Half a century after the Apollo astronauts left the last bootprints in lunar dust, the moon has once again become a destination of fierce ambition and delicate engineering.
This time it’s not just superpowers racing to plant flags but also private companies, multinational partnerships and robotic scouts aiming to unlock the moon’s secrets and lay the groundwork for future human return.
So far in 2025, lunar exploration has surged forward. Several notable missions have launched toward or landed on the moon. Each has navigated the long journey through space and the even trickier descent to the moon’s surface or into orbit with varying degrees of success. Together these missions reflect both the promise and difficulty of returning to the moon in this new space race defined by innovation, competition and collaboration.
Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Zhenbo Wang specializes in guidance, navigation and control technologies and explores how engineers can learn from each mission to navigate space, operate on the moon and support sustainable human exploration. Read more at The Conversation.
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