July 20 is National Moon Day. This day commemorates the successful touchdown mission of Apollo 11’s trip to the moon in 1969. This historic event marked humankind’s first steps on Earth’s satellite. The Apollo missions continued with several trips to the moon until 1972, with Apollo 17. Fifty years later, NASA set their sights back on the moon with the first mission of the Artemis program. Artemis 2 launched on April 1, 2026, sending a crew of four astronauts to fly around the moon for the first time in over five decades.
The purpose of the Artemis program is not to restart the Apollo program, but instead to build on it. Apollo 11 proved that humans could reach, land, and walk on the moon. Artemis 2 will help pave the way for humans to have a long-term presence that goes beyond Earth. Compare these two missions and predict the future of moon exploration.
What is the future of moon exploration? Do some research into the mission goals of the entire Artemis program. What next missions do they have planned? What are their individual goals? Will humans set up habitation on the moon? Will humans use it to reach farther planets? Write up a 1-page essay detailing your predictions.