StarDate

Lost Moon


Listen Later

The United States plans to send astronauts to the Moon later in this decade, aiming toward a permanent lunar base. But experience shows that plans come and go. In fact, if all the plans for lunar exploration had actually come about, we’d be skittering all across the Moon today.

In 1958, for example, the Air Force developed Project LUMAN, a comprehensive plan for human spaceflight. It would culminate with a single astronaut landing on the Moon. Later, the service developed another plan – LUMEX. It called for three astronauts to travel to the Moon using a giant new booster and a streamlined spaceship. The Army developed its own plan, involving a space station and other steps.

All of those plans died – in part because human spaceflight was turned over to a new civilian agency: NASA.

And NASA had its own false steps. It studied using its two-man Gemini spacecraft for lunar missions before settling on Apollo. And even then, some of its plans were scuttled; the final three Apollo missions were scrapped, in 1970.

President George W. Bush proposed lunar missions as part of the Constellation program. It was nixed by President Obama. But some of its hardware has been kept for Artemis – which plans to send astronauts to the Moon in the next few years.

Look for the Moon in the west at nightfall. The twin stars of Gemini stand to its lower right, with Mars to its upper left – another planned destination for human explorers.

Script by Damond Benningfield

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

StarDateBy Billy Henry

  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6
  • 4.6

4.6

251 ratings


More shows like StarDate

View all
Science Friday by Science Friday and WNYC Studios

Science Friday

6,173 Listeners

BirdNote Daily by BirdNote

BirdNote Daily

1,186 Listeners

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science by The Planetary Society

Planetary Radio: Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science

1,330 Listeners

Radiolab by WNYC Studios

Radiolab

43,821 Listeners

Astronomy Cast by Fraser Cain and Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast

2,847 Listeners

The 365 Days of Astronomy by 365DaysOfAstronomy.org

The 365 Days of Astronomy

350 Listeners

Universe Today Podcast by Fraser Cain

Universe Today Podcast

543 Listeners

Ask a Spaceman! by Paul M. Sutter

Ask a Spaceman!

803 Listeners

Space Nuts: Astronomy Insights & Cosmic Discoveries by Professor Fred Watson and Andrew Dunkley

Space Nuts: Astronomy Insights & Cosmic Discoveries

225 Listeners

SpaceTime: Your Guide to Space & Astronomy by Stuart Gary

SpaceTime: Your Guide to Space & Astronomy

295 Listeners

Short Wave by NPR

Short Wave

6,210 Listeners

The Supermassive Podcast by The Royal Astronomical Society

The Supermassive Podcast

279 Listeners

NASA's Curious Universe by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

NASA's Curious Universe

840 Listeners

Why This Universe? by Dan Hooper, Shalma Wegsman

Why This Universe?

363 Listeners

Crash Course Pods: The Universe by Crash Course Pods, Complexly

Crash Course Pods: The Universe

504 Listeners