NASA’S top official has revealed plans to create a “village” on the Moon.
It’s part of Nasa’s ongoing Artemis mission to put a permanent human presence on our lunar neighbour.
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The space agency is already partway through the Artemis program, with the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission blasting off to orbit the Moon back in 2022.
Now Nasa administrator Sean Duffy has said that the agency has plans for a significant occupation of the Moon.
“We are going to have sustained human life on the Moon. Not just an outpost, but a village,” said Duffy, speaking at the International Aeronautical Congress today in Sydney, as reported by The Register.
Duffy is also US President Donald Trump’s Secretary of the Department of Transportation.
His latest comments come just days after Duffy issued a major declaration on Nasa’s plans for space domination.
Duffy declared that America will “win the second space race” against China through the USA’s Artemis program.
“President Trump and I have a mission,” said Sean Duffy in a mission statement.
“America leads on Earth and in space.
“We’re going back to the Moon, and this time, when we plant our flag, we stay.
“Our program is called Artemis. And what we learn through Artemis gets us to Mars.
“Our mission is maintaining American dominance in space. China wants to get there, but we’re getting there first.
“We will win the second space race. I’m committed to getting us back to the Moon before President Trump leaves office. Come aboard to the final frontier.”
THE FINAL FRONTIER
Nasa’s Artemis program was established back in 2017, and will reestablish a human presence on the Moon.
The first manned Moon landing was in 1969, with astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walking on the lunar surface during the historic Apollo 11 mission.
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But the last time humans set foot on the Moon was all thew ay back in 1972 as part of the Apollo 17 mission.
It was the 11th and final mission in Nasa’s Apollo program, and marked the closure of a major period of US space exploration.
Next on Nasa’s agenda is Artemis II, which is expected to take place in 2026.
This will be the first crewed test flight of the Space Launch System and the Orion spacecraft.
The Moon – our closest neighbour explained
Here’s what you need to know…
- The Moon is a natural satellite – a space-faring body that orbits a planet
- It’s Earth’s only natural satellite, and is the fifth biggest in the Solar System
- The Moon measures 2,158 miles across, roughly 0.27 times the diameter of Earth
- Temperatures on the Moon range from minus 173 degrees Celcius to 260 degrees Celcius
- Experts assumed the Moon was another planet, until Nicolaus Copernicus outlined his theory about our Solar System in 1543
- It was eventually assigned to a “class” after Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610
- The Moon is believed to have formed around 4.51billion years ago
- The strength of its gravitational field is about a sixth of Earth’s gravity
- Earth and the Moon have “synchronous rotation”, which means we always see the same side of the Moon – hence the phrase “dark side of the Moon”
- The Moon’s surface is actually dark, but appears bright in the sky due to its reflective ground
- During a solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun almost completely. Both objects appear a similar size in the sky because the Sun is both 400 times larger and farther
- The first spacecraft to reach the Moon was in 1959, as part of the Soviet Union’s Lunar program
- The first manned orbital mission was Nasa’s Apollo 8 in 1968
- And the first manned lunar landing was in 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission
It will see four crew members orbit Earth, before whizzing around the Moon and returning to Earth with a splashdown.
This is expected to take place no later than April 2026.
After that comes Artemis III, which is set to be the first American crewed Moon landing since Apollo 17.
Two astronauts are expected to use the Starship Human Landing System (HLS) to descend to the lunar surface.
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They’ll spend around six-and-a-half days on the surface, which will include at least two activities outside of the spacecraft.
They’ll then ascend to rejoin the Orion spacecraft, before returning with two other astronauts back to Earth.
The launch is set for no earlier than mid-2027.
A second crewed lunar landing is currently slated for 2028 as part of Artemis IV, followed by a third mission in 2030 with Artemis V.
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Nasa currently has plans for lunar landings running right up to Artemis X in 2035, which will mark the eighth crewed touchdown.
And this is expected to see astronauts staying on the Moon for an extended period of time.
