The Universe is an explosive, energetic and continually changing place

—NASA

Sending humans into space is expensive and risky. It takes great resources to protect them and sustain them every time they leave the planet. Losing a crewed spacecraft means loss of lives. This is a high price to pay to learn about the universe. This explains why robotic spacecraft are so vital to space science. Since the beginning of the space age satellites and probes have been sent out to take a look around and gather data about Earth's surroundings. The earliest ones were rather crude in their technology. People referred to them simply as unmanned spacecraft. Times changed, and technology got a lot more sophisticated. Today these mechanized explorers are called robotic spacecraft.

Only a handful of robotic spacecraft are sent to other planets. The vast majority of...