<
https://theconversation.com/nasa-wants-to-build-a-base-on-the-moon-by-the-2030s-how-and-why-it-plans-to-build-up-to-a-long-term-lunar-presence-279166>
"The next U.S. trip to the Moon isn’t about planting a flag. It’s about
learning how to live and work there.
NASA has just reset its Artemis program, marking a clear strategic shift: Space
exploration is moving away from a race to achieve milestones and toward a
system built on repeated operations, a sustained presence and lunar
infrastructure that could become part of the technology networks we rely on
here on Earth.
That shift is reflected in newly announced plans to invest billions of dollars
in building a long-term lunar base, with habitats, power systems and surface
infrastructure designed to support ongoing human activity. The message? Humans
have already normalized travel to space. The next step is normalizing living
beyond Earth.
Artemis is NASA’s plan to return people to the Moon with the goal of staying.
Unlike the short Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s, it consists of
increasingly complex missions: flying around the Moon, landing on its surface
and eventually establishing a base near the lunar south pole. The program aims
to create a reliable way for humans to live and work there, develop
technologies useful on Earth and prepare for the journey to Mars.
Rather than moving straight from the upcoming Artemis II crewed lunar flyby to
a surface landing, the new road map adds an intermediate mission in 2027.
Astronauts will test docking, life-support systems and communications with
commercial lunar landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin, but in low Earth orbit,
the region roughly 100 to 1,200 miles (160 to 2,000 kilometers above Earth’s
surface, where rescue remains possible.
The first landing near the lunar south pole is now targeted for 2028. This
timeline may sound delayed, but in reality, it has been deliberately reset to
prioritize building reliable systems that can operate long into the future over
speed."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
