The newly appointed Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States, Jared Isaacman, announced on Friday, December 26, that American astronauts will return to the moon during President Trump’s second term.
Isaacman, who is a close ally of Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, made this statement during an interview on the CNBC program “Closing Bell: Overtime”. The new NASA Administrator emphasized President Trump’s commitment to advancing the lunar exploration program as a key aspect of opening up the “orbital economy”.
“We hope to have the opportunity to explore the moon and unlock its potential in terms of science, economics, and national security,” Isaacman said.
This statement is one of the first public remarks made by the entrepreneur and private astronaut since his confirmation by the U.S. Senate and assumption of office as NASA Administrator last week.
Isaacman told the CNBC host that development opportunities on the moon include establishing space data centers and infrastructure, as well as potential activities for harvesting Helium-3. Helium-3 is a rare gas embedded in the lunar surface that could become a significant fuel for nuclear fusion energy production in the future.
Furthermore, Isaacman mentioned that after establishing a “moon base”, NASA will consider investing in nuclear energy and space nuclear propulsion technologies to further explore space.
NASA is currently collaborating with various contractors, including SpaceX, Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin, and Boeing, as part of the “Artemis” program initiated during President Trump’s first term. The Artemis program focuses on lunar exploration and also prepares for missions to Mars.
Earlier this year, following a $9.9 billion allocation to NASA through the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” proposed by President Trump, the Artemis program was able to make further progress.
Isaacman announced on Friday that the “Artemis II” mission is expected to be conducted in the near future, marking NASA’s first manned test flight using the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft.
Following this expedition, the “Artemis III” mission will take place, with the lunar lander system for this mission being contracted to SpaceX.
Isaacman also noted that SpaceX and Blue Origin are enhancing heavy-lift rockets with in-orbit cryogenic propulsion transfer technology to facilitate easier reusability of the rockets.
“This will enable us to travel to and from the moon affordably and frequently, preparing us for missions to Mars and beyond,” Isaacman stated.
(Reference: CNBC report)