The Artemis ProgramThe last time mankind walked on the Moon was in December 1972, now more than 50 years ago. This fact has been a constant disappointment for space enthusiasts, especially considering the ambitious, bright future of space exploration that seemed to be waiting for us in the 1970s.But budget cuts, technological limitations, and the end of the Cold War have put a halt to manned space programs, with currently the farthest people traveling to space staying in Earth's orbit in the ISS, itself likely to be decommissioned soon.Luckily, a new wave of space exploration is coming, with the heating up of a new space race. This race is propelled by the progress made by companies like SpaceX, radically decreasing the cost of reaching orbit, as well as the ascendance of China as a world power, actively competing with the US and its allies for the establishment of lunar and maybe even Martian bases.It is in this context that NASA has designed the Artemis missions, named after the Greek goddess of the Moon, along with contributions by various space agencies.The program's long-term goal is to establish a permanent base on the Moon, to later further the possibility of off-world manufacturing and to facilitate human missions to Mars.The program has however a troubled history, with multiple delays in the past and likely more to come, and might be overhauled in some aspect before it ends, notably regarding its rocket launcher, the SLS.Still, with a Trump administration including Elon Musk, and an overall a goal to “make America great again”, it is clear that succeeding in this new space race will be as much a matter of national pride as a question of scientific and engineering progress.Not A Repeat Of ApolloLumped together in the Artemis Program is a series of separate missions building onto one another. This is done so that each key technology can be tested one at a time, maximizing the success chances and the safety of the astronauts, while also building the required infrastructures for long-duration stay on the Moon.This is very different from the spirit of the Apollo missions which were all designed for very short visits, the longest being 75 hours with Apollo 17 , mostly aiming at national prestige and collection of rock samples.The Artemis program is a massive international project, involving the USA, Canada, EU, UK, and many other countries as part of the Artemis Accords .The Artemis Accords focus on a peaceful and transparent exploration of the Moon, with principles of interoperability, emergency assistance, avoiding interference between programs, timely open release of scientific data, and the preservation of space heritage.Why Stay On The Moon?Besides the scientific interest of a stay on the Moon, allowing for a much deeper understanding of Earth's only natural satellite, there are many practical reasons for a semi-permanent or permanent human presence on the Moon.Testing What WorksThe first one is that this makes for a very good location to test permanent off-Earth settlements. Thanks to the close proximity to Earth, it is easier to send more cargo at a lower cost than on more distant planetary bodies like Mars.This short distance also puts any emergency resupply or rescue effort at only a 3-day flight, instead of months and years. So with a lot of yet unproven technologies and concepts to be deployed on the Artemis program, it makes sense to calculate the possibility of quick intervention in case something goes wrong.A Stepping Stone For MarsOnce a sustained stay is established on the Moon, more ambitious programs like the first human landing on Mars could be considered

That was something Maxar CEO Dan Smoot mentioned on the stage at GeoBuiz Summit 2025, and that message permeated the event.