In 2024, what are the major scientific and technological events to look forward to?

Source: Xinhuanet

In 2024, what are the major events worth looking forward to in the field of global science and technology? Looking at the vast universe, mankind continues to move towards the dream of exploring the sea of stars, and space exploration activities such as lunar exploration are splendid, science and technology change life, artificial intelligence technology further empowers all walks of life and accelerates integration into all aspects of society, and in response to climate challenges, the development and application of green technology are changing with each passing day, contributing to global sustainable development.

Visit the stars and explore the moon and ask the sky

The Moon remains the focus of space exploration this year.

NASA plans to carry out the "Artemis 2" manned lunar exploration mission no earlier than November this year, and four astronauts will fly around the moon aboard the "Space Launch System" and "Orion" spacecraft, a new-generation US lunar landing rocket; NASA's new-generation lunar rover, the "Volatile Survey Polar Exploration Vehicle," plans to land at the south pole of the moon at the end of the year to carry out a 100-day mission to explore the moon's water ice resources.

China's lunar exploration program, Chang'e-6, plans to return the first sample from the far side of the moon. In order to successfully complete the communication between the spacecraft on the far side of the moon and the Earth, the newly developed Queqiao-2 relay communication satellite is planned to be launched in the first half of 2024.

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's small lunar probe SLIM entered orbit around the moon at the end of last year and is scheduled to land on the lunar surface on January 20.

Private companies are also vying to send probes to the moon, vying for the title of "the first private company to land on the moon". Aerospace Robotics plans to launch the Peregrine Falcon lunar lander in January with the help of the Vulcan Centauri, a newly developed rocket developed by the United Launch Alliance. The American company "Intuition Machine" plans to launch the Nova-C lunar lander in mid-February.

In the field of deep space exploration, NASA's Europa Clipper probe, scheduled to launch in October, will conduct a detailed scientific survey of Jupiter's moon Europa. Scientists predict that Europa's ice crust contains a huge Aral Sea that may contain materials necessary to sustain life.

Space projects that are also worth looking forward to include the test launch of the new-generation heavy-lift carrier rocket "Starship" of the US Space Exploration Technology Corporation, the first manned test flight of the new generation of manned spacecraft "Starliner" of the US Boeing Company, and the Venus exploration mission of the US "Rocket Lab" Company. In addition, NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency plan to launch the first wooden-hulled satellite this summer.

Artificial intelligence is widely empowered

From autonomous driving to personalized recommendations, from financial analytics to legal consulting, AI is empowering all walks of life and accelerating its integration into our lives.

Generative artificial intelligence, represented by ChatGPT, has brought disruptive experiences, chatting with humans, writing papers, programming and writing code, and composing music. OpenAI plans to release its next-generation AI model, GPT-5, this year, and the latest version of Google's AI model Gemini is also attracting attention.

A new version of Deep Think's artificial intelligence tool Alpha Fold, which simulates interactions between proteins, nucleic acids and other molecules with atomic precision, is scheduled to be released this year. Clinical trials to test whether artificial intelligence can be used for early diagnosis of lung cancer are also expected to yield results this year.

The development of quantum computing and supercomputers will provide strong support for artificial intelligence. This year, quantum computing is expected to move from theory to practical application. A number of powerful supercomputers will also be put into use, such as the first exascale supercomputer "Jupiter" in Europe, and the "Aurora" and "Chieftain Rock" in the United States. Deep South, a supercomputer that fully simulates the human brain's network, is scheduled to go live in Australia in April, with a neuromorphic supercomputer capable of performing 228 trillion synaptic operations per second, which is comparable to the estimated number of operations in the human brain.

While AI improves efficiency and convenience, it also brings regulatory challenges, and many countries and regions have introduced relevant regulations. The UN's High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence is scheduled to release a final report in the middle of this year, setting out guidelines for international regulation of AI.

Brain-computer interface technology also poses ethical risks and governance challenges. American entrepreneur Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company Neural Connections will begin implanting brain-computer interface devices into human volunteers this year. In the era of "artificial intelligence +", the integration of brain-computer interface and artificial intelligence is worth looking forward to, but also causing concern.

Green technology has become a trend

According to the World Meteorological Organization, 2023 was the hottest year on record. However, this record could be broken in 2024. The website of the American magazine "Science" released the top ten scientific topics worth paying attention to this year on the 3rd, and the first is that the El Niño phenomenon has continued from last year to this year, which may exacerbate climate change and make the global average temperature exceed the pre-industrial level of 1.5 degrees Celsius for the first time.

Therefore, the expansion and application of green technology has received special attention. According to the International Energy Agency, global renewable energy generation will exceed one-third of total electricity generation for the first time in 2024.

China is at the forefront of the world in the development of new energy sources, with the latest data from the National Energy Administration at the end of 2023 showing that China's renewable energy accounts for more than 50% of the country's total installed power generation capacity. China has also shared its experience and technology with many developing countries. In South Africa's Northern Cape province, the Redstone 100 MW tower solar thermal solar project, built by a Chinese company, is reportedly expected to be put into trial operation in early 2024.

In clean power application scenarios, the transportation sector has already set off a boom in electric vehicles, and in 2024, electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft are expected to become a new highlight. At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which will open on January 9, South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group plans to exhibit the "Sky Taxi" concept. Embraer announced last year the construction of the "Flying Car" plant and plans to test flights this year. Electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft have been developed to a certain extent before, and the aforementioned nickname shows the high expectations placed on it.

Carbon capture and storage technology, which separates carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere, represents another direction for mankind to combat climate change. In June, the Carbon Capture Summit will be held in the Netherlands, where industry players will focus on the development models and economic value of these technologies.

This year's United Nations Climate Change Conference will be held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, in November, and all parties will continue to discuss how to take concrete actions and jointly promote green, low-carbon and sustainable development around the world. (Xinhua News Agency reporter Guo Yang)

(Source: Xinhuanet)