Some of the finest human achievements in history involve space exploration. Our DNA is wired to push our curiosity to new levels. Many of us stare into the night sky and dream of experiencing the weightlessness of space or visiting another planet. It used to seem like science fiction to occupy Mars, but it may become a reality. Visionaries like Elon Musk have enabled a commercial segment of space exploration, and with some time, it could give the next big boost to your portfolio. This July, billionaires Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos dominated headlines as space cowboys revolutionizing tourism into the next frontier. At first glance, it may seem that space tourism is the way to play this hot new megatrend. However, when you dig under the hood, you will find that this may not be the case. Space exploration, although an exciting growth trend, is an unknown and speculative industry. There's no question that there's money to be made in this sector, but which stocks are the best long-term possibilities? Today, I am joined by FIRED Up Wealth's Space Exploration moderators, who share their 4 favorite stocks in the sector. The stock picks covered today may not be the ones that first come to mind. In fact, you may not have heard of a couple. The unanimous favorite is Rocket Lab (NASDAQ: RKLB), which some consider the baby brother to Elon Musk's private company SpaceX. Rocket Lab is similar to SpaceX in that both are end-to-end space companies delivering launch services, spacecraft, satellite components, on-orbit management, and more. If you aren't familiar with this sector, watching the video below will be time well spent. We break down the sector and share three additional stock ideas. *Stock prices used in the below video were during the trading day of Nov. 16, 2021. The video was published on Nov. 17, 2021. 10 stocks we like better than Rocket Lab USA, Inc.When our award-winning analyst team has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* They just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Rocket Lab USA, Inc. wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of November 10, 2021 Eric Cuka owns shares of Palantir Technologies Inc. and Tesla. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Palantir Technologies Inc. and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Eric is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.Source