivated by a mix of geopolitics, potential commerce and discovery. Establishing humans on the Moon, Mars and beyond is no longer just an aspiration: it is driving strategies, markets and missions today.
The Artemis Accords — a shared set of principles to enhance the governance of civil exploration and use of outer space — had been signed by 59 nations as of October. Yet science is being left behind. Ensuring that space ambitions remain science-driven is essential if exploration is to yield knowledge and innovation.
As an astrophysicist who has worked across government, academia and philanthropy, here I argue that scientific inquiry must guide and shape this next wave of space exploration; I set out five priorities for action. What happens in the next few years will define our future.
Embed science in partnerships
In space, science is the compass that ensures exploration yields lasting value. As a first step, partnerships between academia, government, industry and philanthropy that are focused on space exploration need to be built — with science in the driving seat. These can align around a shared purpose: missions that deliver both knowledge and scientific and technical progress.
Everyone benefits. The record shows that when science leads, it multiplies returns: innovation thrives; economies grow; and national strategies and international partnerships strengthen and drive advances in technologies. For example, Skylab, the first US space station, advanced solar power for human space flight. The Hubble Space Telescope includes modular components that can be replaced or upgraded, demonstrating how modular hardware can enable maintenance in space. The International Space Station is a joint effort between countries including the United States and Russia, demonstrating how scientific partnerships are invaluable for diplomacy.
Many national space agencies, and increasingly private actors working in partnership with them, are planning to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon and chart a path toward Mars (see ‘Window of opportunity’). This Moon-to-Mars era must follow past precedents of scientific diplomacy. It must also ensure that scientific return is a core design principle: shaping missions, payloads and infrastructure from the outset, not as an afterthought. If scientists show up early with clear priorities and mission-ready payloads, industry can integrate them, governments can align policy and philanthropy can bridge funding gaps.
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