On April 1st, NASA is set to launch the Artemis II mission, which will send four astronauts to the Moon. Their journey around our closest neighbor will pave the way for a lunar landing and, eventually, for a lunar base. NASA's Artemis program has required years of work, involved thousands of people, and is estimated to have cost, to date, $93 billion.
However, for some, there is a clear sense of "we've been there, done that. " More than 50 years ago, the United States' Apollo missions made history when the first humans set foot on the lunar surface. With a total of six landings, it seemed that the Moon had been definitively crossed off the list of outstanding space tasks.
So, why is the United States dedicating so much time, effort, and money to the race to return? Valuable Resources The terrain may appear dry, dusty, and quite barren, but nothing could be further from the truth. "The Moon contains the same elements that we have here on Earth," says Professor Sara Russell, a planetary scientist at the Natural History Museum in London.
"An example is the rare earth elements, which are very scarce on Earth, and there could be areas on the Moon where they concentrate enough to be extracted. " There are also metals like iron and titanium, and helium, which is used in all sorts of applications, from superconductors to medical equipment. But the most surprising and attractive resource is water.
"It has water trapped in some of its minerals, and there are also substantial amounts of water at the poles," Russell ex…
It not only provides drinking water but can also be separated into hydrogen and oxygen to provide breathable air for astronauts, and even fuel for spacecraft. The Race for Space Dominance The U. S.
Apollo missions that occurred in the 1960s and 70s were driven by a race for space dominance with the Soviet Union. This time, the rival is China. China has rapidly advanced with its space program.
It has successfully landed robots and specialized robotic vehicles on the Moon and claims it will send humans there by 2030. While there is still prestige in being the first to plant a flag in lunar dust, what really matters now is where it is planted. Both the United States and China want access to the most resource-rich areas, which means securing the best lunar real estate.
The 1967 United Nations Outer Space Treaty states that no country can own the Moon. However, when it comes to what is found on the Moon, the issue is not so simple. "Although you can't own a piece of land due to the UN treaty, you can basically operate on that land without anyone interfering," says Helen Sharman, the first British astronaut.
"So what's important right now is trying to secure a piece of land. You can't own it, but you can use it. And once you're there, you have it for as long as you want.
" Paving the Way to Mars NASA has its sights set on Mars and wants to send people there in the 2030s. Considering the technological hurdles it must overcome, this is quite an ambitious timeline. But since you have to start somewhere, the United States has decided that place will be the Moon.
"Going to the Moon and staying there for an extended period is much safer, much cheaper, and much easier as a testing ground for learning to live and work on another planet," says Libby Jackson, head of the space department at the Science Museum in London. At a lunar base, NASA can refine the technology needed to provide the air and water astronauts need. They will have to figure out how to generate energy and build habitats to protect people from extreme temperatures and dangerous space radiation.
"All of these are technologies that, if tested for the first time on Mars and they go wrong, could have catastrophic consequences. It's much safer and easier to test them on the Moon," Jackson states. Mysteries to Unravel The rocks brought back to Earth by Apollo astronauts transformed our understanding of our celestial neighbor.
"They revealed to us that the Moon formed from an incredibly dramatic event, where a body the size of Mars collided with the Earth, and the debris formed the Moon. We know this thanks to the Apollo rocks," says Professor Sara Russell. But she adds that there is still much to discover.
Since the Moon was once part of the Earth, it preserves a record of 4. 5 billion years of our planet's history. And with no tectonic plates, wind, or rain to erase this record, the Moon is a perfect time capsule.
"The Moon is a fantastic archive of the Earth," Russell states. "A new batch of rocks from a different area of the Moon would be incredible. " Inspiring a New Generation The low-quality black-and-white images transmitted from the Apollo missions turned the dream of space into reality.
And while only a few of the fortunate viewers would become astronauts, many ended up dedicating themselves to science, technology, and engineering. The Artemis missions, broadcast live and in 4K, are expected to inspire a new generation. "We live in a technological world.
We need scientists, engineers, and mathematicians, and space has an extraordinary ability to spark people's interest in those subjects," says Libby Jackson. The new jobs and a flourishing space economy will bring the United States benefits from the billions it has invested in Artemis, just like any technology developed for the missions that has an application on Earth. But Helen Sharman states that returning to the Moon will also give the world a much-needed boost.
"If we really come together, we can achieve many things that benefit humanity," she says. "It's a demonstration of what we humans are capable of.