The most common objection to NASA’s Artemis program to send astronauts back to the lunar surface for the first time in five decades is a variant of the phrase “been there, done that.” The notion was best expressed by President Barack Obama in 2010 when he addressed an audience at the Kennedy Space Center to justify his cancellation of President George W. Bush’s Constellation lunar return project and to announce a journey to Mars program.
“Now, I understand that some believe that we should attempt a return to the surface of the moon first, as previously planned. But I just have to say pretty bluntly here: We’ve been there before. … There’s a lot more of space to explore and a lot more to learn when we do.”
But the idea that there’s nothing to accomplish by going to the moon just because Americans walked on it 50 years ago is remarkably foolish. The current plan to return to the moon recognizes that going back there is crucial for any attempt to send astronauts across the interplanetary gulfs to Mars.
Besides serving as a testing ground for surface operations for future Mars explorers, the moon represents opportunities for science, commerce, and the acquisition of soft political power.
The late Paul Spudis explained that the moon constitutes a record of the solar system’s development for the past 4 billion years. Because the lunar surface lacks an atmosphere, meteor impacts and other geological events have been preserved. A study of the lunar surface can yield insights into how the Earth evolved and how the sun interacted with both celestial bodies. The lunar surface also offers a “stable platform” for both optical and radio telescopes that could image the universe with detail and precision hitherto never achieved.
The moon is also the repository of minerals that have the potential to spark a space-based industrial revolution — industrial metals such as iron, titanium, and aluminum. NASA’s JPL has noted that the moon also features rare earth minerals, helium 3, and water.
Rare earth elements are an important component of high-tech products ranging from electric cars to smartphones. Helium 3 does not exist naturally on Earth and has the potential to provide fuel for future fusion energy plants. Water can be refined into hydrogen and oxygen, components of rocket fuel, that could make the moon a refueling stop for expeditions to Mars and other deep space destinations, cutting the cost of such voyages.
When the United States beat the Soviet Union to the moon, it garnered a great deal of prestige and credibility as a technologically superior country. The Soviet leadership and people never recovered from the humiliation.
The U.S. has the opportunity to build on its space credentials by returning to the moon in a number of ways.
First, it will establish itself as a leader in space exploration by inviting other countries to join the effort. Lunar expeditions will include astronauts from allied countries, making the undertaking an international one, like the International Space Station.
The U.S. is also parlaying its leadership in the return to the moon by negotiating the Artemis Accords, an agreement that sets down how the world will peacefully explore not only the moon but Mars as well. A number of countries have signed on to the accords, with more to follow. Thus, America will influence how nations and people will interact in space.
In an echo of the Apollo-era space race, the current Artemis program will demonstrate that the U.S. is still the superior technological superpower, a lesson that the Chinese, who have their own lunar ambitions, would profit from learning.
The idea of sending astronauts directly to Mars has a certain superficial glamour. A direct expedition to Mars would be glorious, inspirational, and, like the original Apollo missions, unsustainable. It would be hugely expensive without a lot of tangible benefits.
In short, to become a true space-faring civilization, the U.S. should lead the world back to the moon first. With the experience and access to resources thus gained, voyages to Mars could be mounted with more ease and with greater benefits.
Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space and politics, has published a political study of space exploration titled “Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon?” as well as “The Moon, Mars and Beyond.” He blogs at “Curmudgeons Corner.”
