With 2024 wrapped up, and now a quarter of the way through the 21st century, it’s time to look forward to what is to come and this year is shaping up to be quite promising. We are seeing the dawn and progression of many ambitious science missions and a lot of fun things happening with the moon and planets!

2024 is at an end and it did not disappoint in the world of astronomy. Records were broken, exciting new science missions were launched, and we were treated to a variety of unique phenomena in our skies, both during the day and night. Here are some of the more notable things that took place over the last year.

The Parker Solar Probe is set to ring in the holiday with an insane dive into the Sun’s corona where it will reach the fastest speed ever by a human-made object!

Humanity’s fateful return to the Moon has once again been postponed. As frustrating as this is, there is reason to feel good about it! Here’s what is going on!

As you watch the planets drift across the night sky throughout the year, you’ll notice that they periodically seem to stop and reverse direction before righting themselves again. This is really strange! Why does that happen? We’ll walk you through what’s actually going on! It’s simpler and more intuitive than you might think!

People from around the world have been invited to meet in an unlikely place. Antarctica. Here, an experiment is set to be conducted. One that purports to settle an ancient debate.

What debate? Why Antarctica? Why now? Find out!

It was recently determined that the Sun has reached solar maximum in its solar cycle. What does that mean? What is the solar cycle? What causes it? How does it affect us here on Earth?

ESA's Hera mission has launched! This is a follow up to the NASA DART mission which intentionally impacted a spacecraft into an asteroid in 2022. This spacecraft is being sent to investigate the aftermath and will provide invaluable insight into how best to protect Earth from rogue asteroids.

The Europa Clipper mission has launched! If you haven’t heard of this, don’t worry! Read here to learn what it is and why you should be excited. For updates on the mission’s progress, check the very bottom of the article.

Neptune is the first planet to be mathematically predicted before its eventual discovery. Find out how the hunt for the eighth planet demonstrated the awesome power of science, math and cooperation.

Where do planetary rings come from and how come some have them while others don't?

In 1977, NASA sent the twin Voyager space probes to explore the outer solar system. Today, those probes are the most distant human-made objects from Earth. What did they find along the way and what does this grand voyage mean for the future of humanity?