00:00Danny, good morning. You've got the mission still underway, but how significant are the milestones that it's already achieved?
00:08Hey, Lizzie, good morning. So, the Artemis II spacecraft, it managed to reach a maximum distance from Earth of over
00:16250,000 miles.
00:18And that has beaten a record that has stood still for over 55 years.
00:23And all in all, when you look at how the astronauts have managed this mission so far, they managed to
00:32get as close as, as you said, 4,067 miles from the Moon's surface.
00:37So, a pretty cool view that they would have had from space of the Moon and something like a basketball
00:46-sized view in their outreached hands.
00:49Now, they had some communication blackout overnight. That was expected for around 40 minutes.
00:55And that kind of signalled the second half of their trip as the spacecraft does return to Earth now.
01:01So, they are halfway through a 10-day mission. And so far, it looks like it's been successful.
01:07And so far, Danny, what has Artemis proved for NASA's long-term plans?
01:14Well, for NASA, this is a critical test flight, a dress rehearsal, as it were, to show that its systems
01:20can handle humans in deep space and to make sure that they can be returned safely.
01:27And overall, there is a goal that by 2028 that NASA will be able to get Americans back onto the
01:34Moon's surface.
01:35And there is a time pressure now with the likes of the U.S. companies involved, the likes of Boeing
01:41and Lockheed Martin,
01:42and also for the newish NASA administrator, Jared Isaacman.
01:47He's a former astronaut himself. He was appointed by President Trump.
01:51He's been trying to shake up the timelines and to try and get this Artemis program kind of back on
01:57a schedule.
01:58And the reason why is because you have the likes of the Chinese who aim to get onto the Moon
02:03again by the end of a decade.
02:06The U.S. now wants to try and get there before China.
02:09So, ultimately, this feels like another space race as they try to stick to a very ambitious 2028 deadline.
02:17So, what are the next key steps that need to happen, Danny, before NASA can attempt that crewed landing?
02:23Well, we have another space mission, a test flight, Artemis 3, that will take place next year in 2027.
02:32And that will test some of the docking procedures of not just the Orion spacecraft, but also of other commercial
02:39options.
02:40But these all really will help ensure that there are options so that the U.S. can get back onto
02:46the Moon's surface.
02:47Now, you have the debate from the likes of former astronaut and Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, who believes this 2028
02:55timeline is just too ambitious.
02:57But you have the likes of the Republicans and Senator Ted Cruz, who believe that there is a strategic imperative,
03:02regardless, to get back onto the Moon as soon as possible.
03:06Because the likes of China, if they get there first, it would look ultimately quite a contrast to the U
03:13.S.'s efforts.
03:13But for now, Artemis program, it is over budget and behind schedule.
03:19So far, has spent $93 billion, which is a bit of a blowout.
03:23And the fact that Jared Isaacman wants to spend another $30 billion over the next decade, potentially have a base
03:29on the Moon's surface.
03:30So, there's a lot of spending and a lot of ambition in what the U.S. wants to do.
03:34But this clearly is a complex challenge as they try to get deeper into space.
03:41Well, you said that the 2028 timeline was ambitious, Danny.
03:45Is it realistic?
03:48Given the time pressures and the missed deadlines, we are already behind by a couple of years.
03:55The fact that under the new administrator in Jared Isaacman and with the likes of Trump, President Trump watching very
04:02closely,
04:04maybe it's hard to tell at the moment, to be frank, you know, it remains to be seen.
04:09But, you know, ultimately, they are pushing forward and they are pushing ahead.
04:12So, even if they do miss it by months or so, there is still that concerted effort.
04:18And, you know, they could still get very close to sticking to that timeline.
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