ARTEMIS PLAN - NASA'S LUNAR EXPLORATION PROGRAM OVERVIEW (SEP-2020)

ARTEMIS PLAN - NASA'S LUNAR EXPLORATION PROGRAM OVERVIEW (SEP-2020)., America has entered a new era of exploration. NASA’s Artemis program will lead humanity forward to the Moon and prepare us for the next giant leap, the exploration of Mars. It has been almost 50 years since astronauts last walked on the lunar surface during the Apollo program, and since then the robotic exploration of deep space has seen decades of technological advancement and scientific discoveries. For the last 20 years, humans have continuously lived and worked aboard the International Space Station 250 miles above Earth, preparing for the day we move farther into the solar system. Sending human explorers 250,000 miles to the Moon, then 140 million miles to Mars, requires a bold vision, effective program management, funding for modern systems development and mission operations, and support from all corners of our great nation as well as our partners across the globe. NASA has been fine-tuning the plan to achieve that bold vision since the president called on the agency in December 2017 to lead a human return to the Moon and beyond with commercial and international partners. Two years later, he challenged us yet again, this time to send the first woman and next man to the Moon within five years. NASA is implementing the Artemis program to achieve those goals, and this document lays out the agency’s Moon to Mars exploration approach explaining how we will do it.