Stepping foot on the Moon is not only one of NASA’s greatest achievements, but also one of humankind as a whole – so why haven’t we done it in over 50 years?
1969 was the first time man set foot on the Moon‘s surface as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin famously stepped and leaped across the Sea of Tranquility.
Five additional crewed landings followed this initial expedition, with the last coming in December 1972 as the Apollo 17 mission broke countless records, including the longest space walk.
One of the last times anyone stepped foot on the Moon, over 50 years ago… (Encyclopaedia Britannica/UIG Via via Getty Images)
Yet in the 50 years that has followed, not a single human being has returned to the Moon’s surface, leaving many space enthusiasts to wonder what the hold up is – especially considering the number of active space activities inside and beyond NASA.
We have seen countless astronauts explore space with continual trips to the International Space Station.
There are even astronauts currently stuck in space with rather worrying results, so why can’t they just visit the Moon in the meantime?
Unfortunately, as revealed by former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, the reality of the situation is far more complicated – and rather depressing too.
Bridenstine has stated to reporters: “If it wasn’t for the political risk, we would be on the moon right now,” continuing on to argue that “in fact, we would probably be on Mars.”
The root of the issue then appears to be both money and time, as any prospective program would take far too long and cost too much money.
In his first term as President, Donald Trump requested an additional $1.6bn in funding in a plan to return astronauts to the Moon by 2024, and recent NASA plans have pushed this date back to late 2026.
NASA certainly aren’t the only ones striving for further space exploration though, as Elon Musk‘s independent SpaceX has expressed keen efforts to both return to the Moon, and famously to reach and colonize Mars with the ‘Occupy Mars’ project.
Elon Musk has been aggressively pushing for further space exploration (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
SpaceX has still had to deal with government regulation issues though, as William Gerstenmaier – the company’s vice president for built and reliability – complained in October 2023 about regulators reportedly stifling projects.
As reported by CNN, Gerstenmaier proclaimed: “It’s a shame when our hardware is ready to fly, and we’re not able to go fly because of regulations or review,” continuing on to claim that these delays have “nothing to do with public safety.”
It remains both frustrating and depressing then that progress in space exploration isn’t held up by our own research and technology, but government regulation, spending, and bureaucracy instead.
With Musk further cementing his place as the richest man on Earth with an increase of $26bn to his net worth following Donald Trump’s election victory, one wonders if this will be enough for the tech mogul to push past regulation – especially considering his close ties to the current President.Featured Image Credit: peepo / fStop Images – Caspar Benson / Getty Images
This article was originally published on Unilad Tech.
