Squiz Today Squiz Shortcuts: NASA’s return to the moon
Feb 5, 2026
A tight look at NASA’s big return to the moon, why the Artemis program aims for a sustained presence, and the focus on the lunar South Pole for water and fuel. They outline mission steps from test flights to a planned landing and a future lunar station. The conversation flags safety concerns like heat shield damage and debates about readiness and inclusion goals for upcoming crews.
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Artemis Is About Staying, Not Just Visiting
- Artemis differs from Apollo by aiming to build a sustained human presence, not just land and return.
- NASA plans Artemis to advance science, technology and prepare humans to live and work off-Earth.
Orion Is The Mission's Safety Backbone
- The Orion spacecraft is central and cost about $30 billion to develop to protect astronauts traveling to and from the Moon.
- Artemis 2 will test Orion with four crew on a lunar loop before any lunar landing occurs.
Artemis 1: A Long Uncrewed Test Flight
- Artemis 1 was an uncrewed shakedown in 2022 that travelled over 2 million kilometres and reached 432,210 kilometres from Earth.
- That mission tested systems but did not carry humans, so a crewed Artemis 2 is the real milestone.