New NASA chief vows: Trump administration will return to the moon within his term

The newly appointed head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Jared Isaacman, has recently stated that the United States will return to the moon within the next three years, during President Trump's second term. On Friday, local time (December 26th), Isaacman said in an interview that Trump's renewed commitment to advancing moon exploration is key to opening up the "orbital economy." "We hope to have the opportunity to explore and unleash the potential of the moon in terms of science, economy, and national security," Isaacman said. Last week, Isaacman's appointment was confirmed by the United States Senate with a vote of 67 in favor and 30 against, marking his first public speech since taking office. Isaacman is the founder of the U.S. payment services provider "Shift4 Payments" and has a close relationship with Elon Musk. He has invested in Musk's SpaceX and has flown into space multiple times on the company's spacecraft. Isaacman was nominated by Trump to serve as the head of NASA as early as December 2024, but the nomination was withdrawn in May of this year. At that time, there were reports that the nomination was withdrawn due to his close relationship with Musk - Trump and Musk had a heated conflict in the summer. Isaacman was re-nominated in November of this year. In the latest interview, Isaacman mentioned the opportunities on the moon, including the construction of space data centers and related infrastructure, as well as the possible extraction of "helium-3," a rare gas embedded in lunar soil that could become an important fuel for nuclear fusion power generation in the future. He added that after the construction of a "moon base," NASA will also research investments in nuclear energy and space nuclear propulsion technology to promote further space exploration. Currently, NASA is working with multiple contractors, including SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Boeing, to participate in the "Artemis" lunar landing program. This program aims not only to return to the moon but also to prepare for future missions to Mars. Earlier this year, the U.S. government proposed gradually phasing out Artemis in favor of more cost-effective commercial plans. Subsequently, some Republican and Democratic lawmakers came out in support of Artemis, warning that this would put the U.S. at a disadvantage in the space race. According to NASA's original plan, the Artemis 3 mission was supposed to take place in 2024. However, NASA announced last year that the Artemis 2 mission was postponed to April 2026, and the Artemis 3 mission was postponed to 2027. Isaacman stated that the Artemis 2 mission - which involves the first manned flight of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft - is expected to launch in the near future. He also pointed out that SpaceX and Blue Origin are refining the technology for heavy-lift rockets and incorporating in-orbit cryogenic propellant transfer to make the rockets more reusable. "It is this technology that will allow us to travel to and from the moon at an affordable cost and high frequency, laying the foundation for future missions to Mars and beyond into deep space." This article is translated from "Cailianshe", edited by GMT.Eight: Liu Jiayin.