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From dazzling auroras not see in decade to ambitious missions to other worlds , 2024 was a jam - tamp yr for distance that got meg of Earthlings looking to the sky .

The moon pose a little more crowded thanks to a parade of lunar landing mission . The sun kicked into mellow gearing as it reached the bloom of its macula oscillation , spitting out solar violent storm that fuel colourful display in Earth ’s skies . UFOs came to Washington ( again ) , whileNASAlaunched a new spacecraft to hunt down for likely aliens in thesolar system .

The silhouette of a man stepping out on a space shuttle with Earth visible behind him

Related:12 strange reasons humans have n’t get alien life yet

quondam missionary work end , raw mission commence , and two stranded astronaut in short became the most illustrious celebrities on Earth ( or , well , above it ) . Simply put : place was the place . How well did you follow along with this year ’s top space news stories ? Take our twelvemonth - end quiz to receive out if you merit a place among the stars . Do n’t be afraid to habituate the jot push button if you get stuck — even astronauts need to call for help now and then .

Rocket liftoff

A radio telescope with imaginary blue lines coming from it

a close-up of the fiery surface of the sun

An image of the sun with solar wind coming off of it

A two paneled image. On one side, a space capsule in the ocean. On the other side, an illustration of a human with a DNA strand

Split image of newborn planets and the burial object left in a newly discovered ancient Egyptian tomb.

images showing auroras on Jupiter

An image of the Eagle Nebula, a cluster of young stars.

An artist�s illustration of long ribbon-like auroras rippling across the Martian sky

an illustration of a base on the moon

person using binoculars to look at the stars

a photo of the Milky Way reflecting off of an alpine lake at night

Two young lions (Panthera leo) in the Masai Mara National Park in Kenya.

Mount Vesuvius behind the ruins of pompeii.

Stonehenge, Salisbury, UK, July 30, 2024; Stunning aerial view of the spectacular historical monument of Stonehenge stone circles, Wiltshire, England, UK.

a painting of vikings at sea

a rendering of a bed floating in the clouds

Sunda island pit viper ( Trimeresurus insularis ) on a branch. Photo taken in Jakarta.