10 Most Expensive Space Missions Ever Conducted

Various space missions have been launched in the past to examine and study the mysteries of the cosmos. Here are some of the most expensive space mission ever conducted till now.

Life on Earth, as well as life on other planets, has long piqued people’s interest. The study of outer space has advanced to a new level as science and technology have progressed. Here are the top ten most expensive space missions out of all of them. The most expensive space missions in history are listed here.

List of the 10 most expensive space missions in history are given below:

  1. Space Shuttle Program is estimated to be worth $ 209 billion.

10 Most Expensive Space Missions Ever Conducted
Image Source: Flickr

The Space Shuttle Program has been under development since 1971 and is the most costly space mission to date. NASA and the Air Force are in charge of its research. Five shuttles were built, two of which were lost in a tragedy and one of which was used as a prototype.

  1. The cost of the International Space Station is estimated to be $150 billion.

Image source: nasa

The International Space Station is not just a technical marvel, but also a symbol of what people from various countries can do when they work together. The International Space Station (ISS) is the biggest manmade object in space (it can even be seen with the naked eye if the conditions are correct! ), and it provides unique conditions for performing science tests and examining the impact of lengthy periods of time in space on humans.

  1. The cost of the Apollo space programme is estimated to be $110 billion.

Image Source: natgeo

The Apollo Program began in the 1960s, less than a generation after the first flight, and in July 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin becomes first people to walked on the moon, just in time to fulfil President Kennedy’s promise of landing a crew on the Earth’s natural satellite and securely returning them by the end of the decade. The Apollo missions, maybe the biggest feat in history, transported 24 people to the Moon (12 on its surface! ), and they are still the most ambitious expedition ever attempted.

  1. GPS is valued at $ 12 billion.

    Image Source: Safemonk

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite navigation system that determines one’s location. It calculates distance, time, and location in the WGS 84 coordinate system, which is used all across the world. With the aid of a navigator or a device such as a smart phone with a GPS receiver, the technology is presently accessible for civilian usage. With the exception of the circumpolar regions, it can be found almost anywhere on the planet.

  1. The $ 8.8 billion James Webb Space Telescope

Image Source: nasa

This is a space observatory that will eventually replace the Hubble Space Telescope. According to existing proposals, the telescope will be deployed in the spring of 2020 by an international collaboration of 17 countries lead by NASA, utilising the Ariane-5 rocket. The telescope is expected to be operational for at least 5 years.

  1. Curiosity, $2.5 Billion in Estimated Cost

Image Source: planetary

Curiosity is the most sophisticated probe to ever visit our planetary neighbour, although not being the first. Curiosity’s mission was to learn more about the planet’s temperature and geology in order to address one of astronomy’s most pressing questions: is Mars suited for life? Was it ever in the past, if not now? So far, the answer to the first question appears to be negative, and the answer to the second appears to be inconclusive, but the fact that a high-tech rover is now exploring the landscape and gathering data on another planet is worth the $2.5 billion price tag. 

  1. Hubble Space Telescope: $2.5 Billion Projected Value

Image Source: foxnews

The Hubble Space Telescope, dedicated after Edwin Hubble, one of the best astronomers of the twentieth century, had a rocky start after being sent into orbit owing to a mistake that compromised the clarity of photographs acquired. The miscalculation was on the order of microns, or about one-fiftieth the width of a human hair, which was plenty for such a delicate piece of machinery, so NASA had to send in astronauts to remedy the error by giving it “spectacles.” Hubble started working without a hitch after that, and over the next two decades, he delivered us some of the most stunning photographs of the Universe ever taken.

  1. Mir Orbital Station is valued at $4.2 billion.

Image Source: ebay

From February 20, 1986, Russia’s human space project “Mir” operated in near-Earth orbit. It lasted 5511 days in Earth’s orbit, 4594 of which were occupied, and made 86,331 orbits around the planet. More than 23,000 tests were run aboard the station, which was visited by 104 astronauts from 12 countries.

  1. Cassini-Huygens is valued at $3.26 billion dollars.

Image Source: esa

NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Italian Space Agency collaborated on this space mission to examine the massive ringed planet Saturn and its rings. On October 15, 1997, it was first released. It passed through Saturn’s atmosphere in 2005.

  1. Curiosity on Mars is valued at $ 2.5 billion.

Image Source: Mars nasa

Curiosity On August 6, 2012, the Mars rover landed on the Red Planet. It’s a well-known space project that was originally anticipated to cost roughly $ 650 million but ended up costing far more than that.

Space exploration has a hefty price tag. The 10 most expensive space mission are shown above. Humans have been fascinated by space flight and exploration for generations.

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