AP PHOTOS: Moon, asteroids and new rockets topped the world's space news in 2023

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The moon, asteroids and brand new rockets topped the world’s space news in 2023.

Elon Musk’s monster rocket made it to space on the second test flight before exploding again. India landed successfully on the moon, outdoing Russia, which crashed. And NASA brought back its first samples of an asteroid.

These are just a few of 2023’s cosmic hits and misses. And there’s more to come in 2024.

MOON MANIA

The moon was the hottest ticket in town, with landing attempts in 2023 by Russia, India and a private Japanese company. Only India prevailed, becoming the fourth country to do so. Two U.S. companies, China and the Japanese Space Agency are targeting touchdowns, some as early as January. NASA kicked off 2023 by introducing the four astronauts who are slated to fly around the moon in late 2024 — three from the U.S. and a Canadian. Another crew will actually land, but the timing is uncertain.

ROCKET DEBUTS

The biggest and most powerful rocket ever built, SpaceX’s Starship, launched twice from South Texas in 2023 and, both times, blew up and littered the Gulf of Mexico. The second test flight lasted twice as long and soared 93 miles (150 kilometers). SpaceX wants the empty spacecraft to make it around the world, before adding satellites and people. NASA’s next moonwalkers will need Starship to get to the lunar surface. Three other rockets are set to make their debut in 2024: United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan with a lunar lander, Blue Origin’s New Glenn, the company’s first orbital-class rocket, and Europe’s upgraded Ariane 6 rocket.

ASTEROID AUTUMN

NASA billed it as asteroid autumn. In September, the Osiris-Rex spacecraft delivered a batch of rubble collected from asteroid Bennu. A couple weeks later, the Psyche spacecraft blasted off on a six-year...