Tag: moon

BACK TO THE MOON: NASA’s Artemis II Set To Send Astronauts Into Lunar Orbit as Soon as February

During the second year of Donald J. Trump’s second term, the US is going to make the moon great again.

This elusive goal, that no nation has attained since way back in 1972, is the number one priority of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), pushing the Mars mission further down the line.

The Artemis’ mission is to return American astronauts to the moon and establish a permanent lunar base — and it is finally about to launch its first crewed flight.

CNN reported:

“The landmark mission, dubbed Artemis II, is on track to lift off as soon as February. The highly anticipated endeavor will mark the first time astronauts have ventured beyond the bounds of near-Earth orbit since the final Apollo mission in 1972.

Artemis II will send a group of four astronauts — NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch as well as the Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen — on a trip around the moon.”

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Russia to build nuclear plant on Moon to power rovers, labs during 336-hour long nights

Russia has unveiled its plans to build a nuclear power plant on the Moon within the next 10 years to support its lunar program and a Russian-Chinese research station for future deep-space missions.

The proposal, confirmed by the country’s state space agency Roscosmos, would provide a sustained energy source for surface infrastructure, including rovers, scientific equipment, as well as a planned joint lunar research base with China.

The announcement followed as the US, India, Japan as well as several European nations increased efforts to establish a permanent presence on Earth’s only natural satellite. The renewed interest was prompted by the 2009 discovery of water ice on the lunar surface.

Power generation remains a great challenge for sustained lunar operations due to the two-week-long nights that restrict solar power. However, a nuclear power plant could offer continuous power regardless of lighting conditions, temperature extremes, or dust accumulation.

Nuclear energy for space

For the 2036 project, Roscosmos revealed that it has signed a contract with the Lavochkin Association, a Russian aerospace firm with decades of experience in planetary spacecraft development.

Even though the space agency did not explicitly describe the facility as a nuclear reactor, it confirmed the initiative involves Rosatom, the nation’s state nuclear corporation, as well as the Kurchatov Institute, Russia’s leading nuclear research center.

According to Roscosmos, the lunar power plant would support a broad range of activities tied to Russia’s lunar program. These include powering robotic rovers, an observatory and maintaining the infrastructure of the planned International Lunar Research Station.

“The project is an important step towards the creation of a permanently functioning scientific lunar station and the transition from one-time missions to a long-term lunar exploration programme,” Roscosmos said.

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Trump signs order to put Americans on the moon by 2028. But is it feasible?

President Trump issued an executive order on Thursday urging NASA to put Americans on the moon by 2028, signing it the same day NASA’s new Senate-confirmed administrator Jared Isaacman took office. 

The order, titled “Ensuring American Space Superiority,” emphasizes the role of the upcoming Artemis missions for Americans to journey to the moon and Mars.

NASA has targeted April 2026 for the launch of Artemis II. It would take the American astronauts in orbit around the moon — the furthest mission into deep space in human history. 

Artemis III would put people on the surface of the moon for the first time in the 21st century. NASA’s website has listed a mid-2027 launch date. 

But former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine told the Senate Commerce Committee in a September hearing he doesn’t think the U.S. will be able to land astronauts on the moon by that date, nor by China’s stated goal of landing astronauts on the moon by 2030. 

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Astronauts set to reveal a 50,000-year-old human civilization lived on the moon, scientist claims

A scientist has claimed that astronauts may soon uncover the remains of a long-lost human civilization that once lived on the Moon 50,000 years ago. 

Author and geologist Gregg Braden told podcast host Joe Rogan that evidence of this ancient city was kept from the public by the US and Russia during the Cold War.

However, during the interview on Wednesday, Braden noted that emerging superpowers China and India plan to televise their findings once upcoming expeditions reach the lunar surface.

The two nations are planning to broadcast their lunar missions using live feeds from mission control and cameras on their robotic landers and rovers, streaming on national TV, social media, and official space agency apps.

China’s robotic Chang’e 7 mission is set for 2026, while India’s Chandrayaan-4 drone is now likely to launch in 2028, with manned missions for both set between 2030 and 2040. 

According to the scientist, who has written about the possibility of life on the moon and Mars, astronauts will discover archeological structures covered in languages that people will be able to recognize as being written by human cultures.

‘The evidence suggests they’re from us, from a time in our past, a cycle of civilization where we did great and beautiful things by working together until we destroyed one another through war, and that we’re repeating that cycle,’ Braden claimed.

Braden has previously stated in books like Deep Truth and Gaia TV’s Missing Links that humans on the moon came from a long-lost Earth civilization 50,000 years ago, which developed space-faring technology before destroying itself in war.

