Although the founder of SpaceX, Elon Musk is known for his outspokenness and controversial comments on the X social media site, he has been relatively restrained when it comes to US space policy in recent years. For example, he has rarely criticized NASA or its overall goal of producing humans. to the moon through the Artemis program. However, Musk, who has long chosen Mars as a destination for humans, is more or less a team player when it comes to the space agency’s lunar-focused plans. This is understandable from a financial perspective, as SpaceX has billions in contracts. dollars to not only build the Human Landing System as part of the Artemis program but also to provide food, cargo, and other logistical services to the planned Lunar Gateway in orbit around the moon. Personally, Musk has been critical of NASA’s plans, suggesting that the Artemis Program has moved too slowly and is too dependent on contractors who seek cost-plus government contracts and are less interested in delivering results. Silent on Policy No LongerDuring the past 10 days, Musk has begun to spread some thoughts privately in public. On Christmas Day, for example, Musk wrote in X, “The Artemis architecture is extremely inefficient, because it is a program that optimizes projects, not a program that maximizes results. Something new is needed.” Then, on Thursday afternoon, he added: “No, we go directly to the moon. a mission to the lunar south pole later this decade. It will be one thing if Musk only expresses his opinion in the election of Donald Trump as the next president United States last year, Musk has taken on an important advisory role for the incoming administration. He is also partially responsible for the nomination of private astronaut Jared Isaacman to be the next NASA administrator So what does this mean for Artemis? The fate of Artemis is an important question not only for NASA but for the US commercial space industry. Agency, and other international partners who have aligned themselves with the return of humans to the moon. With Artemis, the United States competes with China to create a useful presence on the surface of the moon. Based on conversations with people involved in developing space policy for the Trump administration, I can make some discoveries about how to interpret Musk’s comments. . None of these people, for example, disagree with Musk’s statement that “the Artemis architecture is extremely inefficient” and that some changes are warranted. With that said, the Artemis program probably won’t go away. After all, it was the first Trump administration that created the program about five years ago. However, it may be less mindful that the Trump White House initially pushed for more significant changes, including a “major course correction” at NASA. President Mike Pence said in May 2019. “If our current contractor cannot meet this goal, then we will find someone who will.” (Speaking of the vice president, it is unlikely that the National Space Council will be reconstituted under JD Vance).
