BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – NASA will likely not land humans on the moon in 2024 as the agency projected under the Trump administration.
Administrator Bill Nelson Tuesday updated the Artemis program schedule saying a human landing will likely not happen until 2025.
‘’The Trump administration target of a 2024 human landing was not grounded in technical feasibility,’’ Nelson said in a teleconference.
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Nelson also announced the mission before the landing, Artemis II, a crewed flight around the moon, is now projected for May 2024.
He said the first Space Launch System test flight could still happen in February
The administrator also blamed more delays on Jeff Bezos suing NASA for only awarding one lunar landing contract.
It went to Elon Musk and SpaceX, not Blue Origin.
A judge last week sided with NASA but Nelson said it lost seven months to the fight in court.
The administrator also blamed COVID and a lack of congressional funding.
But as the United States falls further behind schedule, Nelson still expressed confidence China’s moon program will not land first.
‘’And when we land the first woman and the first person of color on the moon, we’ll inspire kids here and around the globe,’’ he said.
The administrator also announced NASA’s plans to make an uncrewed landing on the moon before a human landing.