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‘City killer’ asteroid 2024 YR4 could shower Earth with ‘bullet-like’ meteors if it hits the moon in 2032

New simulations reveal that the infamous “city killer” asteroid 2024 YR4 could shower Earth with “bullet-like” debris if it hits the moon in seven years’ time, potentially triggering an eye-catching meteor shower — and endangering the satellites that orbit our planet.

2024 YR4 is a potentially hazardous asteroid measuring roughly 200 feet (60 meters) across, making it large enough to wipe out a large urban area if it were to hit Earth head-on. It was first discovered in December 2024 but made headlines earlier this year when scientists first predicted that there was a chance it could smash into Earth on Dec. 22, 2032. The odds of a collision peaked at 3.1% in February, which was enough to prompt NASA to study it extensively. However, subsequent analysis revealed there is zero chance of it impacting our planet.

But in April, researchers realized that, while Earth is no longer in the firing line, the space rock could still hit the moon. The odds of such a collision have grown slowly but steadily, and most recently jumped to 4.3% earlier this month. Experts will likely know the final likelihood by 2028, when the asteroid will make its next close approach to our planet.

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BEYOND PARODY: CBS Mornings Host Worries About America ‘Colonizing’ the Moon, is Reminded There’s No Indigenous Population There

During a conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson, CBS Mornings host Vladimir Duthiers expressed worry about America ‘colonizing’ the moon and had to be reminded that there is no indigenous population there.

It’s just the latest reminder of how insane our media has become.

Duthiers is basically parroting the type of language you hear on far left college campuses about colonization. It’s one of the many ways the left uses language and ideas to bash our country and its history.

FOX News reported:

CBS host frets Trump admin plans for moon base could usher in new ‘age of colonialism’ in space

On “CBS Mornings Plus” on Wednesday, Duthiers and co-host Adriana Diaz discussed the White House calling for more human space exploration and administration plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon to precede an eventual U.S. lunar base with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Diaz asked if it was “inevitable that we’re going to have to go to the moon and try to colonize the Moon?”

“We know how the age of colonialism worked on this planet,” the host said. “Should we be trying to colonize and saying that there’s a keep-out zone that no other countries can participate in having?”

Tyson replied by pointing out that it would be difficult to colonize an area that does not have people.

“Well, the — the real problem with the colonization history in Western civilization is that there were people already there,” Tyson said.

Duthiers and Diaz agreed, and Tyson added that “there are no moon beings that were displaced as far as we know.”

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The asteroid that will spare Earth might hit the moon instead. What happens if it does?

The asteroid known as 2024 YR4 is out of sight yet still very much on scientists’ minds.

The building-sized object, which initially appeared to be on a potential collision course with Earth, is currently zooming beyond the reach of telescopes on its orbit around the sun. But as scientists wait for it to reappear, its revised trajectory is now drawing attention to another possible target: the moon.

Discovered at the end of 2024, the space rock looked at first as if it might hit our planet by December 22, 2032. The chance of that impact changed with every new observation, peaking at 3.1% in February — odds that made it the riskiest asteroid ever observed.

Ground- and space-based telescope observations were crucial in helping astronomers narrow in on 2024 YR4’s size and orbit. With more precise measurements, researchers were ultimately able to rule out an Earth impact.

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Bizarre and Outlandish Claims and Conspiracies of the Moon

There is little doubt that the Moon is one of the most fascinating objects in the night sky. It is also at the center of some of the most outrageous and bizarre claims and conspiracies on record, not least just why NASA has not returned since the last moon landing in December 1972. Some of these conspiracies suggest there are the remains of alien bases and technology on the Moon, while others go even further and suggest there is an extraterrestrial presence on our cosmic satellite. Some researchers have even suggested that the Moon is not a natural satellite at all, but some kind of mechanical construct designed and built at an unknown location and placed in orbit by an unknown intelligence.

The fact is, though, even without these conspiracies, the Moon is a celestial body full of anomalies. While some people might be familiar with them, before we explore some of these outrageous conspiracies and claims of our celestial satellite, it is worth quickly going over some of the truly anomalous facts about the Moon.

It is, for example, exactly 400 times smaller than the sun, and its distance from the Earth, relative to the overall distance to the sun, is also exactly 1/400th. It is worth noting that these figures are not approximate – they are exact. It is because of these astounding dimensions that total eclipses are experienced here on Earth. Moreover, if these dimensions were out in any way whatsoever, this wouldn’t be possible. Incidentally, we should also take note that the chances of these specific dimensions occurring naturally are zillions to one. What’s more, these figures and dimensions are not seen in any other known moon. Even its perfectly circular orbit is unique (most moons’ orbits are elliptical) and its rotation around the planet is such that one side permanently remains hidden from us.

