An official at NASA says that there are plans for astronauts to live and work on the moon by 2030.
Howard Hu is the head of the Orion Lunar Spacecraft Program at NASA. He said that we will have habitats on the moon for astronauts to live in and do science. There will also be rovers to help them.
Hu became the head of the Orion Lunar Spacecraft Program in February this year. Hu recently spoke about the 98-meter-tall Artemis 1 rocket which launched on November 16. The rocket has the Orion spacecraft attached to the top of it. The spacecraft is uncrewed and is controlled from Earth.
The rocket launch was delayed many times because of technical issues and bad weather.
The spacecraft will fly within about 100km of the moon and continue flying for about 64,000km more. It will return to Earth and splash into the Pacific Ocean on December 11 after its 25-day mission.
If the mission is successful, the next flight, Artemis 2, will send astronauts around the moon and back to Earth. Then, the Artemis 3 will bring astronauts back to the moon in 2025 or later. The last time humans visited the moon was in December 1972.
As part of the Artemis missions, NASA plans to build a space station that will orbit the moon. The goal after that is Mars, which is a two-year journey.
VOCABULARY
- Official – a person who works for the government and has power or authority; officer; executive
- Astronaut – a person who is trained to travel in space
- Head – leader, top person, boss
- Lunar – relating to the Moon; something in connection to or from the Moon
- Program – a group of activities or things to be achieved; project; initiative
- Habitat – a special environment or area for living in over an extended period (Zoos have habitats for many kinds of animals)
- Rover – a small vehicle with wheels or tracks, often used to explore other planets;
- Launch – to shoot; to fire; to push; to throw; to send something into space or the sky
- Attached – connected; joined together; fastened
- Uncrewed – no crew; no people; no operators
- Delayed – late; postponed; suspended; not on time; slowed down
- Technical issues – mechanical problems; computer problems; problems with technology or machines
- Splash – to hit water or liquid; to move around in water or liquid
- Mission – an expedition into space; an important job that a person is sent somewhere to do
- Orbit – the curved path that something (such as a moon or satellite) follows as it goes around something else (such as a planet); (The moon orbits the Earth)
- Journey – a trip; a travel
Original story from The Gurdian below:
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