Keith’s note: I was just on CNN [Audio] talking about the New Glenn explosion last night – based mostly on video and initial reports of damage. The technical aspects, root cause etc. will take a while to emerge. Given delays with both SpaceX and Blue Origin contributions to the Artemis program this is a rather uncertain time for America’s return to the Moon. But NASA and its contractor team has bounced back before. Ad Lunam. Update: I was also on Deutsche Welle [Audio] and NewsNation with my long-time friend Leroy Chiao [Audio]. Video links below.

Keith’s note: According to this press release NASA did a big Moon base reveal today. Lunar landers, rovers, and drone selections were announced. Two Moon-related BAAs will be released as well. And the NASA Moonbase website has some upgrades.

Keith’s note: Imagine that I am a regular person trying to find those 12,000 Artemis II images from links in all the recent articles about them. If you go to https://eol.jsc.nasa.gov and search for “Artemis II” or “ArtemisII” or “Artemis” you get one search result (see image). If you search for “Moon” you see “Lunar Collection” which has nothing from Artemis – nor are there any ‘Artemis’ links elsewhere on this Moon page. If you go to the NASA Artemis page or the Artemis II page these 12,000 Artemis II images are not even mentioned.

Keith’s note: today the Artemis II crew and Jared Isaacman went to see the president in the Oval Office. This was the crew’s second visit to the Oval Office In 2003 they met with President Biden and talked about their mission and the Moon rock that was on display. Today they met with President Trump. After some initial comments about the actual Moon mission, all that the media – and President Trump – seemed to be interested in was UFOS, Ukraine, Iran, Russia, Putin, Comey, Supreme Court, the Voting Rights Act, fake news, mental institutions, drug dealers, murderers, Farm Bill, nukes,  auto plants, tariffs, trade, Congress, border control, NATO and everything but the Artemis II mission to the Moon and back – the first time this has been done in half a century. A transcript from CSPAN of what was said is included below. NASA/Artemis comments by the President are highlighted in red. Jared Isaacman/NASA comments are highlighted in blue. There is not much in the way of red. Very little blue. More below

Keith’s note: according to a new NASA OIG report “NASA’s Acquisition of Next-Generation Spacesuit Services“: “NASA faces challenges in ensuring next-generation spacesuits are available to meet the Agency’s current schedules for the Artemis lunar landing mission in 2028 and prior to the ISS’s decommissioning in 2030. NASA’s original schedules to demonstrate the lunar and microgravity spacesuits in 2025 and 2026, respectively, were overly optimistic and ultimately proved unachievable, as evidenced by delays of at least a year and a half for both spacesuits. Based on our analysis, if Axiom experiences design and testing delays in line with the historical average for recent space flight programs, the Artemis and ISS demonstrations may not occur until 2031.” …“if Axiom cannot satisfy its contractual requirements in a timely or cost-effective manner, then NASA could be forced to continue using the problematic EMUs throughout the life of the ISS and significantly adjust its lunar plans.” Keith’s Update: @NASAAdmin Jared Isaacman just posted this response to @NASAOIG: “Very much appreciate the OIG work. As I posted months ago, NASA is not taking a passive role in any component of America’s return to the lunar surface and building a Moon base. We are reviewing where NASA can do better, how we can provide relief where appropriate to burdensome requirements, where we can expand capabilities over time (Apollo 11’s EVA profile was very different than Apollo 17), and where we can help industry by inserting NASA SMEs and driving the intended outcomes. I am confident that when NASA is ready to land on the Moon in 2028, our astronauts will be wearing Axiom suits. There will always be lessons learned as we improve across NASA and industry, and we need to be mindful of the contracting approach to stimulate a market versus jumping to an as-a-service model where NASA may be the only customer for the foreseeable future. That places a significant capital burden on providers while they wait for additional demand to materialize. A successful approach for commercial crew and cargo, underpinned by launch, does not mean it is applicable to every space-related service. The orbital and lunar economy is inevitable. We just need to be thoughtful in our approach to sustainably enable it.”

Keith’s Note: Last week we all had a moment to savor just how extraordinary the Artemis II mission was – not only for its technological prowess- but more importantly the sense of pride, wonder, and inspiration it generated here and across the world. So, how do we reward the team who did this? We – gut their budget – for the second year in a row -of course. Congratulations! A preview from the LA Times: A renewed threat to JPL as the Trump administration tries again to cut NASA.

Keith’s note: Former Deputy/Acting NASA Administrator Fred Gregory posted this on Facebook and it is reposted here with his permission. “What an accomplishment after such a long multi-generational pause between our moon adventures. Somehow this current excitement must be sustained, motivated not by a competitive adversary but an intense curiosity of what’s out there and why learning and exploring and discovery allows a civilization to survive. After more than 2 years Artemis 2 clearly represents what we can do, but I don’t see or feel the underlying motivation nor excitement to do much more.” More below

Keith’s note: The exploration of space holds endless resonances with the exploration of Earth:

• On 6 April 1909 Matthew Henson became the first African American to reach the North Pole.
• On 6 April 2026 Victor Glover became the first African American to reach the Moon

Keith’s 11 Nov 2025 note: 75% – 3/4 of the people on this planet have never seen humans walk on another world. We’re suddenly in a race to go back to the Moon and we are not clearly in the lead. The next time humans walk on the Moon will be the first time this happens as far as most of humanity is concerned. History is just history. Instead of grainy, flickering black and white imagery on a hulking television we’ll all see people bouncing on the Moon in 4K streaming on our cellphones. How does NASA adapt to this paradigm shift? So far, it is not doing that well. More below.