Looking a little closer, the many craters on the lunar surface create further problems in our understanding of the Moon. These craters, of which there are many, are for the most part, very similar in depth, and relatively shallow at that. In terms of our understanding of modern science, these craters should be much more varied, with at least some showing greater depth at the impact point, which should be the outcome for a naturally formed rocky terrestrial body. Many researchers suggest that it is the absolute high velocity of the meteor strikes that creates these crater anomalies. However, the actual reason for this, at least according to some researchers, both inside and outside the mainstream, is because the Moon is not naturally occurring at all, but a hollow object with a metallic “casing” beneath an artificial rocky surface.  

Perhaps one of the most interesting considerations is how the Moon came to orbit the Earth in the first place. Accepted thinking suggests a small planet or large moon collided with Earth millions of years ago, causing the Moon to form out of the debris of such a collision, which then settled into its current orbit. However, not only because of the remarkable zillion-to-one dimensions and distances of the Moon we highlighted earlier but also because of several other anomalies, many people question just how true it is that the Moon was simply a “happy accident” and a product of coincidence. In fact, some people have even questioned if the Moon was purposely “placed” into orbit, perhaps even by an unknown intelligence. Author William Roy Shelton stated:

“It is important to remember that something had to put the moon in or near its current circular pattern around the Earth. It is very unlikely that any object just stumbles on the right combination of factors needed to help an object stay in orbit. ‘Something’ had to put the moon on its altitude, on its course and speed. The question is, what was that ‘something?”

Issac Asimov, a Russian professor of biochemistry, made similar comments when he wrote:

“… we cannot help but come to the conclusion that the Moon, by rights, ought not to be there. The fact that it is, is one of those strokes of luck almost too good to accept…Small planets, such as Earth, with weak gravitational fields, might well lack satellites…In general, then, when a planet does have satellites, those satellites are much smaller than the planet itself. Therefore, there would be every reason to suspect (the Moon) would be a tiny world, perhaps 30 miles…but it is a giant satellite, 2,160 miles in diameter. How is it, then, that tiny Earth has one?”

There are plenty of other people who have expressed similar sentiments. NASA scientist, Robin Brett stated that “it seems easier to explain the non-existence of the Moon than its existence,” while Irwin Shapiro from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics offered that “the best explanation for the Moon is an observational error!”

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CHINA DETECTS WATER IN SAMPLES IT COLLECTED FROM THE MOON

Scientists have discovered traces of water while analyzing lunar soil samples collected by China’s Chang’e-5 rover.

While NASA already announced the discovery of water on the Moon’s sunlit areas back in 2020, the new research suggests that water can take on even more forms than previously thought on the lunar surface.

As detailed in a paper published in the journal Nature Astronomy, the samples “revealed the presence of trace water,” tantalizing evidence that “water molecules can persist in sunlit areas of the moon in the form of hydrated salts.”

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NASA RADAR DATA CONFIRMS EXISTENCE OF SUBSURFACE “TUNNEL” NEAR FAMOUS APOLLO-ERA LUNAR LANDING SITE

For the first time, scientists have confirmed the existence of an underground tunnel-like feature near the landing site of the first crewed mission to the Moon. The discovery concludes almost half a century of speculation involving the suspected existence of caves below the lunar surface.

On July 20, 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to set foot on the lunar surface after making a soft landing in the Apollo 11 Lunar Module on the mare plain of the Moon’s famous Mare Tranquillitatis, Latin for “Sea of Tranquility.”

Now, according to the findings of an international team of researchers led by the University of Trento in Italy, the existence of a subsurface tunnel-like lava tube cave beneath the Mare Plain has been confirmed.

A new study published in the journal Nature Astronomy revealed the discovery, which relied on data obtained with NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).

The discovery of the tunnel-like feature has been called a significant milestone toward understanding the Moon’s various geological components more fully. It also offers a potential shelter area that could be used by astronauts during future crewed missions.

Lorenzo Bruzzone, a professor at the University of Trento, said the existence of such underground features had long been suspected, although the team’s discovery is the first confirmation that they exist.

“These caves have been theorized for over 50 years,” Bruzzone said in a statement, “but it is the first time ever that we have demonstrated their existence.”

Data originally obtained in 2010 by the Miniature Radio-Frequency (Mini-RF) instrument aboard the LRO, which included radar reflections from a pit discovered in the Mare Tranquilitatis, were reexamined by the research team.

“Thanks to the analysis of the data, we were able to create a model of a portion of the conduit,” said Leonardo Carrer, a researcher at the University of Trento involved with the new findings.

“The most likely explanation for our observations is an empty lava tube,” Carrer said.

Given the demanding environment on the surface of the Moon, where temperatures can reach as much as 127°C on its illuminated side while dropping to frigid lows nearing -173°C on the unilluminated side, lava tube caves could be ideal locations for astronauts to use as shelters on the Moon.

In addition to being ideal environments for subsurface shelters, such an underground tunnel-like feature could also provide a degree of shielding from cosmic and solar radiation that bombards the lunar surface, which can be up to 150 times more powerful there than on Earth.

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