Focus may shift to the Red Planet if Trump agrees that “the Moon is a distraction”
ILLUSTRATIONPresident Donald Trump looks set to make sweeping changes at NASA, potentially changing track from landing on the Moon to Mars. In his inaugural address, Trump stated: “We will pursue our Manifest Destiny to the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.” The announcement left many wondering if the Artemis programme, which aims to put the first woman on the Moon, but has been plagued by cost overruns and delays, could soon be on the chopping block.
As of the time of writing, no official statement had been given about the future of the Artemis programme. In early February, NASA’s acting administrator Janet Petro confirmed that members of the Department of Government Efficiency had arrived at NASA and were in the process of auditing the agency. The department is led by Elon Musk, CEO of spaceflight company SpaceX, who has long been a critic of the $93-billion Artemis programme. Musk has previously stated that “the Moon is a distraction” and suggested refocusing on Mars.
The Artemis programme is not without supporters, however. There are many members of Congress – which ultimately controls NASA’s budget – whose constituencies stand to gain thousands of jobs supporting the Artemis programme. Other members of Congress have expressed concerns that Musk has a clear conflict of interest, as his company SpaceX has billions of dollars’ worth of contracts with NASA.■