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Artemis II’s long countdown – a space historian explains why it has taken over 50 years to return to the Moon

  • Written by Emily A. Margolis, Curator of Contemporary Spaceflight, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution
Artemis II’s long countdown – a space historian explains why it has taken over 50 years to return to the MoonThe Artemis I crew and service modules with the Moon and Earth in the distance on Nov. 28, 2022.NASA

While I was leading a tour of the National Air and Space Museum in January 2026, a visitor posed this insightful question: “Why has it taken so long to return to the Moon?”

After all, NASA had the know-how and technology to send humans...

Read more: Artemis II’s long countdown – a space historian explains why it has taken over 50 years to return...

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