Keith’s note: Space fans worry online about lack of awareness about Artemis II. Only now do they see the need to engage with the public. Duh. Try talking to folks outside your bubble – every day. Jared Isaacman says 2027 will have monthly NASA moon missions. OK. Start talking that up. Now.

Keith’s note: Yesterday I taped a long form 16 minute interview with David Levitz at Deutsche Welle about NASA’s big Moon plan changes. Yes, I am excited – and after waiting 50 years for this, I am a little impatient too. Let’s go back to the Moon – to stay. Video

Keith’s note: the following was posted by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman: NASA Team Members, We are calling today’s event Ignition because it represents the start of a transformative journey for NASA. In the few short months since I began this role, we have moved quickly. That urgency reflects the reality of great power competition, the importance of our mission, and the implications if we fail to meet the moment and come up short. Taxpayers support NASA because we can change the world in air, space, and science. As an agency, we can no longer endure externally imposed and self-inflicted distractions, attempting excessive multi-billion-dollar endeavors at once, forgoing the iterative, evolutionary approach to success, and jumping straight to the dream state. The results are captured in most OIG reports. Tens of billions are wasted, time is lost, and exploration and discovery suffer. The world has been waiting for the headlines only NASA is capable of delivering. It is time to focus and deliver. More below

Keith’s note: according to a telecom today all teams polled said GO for Artemis II. They are aiming for a rollout to the launch pad next week on 19 March. A launch attempt is planned as early as 1 April at 6:24 pm EDT . Another opportunity is in place on 2 April and would be at 7:22 pm. There are 4 launch opportunities within the 6 day period in early April. Notes from the media briefing below:

“NASA’s acquisition approach for the lunar landers has been effective in controlling contract costs, with the SpaceX and Blue Origin contracts having only increased by 6 percent and less than 1 percent, respectively. This was due in part to NASA negotiating mutually beneficial contract changes at no cost to the government. However, both SpaceX and Blue Origin have experienced schedule delays and face technical and integration challenges that have the potential to further impact lander costs and delivery schedules. In particular, SpaceX’s lander will not be ready for a June 2027 lunar landing. To accelerate lander development to meet a 2028 lunar landing date, NASA is assessing proposals from both SpaceX and Blue Origin, but it is too early to determine the technical feasibility, financial implications, and schedule impacts of these proposals.” — “While NASA is taking steps to prevent catastrophic events from occurring, ultimately, should the astronauts encounter a life-threatening emergency in space or on the lunar surface, NASA does not have the capability to rescue the stranded crew“. Full report

Keith’s note: In an update today NASA Administrator Isaacman announced that Artemis III will not land on the Moon but will be a test mission in Earth orbit for docking with lander vehicles. The push is for moving to two lunar landing attempts in 2028 and will focus on achieving a launch cadence of 1 year or less. NASA will adopt a more or less identical SLS as a standard at the Block 1 configuration. Workforce additions will be needed to adjust NASA’s skill mix. No mention of what happens to Gateway. NASA press release.

22 Feb Update: From NASA PAO: NASA to Rollback Artemis II Rocket, Spacecraft 21 Feb Update: I just talked to BBC World News TV about the recent issues with the Artemis II mission [audio]. Keith’s note: Things change fast in the Artemis II world. On Friday NASA posted an update: “NASA is targeting no earlier than Friday, March 6, for the launch of Artemis II, pending completion of required work at the launch pad, analysis of test data, and the outcome of a Flight Readiness Review in the coming days.” Then today (Saturday) according to this post: “NASA is taking steps to potentially roll back the Artemis II rocket and Orion spacecraft to the VAB … after overnight Feb. 21 observing interrupted flow of helium in the SLS rocket’s interim cryogenic propulsion stage. … This will almost assuredly impact the March launch window.“ Update: Detailed description from Jared Isaacman below:

Keith’s note: Jared Isaacman @NASAAdmin Tweeted this summary of yesterday’s SLS Wet Dress test. “With the conclusion of the wet dress rehearsal today, we are moving off the February launch window and targeting March for the earliest possible launch of Artemis II. With more than three years between SLS launches, we fully anticipated encountering challenges. That is precisely why we conduct a wet dress rehearsal. These tests are designed to surface issues before flight and set up launch day with the highest probability of success.” Full text below.

Keith’s note: Last week I posted a quick Photoshop (No A.I.) montage on social media using NASA pics of Artemis II / Apollo 8 crews. Space nerds hammered me online because Apollo 8 orbited the Moon and Artemis II won’t. Duh. They miss the point.

• Apollo 8 was humanity’s first visit to the Moon in 1968 which was a very bad year.
• Artemis II will be humanity’s first return to lunar space in 2026 in half a century which could also (probably) be a very bad year
• 70% of the world alive today have never seen humans visit another world. For them Artemis program will provide their first moon landing. For them, we will be doing the same thing again for the first time.
• Waiting to see how NASA PAO dials up the actual launch coverage for #Artemis and whether its more pro-Administration Rah Rah – or a real chance to look at past, present and future history – in a cogent, dare I say it – hopeful – perspective. AdAstra y’all.

Keith’s note; last week NASA decided to halt support for MD Planetary Science Division Analysis and Assessment Groups. The following email was shared widely by Benjamin Greenhagen, Ph.D Chair, Lunar Exploration Analysis Group LEAG Community: “It will be harder for us to sustain two-way communication between the community and NASA decision makers without meeting support and travel grants, but we will. LEAG will continue to organize events and invite NASA leadership” Full email below.