Space Technologies in 2030: Top 5 Future Technologies

In 2030, space exploration will advance in new and exciting ways. For example:

1. SpaceX Could Launch The First Mars Mission

SpaceX astronauts will use a SpaceX Starship, which is typically launched using Super Heavy rockets. The spaceship will depart from Earth during a time when Earth and Mars are best aligned to make the trip.

This trip will take about seven months, and the first astronauts on Mars could stay on that planet for 6 months or longer.

Additionally, these astronauts will bring robots with them to perform activities like maintenance, research, and building basic materials partially comprised of the Martian soil. Autonomous mining robots will obtain water from ice and hydrated minerals on Mars, enabling future colonization efforts.

After landing on Mars, the spacecraft will be filled with Methane-based rocket fuel that will be created on Mars so that these astronauts can return to Earth.

2. Multiple Countries Could Send Astronauts To The Moon

These countries could include the United States, China, Japan, South Korea, India, and the United Arab Emirates. The European Space Agency could send astronauts to the Moon as well.

Likewise, private companies may routinely send humans to the Moon, including SpaceX, Japan's iSpace Incorporated, and Israel's SpaceIL.

As a result, a much higher percentage of the Moon's surface would be explored. The highest amount of exploration could occur near the Moon's South Pole, where future settlements are expected to occur. These space missions would provide massive amounts of data about the Moon that wasn't available before.

We could have a better understanding of how the characteristics of Moondust vary by latitude.

Additionally, we would know exactly where to find the largest deposits of water ice. This would be thanks to orbiters and cameras that can peer into heavily shaded craters on the Moon's surface.

After 2030, human trips to the Moon could become even more frequent.

3. Commercial Space Flights Could Be Commonplace For The Upper Class

By 2030, thousands of people could take trips to space every year.

Using Virgin Galactic spaceships, passengers could regularly go on flights that last at least 90 minutes, allowing them to see stunning views of Earth's curvature.

Using space balloons from Space Perspective, passengers could float for hours on the edge of space while gazing down at Earth with a 360-degree view. These balloons even have cocktail bars in case you want to take the edge off during this life-changing experience.

Using orbital rockets from Blue Origin, passengers could rise over 60 miles above the Earth's surface to briefly experience weightlessness at the frontier of space.

Multiple millionaires and billionaires could even orbit the Moon by 2030.

As a side effect of these developments, space readiness training could become a lucrative industry.

In future decades, consumers will venture farther into the solar system than most of us can imagine.

4. Space Hotels Could Make Billions Of Dollars A Year

Low-orbit space stations could enable new forms of tourism, commerce, and research that never existed before.

Space hotels could comprise of spacious modules with large Earth-facing windows. Games, great food, and medical care would be accessible to every passenger on board. Trips on these space hotels can last for days and weeks at a time. And celebrities and power brokers in business could use these space hotels at increasing rates.

The biggest movie studios will likely begin filming movies in space as well, making movie scenes more immersive and realistic for viewers.

Cutting-edge research will be conducted on these space stations regarding biology, Earth science, new product development, and testing space exploration equipment.

And the companies that own these space hotels will likely sell utilities and services to businesses that use these facilities, including electricity, high-bandwidth communications, information security, robotic servicing, and logistics.

5. NASA May Discover Evidence of Water on Ceres

Ceres is a dwarf planet located in the asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Beneath its icy exterior, many believe that Ceres could have a combination of liquid and rock. In fact, some scientists think its possible that Ceres could have more water than Earth. There's even the possibility that life may have existed on Ceres at some point in the past.

A $1.1 billion mission to return a sample from Ceres could take place that would help us answer these unanswered questions.