Moon missions
A reference on lunar exploration and the cadence of missions that could one day make a permanent Earth-watching camera reachable. exax remains a concept connected to this wider effort, not a declared mission.
Timeline
Missions that shaped lunar exploration
Each lunar mission builds on what came before. Together they trace the slow growth of access and infrastructure that any long-duration surface installation would one day depend on.
1969
Apollo 11 lands on the Moon. For the first time, people set foot on another world and look back at Earth from its surface.
1972
Apollo 17 concludes the crewed program. It remains the last time humans walked on the lunar surface to date.
2008
India's Chandrayaan-1 orbits the Moon and contributes to evidence for water on the lunar surface.
2019
China's Chang'e-4 makes the first soft landing on the far side of the Moon, reaching terrain never before visited up close.
2022
Artemis I launches an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the Moon, testing the systems intended for a sustained return.
Near term
A growing number of national and commercial landers are aiming for the lunar surface, including the polar regions exax studies. Treat any specific schedule as provisional until confirmed by primary sources.
Why it matters
Why missions matter to exax
Mission cadence sets the timeline. Lunar transport and landing capability determine whether camera hardware could ever reach an identified polar site, and what supporting systems would be available once it arrived.
- Access — transport and landing capability decide whether the hardware can reach a polar site at all.
- Infrastructure — power, relay, and surface systems shape whether a long-duration live camera is realistic.
- Verification — time-sensitive mission status should always be checked against primary sources before it is treated as settled.
Upcoming launches
Upcoming lunar launches
Upcoming lunar-lander missions, retrieved at build time from RocketLaunch.Live's lunar-lander tag and refreshed on each site build.
| Mission | Vehicle | Provider | Target date | Location | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Griffin Mission 1 | Falcon Heavy | SpaceX | 2026-11 | Kennedy Space Center | View |
| Luna 27 | Soyuz 2 | Roscosmos | 2028 | Vostochny Cosmodrome | View |
Data by RocketLaunch.Live
Follow the road back to the Moon
As lunar access grows, so does what a permanent surface camera could become. Explore the concept, see what the view might look like, or help carry it forward.
