2022 in spaceflight

2020s in spaceflight

The Mars 2020 rover is set to launch aboard an Atlas V rocket in 2020.

This article documents expected notable spaceflight events during the 2020s.

In 2020, NASA plans to launch the Mars 2020 rover, as well as carry out the maiden launch of the Space Launch System; in 2022, NASA plans to carry out the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System.

The trend towards cost reduction in access to orbit is expected to continue. In 2020, Blue Origin plans the maiden flight of New Glenn with a reusable first stage. In 2022, SpaceX plans to launch its new fully reusable BFR.

It is well-known that NASA, and/or perhaps the other very large space agencies (i.e., the ESA, and Russia and China, which could have the capacity to potentially do so) plans a return to the Moon, sometime in the 2020s, and following that a manned exploration of Mars, in the mid 2030s, perhaps eventually leading to colonization of the Moon and of Mars. An unmanned and then a manned trip to Jupiter and Europa has also been commonly contemplated, but probably only after most or all of the previously mentioned missions have been already carried out successfully. Much depends on perseverance in funding and enthusiasm, and in continued rates of significant technical advances and in high-profile successes, and a good safety and accountability culture.