Colonization of the Moon the Soviet leadership made some of its first public pronouncements about landing a man on the Moon and establishing a lunar base. Crewed exploration of the lunar surface began in 1968 when the Apollo 8 spacecraft orbited the Moon with three astronauts on board. This was mankind's first direct view of the far side. The following year, the Apollo 11 Apollo Lunar Module landed two astronauts on the Moon, proving the ability of humans to travel to the Moon, perform scientific research work there, and bring back sample materials. Additional missions to the Moon continued this exploration phase. In 1969,
2020s in spaceflight 2020s in spaceflight 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. NASA plans a return to the Moon sometime