This year's spaceflight missions hold the promise of making history and paving the way for future space missions beyond Earth.
Here are the top spaceflight missions set to take off in 2024:
ARTEMIS II
NASA is preparing ARTEMIS II for its blast-off 2024, marking the first lunar trip since the Apollo program in the 1970s.
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The difference is instead of landing on the moon, ARTEMIS II will orbit it.
The mission aims to achieve the farthest distance from Earth travelled by humans, unlike ARTEMIS I which had three manikins onboard. If successful, ARTEMIS III is scheduled for December 2025, putting humans back on the lunar surface which hasn't been achieved since 1972.
BLUE ORIGIN'S ALL-FEMALE CREW
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Headed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin is set for an all-female crew mission in 2024.
Bezos' partner, Lauren Sanchez, will lead the all-female crew, which includes five other women yet to be revealed.
The crew will embark on New Shepard, which completed its 24th space mission just last month.
Bezos founded Blue Origin with a commitment to sustainable space exploration, investing in reusable and reliable spaceflight services.
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NEW GLENN
Blue Origin's second vehicle, New Glenn, is 320 feet tall and able to carry 45 metric tons to low Earth orbit.
Named after John Glenn - the first American to orbit the Earth - New Glenn is designed as a reusable launch vehicle for up to 25 missions.
One of its initial flights will launch NASA's EscaPADE probe to study Mars' magnetosphere, investigating the interaction between energy and plasma with the solar wind.
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POLARIS DAWN
SpaceX is at work on Polaris Dawn, a private astronaut mission set for launch no earlier than April 2024.
The mission will involve four US engineers and pilots onboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft.
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The four-man crew will prepare for five days in orbit, attempting to reach the highest Earth orbit ever flown.
Founded by Tesla CEO Elon Musk in 2002, SpaceX designs reusable aircraft for privatised space missions, such as the Crew Dragon.
MOMO 2
Is there life on Mars?
India may be leading space missions to find out the answer in the next few years.
In 2024, India is set to explore the Martian surface and its habitability with Mars Orbiter Mission 2 - or MOMO 2.
This is the second mission following the success of MOMO, which marked India as the first Asian nation to reach the Martian orbit on its first attempt.
The mission will include a spacewalk and aims to help scientists in their endeavours to advance 'understanding of human health during future long-duration spaceflights'.