No president since the Apollo era has pushed harder to return to the moon than President Trump. But he wants a space achievement that is about “more than getting rocks this time.”
Canada will send its first astronaut to the moon on a joint mission with the United States, but back on Earth, the relationship between the two countries is fraying.
Polling has consistently found that most people would prefer NASA spend money on things like monitoring climate change and averting asteroid collisions rather than human spaceflight.
Artemis II pilot Victor Glover met with young space enthusiasts at the Kennedy Space Center in January. While overall opinions of NASA remain high, polls find human exploration of the moon ranks pretty low.
From left, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, members of the Artemis II crew, after arriving at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Friday. Mr. Wiseman is holding a plush toy named Rise that will fly in their capsule during their journey to the moon.