Come Wednesday, it’ll be 50 years since humankind walked on the moon.
The United States’ Apollo space mission initially began as a race against the Soviet Union to secure our position as a world leader.
Thankfully, both countries emerged with the much broader purpose of space exploration.
After 12 years, NASA mothballed the walks, turning its efforts to space stations to prepare for longer-term human spaceflight.
On Sunday, the first leg of returning an American to the moon was successfully completed when the Artemis I rocket safely returned to Earth after a month-long flight that tested the technology needed to take astronauts back to the moon.
Launch date: 2025.
Russia has dropped out of the race. Now, it’s the United States and China.
If it takes another rival to spur the United States to once again set foot on the moon — this time in new regions — so be it. But in truth, exploration of this magnitude requires an international collaboration and scientists are hoping there can be a sharing of results to avoid expensive duplication.
What scientists have learned is that even the most sophisticated technology sometimes cannot replace an in-person experience.
For instance, on NASA’s last lunar mission in 1972, astronaut/geologist Harrison Schmitt noticed a rusty patch of soil, as noted in the Dec. 3, 2022 issue of Science News. Schmitt contemplated the surrounding area and realized he was at the site of a volcanic eruption. Schmitt scooped up the orange soil which later revealed evidence of a “fire fountain” some 3.7 billion years ago.
Schmitt’s quick grasp of the significance of the discolored soil supports the idea that not only did the Moon once host volcanoes in its youth but also that the Moon and Earth are of an approximate age.
“The ultimate field tool is the well-trained human,” said Jose Hurtado, who trains astronauts in geology, as quoted in the Science News report.
Scientist Steven Squyres, who led the Spirit and Rover missions to Mars, added, “The unfortunate truth is that most things our rovers can do in a perfect [Martian day], a human explorer on the scene could do in less than a minute.”
TODAY’S astronauts are a class apart from those of 50 years ago.
It used to be that only military fighter pilots were considered for the job. And yes, they were all white men.
