Moon and Mars, here we come: NASA nominee wants landings

Apr 9

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Ray Bogan Political Correspondent

By Ray Bogan (Political Correspondent), Snorre Wik (Photographer/Video Editor)

President Trump’s nominee to lead NASA told Congress he wants humans on the moon before the end of the Trump administration. He also wants to prioritize the Mars mission, which has a target date of the 2030s.
Jared Isaacman is a billionaire entrepreneur who has been to space twice.
NASA’s Artemis program is scheduled for a crewed lunar flyby in April 2026 and a crewed surface landing in mid-2027.

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It’s the moon and Mars, not the moon or Mars.

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President Trump’s nominee to lead NASA told Congress he wants humans on the moon before the end of the Trump administration while prioritizing the Mars mission, which has a target date of the 2030s.

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“We don’t have to make a binary decision of the moon versus Mars, or moon has to come first versus Mars. I think we can be parallel in these efforts,” Jared Isaacman told the Senate Commerce Committee.

When will humans make it back to the moon?

There’s an ongoing race to the moon between the United States and China.

Under the Artemis program, the United States is scheduled to have a crewed lunar flyby scheduled in April 2026 and crewed surface landing in mid-2027.

China is scheduled to have multiple lunar lander missions in the same time frame, but astronauts from the country aren’t scheduled to touch down until 2030 and could build a lunar base with Russia by 2035.

What’s at stake if America loses the moon race?

“We certainly cannot lose. If we do not lead the way and we’re following, we may be following forever, and the consequence of which could be extraordinary,” Isaacman said. “I mean, even if you’re talking about things that have maybe even a low probability. Let’s say on the lunar surface, helium 3 becomes a new source of fusion power, it could shift the balance of power here on Earth. I don’t think we can afford to find that out the hard way.”

Who is Jared Isaacman?

Jared Isaacman is a billionaire entrepreneur who has been to space twice. He was part of the SpaceX crew that performed the first non-professional astronaut spacewalk.

His relationship with SpaceX was a concern for multiple reasons. For one, owner Elon Musk wants to go to Mars, and lawmakers believe Isaacman may prioritize that, not the ongoing effort to get back to the moon. In addition, NASA has a $25 billion annual budget and over the last decade it has awarded SpaceX $17 billion in contracts.

“I believe NASA should be working on, again per my prepared remarks, on the near impossible,” Isaacman said. “What no one else is capable of doing. And when they figure it out, commercial industry takes over and brings the rest of the world to follow.”

Isaacman explained that since 1989, America has spent more than $100 billion on getting astronauts back on the moon and on Mars. However, neither has happened.

He said the Artemis program and Orion spacecraft is not the best option over the long term.

“I don’t think it’s the long-term way to get to and from the moon and to Mars with great frequency, but this is the plan we have now,” Isaacman said.

In Greek mythology, Artemis was the goddess of wild animals and the hunt. When America does finally land back on the moon, it’s NASA’s mission to make sure a woman takes the first step.

Tags: Donald Trump, Mars, Moon, NASA, Space Technology

[Ray Bogan]

It’s the moon and mars, not the moon or mars.

President Trump’s nominee to lead NASA told Congress he wants humans on the moon before the end of the Trump administration and while prioritizing the Mars mission which has a target date of the 2030s.

Isaacman said, We don’t have to make a binary decision of the moon vs. Mars, or moon has to come first verse Mars. I think we can be parallel in these efforts.

There’s an ongoing race to the moon between the United States and China.

Under the Artemis program, the United States is scheduled to have a crewed lunar flyby in April 2026 and crewed surface landing in Mid-2027.

Isaacson also stated, We certainly cannot lose. If we do not lead the way and we’re following, we may be following forever and the consequence of which could be extraordinary. I mean even if you’re talking about things that have maybe even a low probability. Let’s say on the lunar surface, helium 3 becomes a new source of fusion power, it could shift the balance of power here on earth. I don’t think we can afford to find that out the hard way.

Jared Isaacman is a billionaire entrepreneur who has been to space twice.

He was part of the SpaceX crew that performed the first non-professional astronaut spacewalk.

His relationship with SpaceX was a concern for multiple reasons. For one – owner Elon Musk wants to go to Mars, and lawmakers believe Isaacson may prioritize that, not the ongoing effort to get back to the moon. In addition, NASA has a $25 billion annual budget, and over the last decade it has awarded SpaceX $17 billion in contracts.

He also said, I believe NASA should be working on, again per my prepared remarks, on the near impossible. What no one else is capable of doing. And when they figure it out, commercial industry takes over and brings the rest of the world to follow.

Isaacson explained that since 1989, America has spent more than $100 billion on getting astronauts back on the moon and on mars. We’ve done neither.

So when asked if the current Artemis program and Orion spacecraft is the best way to go…

Isaacson stated, I don’t think it’s the longterm way to get to and from the moon and to Mars with great frequency, but this is the plan we have now.

In Greek Mythology, Artemis was the goddess of wild animals and the hunt. When America does finally land back on the moon, it’s NASA’s mission to make sure a woman takes the first step.