Artemis
How NASA’s return to the moon will be different from its first journeys there
NASA’s renewed effort to return humans to the moon draws inescapable parallels to Apollo a half-century ago.
Key House appropriator still skeptical of NASA’s lunar plans
The chairman of the House appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA said July 24 he’s not yet convinced of the need to accelerate a human return to the moon, citing the cost of doing so.
NASA outlines plans for lunar lander development through commercial partnerships
As NASA celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first crewed landing on the moon, the agency released new details about how it will procure landers to enable humans to return to the moon in the 2020s.
Artemis cost estimate won’t be ready until 2020
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine told a Senate committee July 17 that a cost estimate for landing humans on the moon by 2024 likely won’t be ready until the administration submits a budget request next February.
Op-ed | What will be different next time we go to the moon
Half a century after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took their first “small steps,” we’re going back with all the wonders of 21st century technology, but this time, things will be different.
Bridenstine says leadership changes linked to urgency in NASA’s exploration programs
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said he reassigned the agency’s human spaceflight head, Bill Gerstenmaier, because time was limited to address cost and schedule issues with the agency’s key exploration programs and still meet a 2024 deadline for returning humans to the moon.
NASA shakes up exploration leadership
In a move that took most people in the space industry by surprise, NASA has reassigned two top officials in its exploration program, including Bill Gerstenmaier, the longtime head of NASA’s human spaceflight programs.
NASA contractors support Artemis cost estimate
Companies involved in NASA’s exploration program agree with a recent estimate by the head of NASA that landing humans on the moon by 2024 will require an additional $20 billion to $30 billion for the agency.
NASA to seek proposals for Gateway logistics
NASA will issue a formal call for proposals later this summer for cargo transportation services for its lunar Gateway, seeking to model that effort on the space station’s commercial cargo program.
Bridenstine to meet with international partners on lunar plans at Paris Air Show
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine plans to meet with international counterparts in Paris this week to discuss cooperation on the agency’s Artemis lunar program, but says those discussions are still in their early stages.
Paying for Artemis: How much will it cost to go back to the moon?
NASA has laid out a rough plan for what it now calls the Artemis program, including what needs to be built — SLS and Orion, a “minimal” Gateway and lunar landers — and how it can come together in time for a 2024 landing. What the agency has been less forthcoming about, though, is how much it will cost.
Bridenstine estimates Artemis cost at $20–30 billion
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a television interview June 13 that it will cost the agency an additional $20 billion to $30 billion to return humans to the moon, the first range of costs given by the agency for the program.
Scientists fear cuts to NASA science to pay for Artemis
Scientists and the chair of a key House committee expressed concern at a June 11 hearing that NASA could raid science programs to pay for its accelerated return to the moon.
Safety panel calls on NASA to apply commercial crew lessons for Artemis
As NASA starts development of lunar landers for Artemis, it should carefully incorporate the lessons learned from the commercial crew program, a safety panel advised.
White House reiterates human moon missions on the path to Mars
A day after President Trump appeared to cast doubt on NASA’s plans to send humans to the moon, a White House official said the moon remained a goal of the agency’s programs as a step towards Mars.
Trump tweet throws space policy into chaos
President Donald Trump disrupted months of civil space policy development in a single tweet June 7, suggesting that NASA should not return humans to the Moon.
