Name: Where will space exploration take us in the next 50 years? | BBC Ideas
Uploaded: 2025-06-18T17:37:10.000Z
Duration: 5 min
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And when it comes to imagining the future of space exploration, it's easy for things to get a little, well, sci-fi.

Here are four things that could actually happen in our lifetimes.

For decades, science fiction writers have imagined a future where space elevators transport us almost effortlessly into orbit.

Scientists now believe that this could, in theory, become reality using new materials like graphene, thought to be the strongest of all known materials.

Picture this, a docking station somewhere on Earth with an ultra-strong and super lightweight tether cable, which would crawl up like a lift into orbit.

Space elevators could also transport things between planets and moons.

That could be useful, for example, on Mars, which has a very thin atmosphere, making it really hard to land a spacecraft.

A quick space elevator trip between Mars's moon Phobos and the Martian surface could make things much easier.

Space tourism could become a very real thing.

You take a space elevator to the orbit and then take another mode of transport to your destination.

The planets, moons and asteroids in our solar system are packed with rare materials such as nickel, iron and cobalt, which are used for batteries, electronics and many low-carbon technologies.

The most valuable asteroid in the solar system is 511 Davida, whose value is estimated at 27 quintillion dollars.

Meanwhile, other objects in the asteroid belt are full of diamonds.

We could potentially reduce damage to the Earth's ecosystem by shifting the mining of many resources to space.

Now, some companies and governments are already interested in exploring this, but is it theirs to exploit?

In the near future, space mining is more likely to be used to make human populations in space self-sufficient, supplying fuels and materials to space stations and settlements on the moon and Mars, much easier than taking it with us from Earth.

In the next 50 years, it's very possible that the surface of the moon will be dominated by industrial-scale mining and giant structures that we've built from the materials we've mined.

In 50 years time, there may well be permanent settlements on Mars, but life for those early explorers will be tough.

There's no breathable atmosphere, relentless dust storms and extreme temperatures.

These pioneers will face lots of challenges to grow and sustain a human presence on Mars.

Martian soil is full of chemicals toxic to humans, meaning that any food grown there would be lethal.

Humans living on Mars may need all sorts of gadgets and gizmos to help them cope in that environment, such as robotic exoskeletons to counteract muscle wastage and loss in bone density.

Satellites orbiting the Earth tell us the weather, provide GPS navigation and climate modelling.

And since 2019, the number of satellites orbiting Earth has increased from approximately 2,000 to more than 10,000.

Every time a satellite collides with a piece of space junk, it increases the chance of future collisions.

This could set off a chain reaction known as Kessler syndrome, where the Earth is surrounded by so much space junk that launching anything into space becomes risky.

Some chemical reactions happen differently in space. 3D printing in microgravity works really well, for example, much better than on Earth, making it possible to create replacement organs in space.

Global electricity demand has skyrocketed due to advances in AI.

Google's greenhouse gas emissions alone have risen 48% in five years.

In the future, power-hungry data centres could be located in orbit, fed by the plentiful renewable energy from giant solar panels.

And manufacturing in space could become a thing.

Who knows, maybe the label on your next prescription or a t-shirt might one day say made in space.