Retired NASA astronaut Capt. Winston Scott told Newsmax Tuesday that the first U.S. moon landing attempt in 50 years is a “very important” mission, despite the increasing likelihood that it’s not going to happen.
Astrobotic Technology’s newly launched spacecraft developed a “critical” fuel leak on Monday, dimming hopes of a moon landing on Feb. 23.
As battery power dwindled, the private Pittsburgh-based company reportedly positioned its moon lander toward the sun so the solar panel could collect energy. With the battery charged, a special team assessed the status of “a failure in the propulsion system,” concluding that there was a “critical loss of fuel.”
The company said in a statement it was assessing next steps for the mission.
During an appearance on Newsmax’s “National Report,” Scott said the mission was “very important,” despite of the disappointing development.
“This is very, very exciting, certainly to me as a former NASA astronaut, and I hope that we can gin up some excitement with the general public, with so many other things going on,” Scott said. “This is very important because … this is the first time in 50 plus years that the U.S. has launched a vehicle towards the moon.
“It's important for several reasons, and the main reason is that we're going to return human beings to the moon very, very soon in what's called Project Artemis,” he said. “We're gonna put people back on the moon, and this time we're going to go to the moon with a permanent presence. We're going to learn to live there, we're going to conduct research there, and we're going to use the moon as a jumping-off point, or a staging point, to explore other regions of the solar system, for example, off to Mars.
“So, this mission was a very, very important one for scientific reasons, for operational reasons, and also for economic reasons, because Astrobotic, as you said, is a private commercial company, and their goal is to reduce the cost for access to space,” he continued. “So, for all of those reasons and many more, it’s a very, very important mission.”
When asked why he’s still so passionate about space, Scott said it’s an innate quality for those who explore the solar system.
“Those of us who do this business, we do it because we're passionate, and we're passionate because that's simply who we are,” he said. “I think it's part of our DNA. I love things that fly, be it airplanes, spaceships, or whatever. But, beyond that, our space program is so important to the health of our country and to the health of our world. Our standard of living here in the U.S. is as great as it is because of our science and technology, and much of that comes from our space program. So, we certainly want to stay first in space. We want to continue to grow it and then the passion that I have for it is shared by many, many people, even those who don't work in the business. People are very excited, very passionate about space.”
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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