Artemis II, NASA
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As four astronauts get set to blast off on humanity’s first trip to the moon in more than half a century, comparisons between Apollo and NASA’s new Artemis program are inevitable. The world’s first lunar visitors orbited the moon on Apollo 8.
It could be a race with China, sustainability, or simply that the lunar surface is the next logical place for NASA to showcase its technological progress.
People may know Artemis as NASA’s return-to-the-Moon program. However, it is much more than a rerun of Project Apollo.
The four astronauts making NASA's next lunar leap bear little resemblance to the Apollo era. The Americans who blazed the trail to the Moon more than half a century ago were white men chosen for their military test pilot experience.
A full moon is seen shining over NASA's SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft, atop the mobile launcher in the early hours of February 1, 2026. For 53 years, since the end of the Apollo program, humans have only felt the pull of the Earth's gravity.
In an on-going overhaul of NASA's Artemis program, agency officials say it will take seven years to build a sophisticated base on the moon.