U.S. Return to Moon’s Surface Delayed to 2025

Tuesday, November 09, 2021 at 10:30 PM ET

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Illustration of SpaceX Starship human lander design aimed at carrying NASA astronauts to the surface of the Moon under Artemis. SpaceX

Key Takeaways:

NASA has officially delayed the return of Americans to the moon under the Artemis program until at least 2025, missing its original 2024 deadline.
The delay is primarily attributed to issues in developing the Artemis Orion astronaut capsule and a lengthy legal battle between SpaceX and Blue Origin over the lunar lander contract.
Additional contributing factors include insufficient past congressional funding for the human landing system and the Trump administration's 2024 target being technically infeasible, with NASA now also aiming to be aggressive due to perceived competition from China.

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Americans will not be returning to the surface of the moon until at least 2025, NASA said Tuesday, confirming for the first time the agency will not make its original 2024 deadline.

During a teleconference with reporters updating its Artemis Program, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson blamed delays in developing the Artemis Orion astronaut capsule as well as a long legal battle between SpaceX and Blue Origin over the program’s lunar lander.