We last popped up to the moon in 1972.
But now, the USA is going to work with Russia to head back to orbit ol’ Luna… on the
way to Mars.
Is your Space Race bone tingling?
Right now, the International Space Station is slated to be abandoned by NASA in 2024.
And, like Geocities, one day, it will just be a memory, but now we might see what’s
next…
A few weeks ago, NASA and Roscosmos announced they’d work together to build the “Deep
Space Gateway” a space station near the moon offering a “deep space environment…
for human missions that push further into the solar system.”
and to “the lunar surface.”
Does this mean we’re going back to the moon?!
USA (and Russia), USA (and private corporations), USA (if this actually happens, woo!)
The gateway is slated to be a public-private partnership where astronauts can try out technologies
needed to go into deep space, all while orbiting the moon.
That said, NASA’s not really given a concrete goal.
They’re not, like, testing specific things, the announcements just said “new technologies.”
Russia handles docking tech, we’ve got orbits pretty much licked… long-term space travel we do on
the ISS… maybe a new airlock!
And some kind of deep-space transport...
They mentioned “confidence...”
When it comes to specifics, it’s unclear.
Proponents of the plan say, we should get really good at moon missions before going
to Mars.
Meanwhile, opponents say this could tie up resources in Lunar exploration, meaning a
trip Mars could disappear into the distant future.
The Gateway news should make the Mars-or-Bust crowd nervous, because we were aiming to go
to Mars by 2033… but the Gateway won’t be fully realized until the late 2020s.
Sooooo… shrug?
Going to space and trying new things does drive innovation.
What will this new space endeavor bring us?
I’m not sure… without a concrete goal, it seems like we’re trying out an ISS, only,
it’s a few days farther away.
Space exploration yielded satellite communications, cordless technology, LEDs, solar power, water
purification, digital cameras, literally hundreds of things.
I hope I live long and prosper, so I can find out if the Gateway can live up to the hype.
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We used to spend lots of billions on space travel,
so, what would happen if we doubled NASA’s budget? Find out here
So far, we’ve spent 65 billion dollars on International Space Station, not actually that much
The new F-35 fighter jet? 400 billion.