A NASA administrator claims that Americans would be on Mars today – they had not had to take political risk

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As the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11's historic landing on the moon approaches, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said that people would have probably already ventured on Mars at this date without the "political risks".

Bridenstine appeared on CBS & # 39; Facing the nation Sunday, to discuss NASA's space exploration program, which plans a return to the moon and then to Mars in the coming years.

The administrator also highlighted the reasons that he believed prevented the space program from returning to the moon and landing men on Mars over the many years since NASA's moonlight missions. No human has walked on the surface of the moon since December 1972, when the crew of Apollo 17 departed on his return to Earth.

"There are two risks, there is a technical risk and a political risk, we would be on the moon now without the political risk, we would be on Mars, quite frankly, now without the political risk," said Bridenstine, adding that the funding of the space program was also problematic.

"In the past, in the 1990s and early 2000s, we made efforts to return to the Moon and Mars, and in each case, the program was too long, which took too much time and too much. Money, "he continued. . "What the president said, in order to reduce the political risk, we want to go faster.We want to go there in the next five years.The Vice President has delivered a message to the National Council of the United States. space and he said we wanted to go back to the moon in five years, then they changed the president's budget request to give us the resources to make it a reality and we're here. "

Although President Donald Trump recently criticized NASA's desire to return to the moon, the ministry should focus its efforts on sending people to Mars in a Twitter message. Bridenstine insisted that the former real estate mogul and NASA were now on the same footing. page regarding mission schedules. He also revealed Trump's goal of placing an American flag on the red planet.

"I talked to him after this tweet, I wanted to make sure we were lined up – we do it absolutely – he understands and, in fact, he told me:" I know we have to go on the moon to go to Mars "but he said," What is this generational success that will inspire all Americans? It puts an American flag on Mars. " He said, "Make sure you are tied to the flag on Mars," said Bridenstine.

In April, NASA announced the Artemis program and a joint plan to send humans to the moon in the next five years, in the hope of establishing a sustainable human presence on and around the moon. Here 2028. Bridenstine emphasized the timing and emphasized NASA's commitment to ensuring that women were represented in future missions and asserted that the first steps on the moon would probably be made by a woman.

"We want to come back to the moon in a sustainable way, in other words, stay, but we also want to keep the objective of President Trump in view." What is his vision? American flag on Mars.We are going on the moon to learn how to live and work in another world and ultimately have better access to the solar system than ever before so we can, without a joke, go on Mars, "said Bridenstine. "But here's what I think is the important part about Artemis in particular, in the 1960s, we love Apollo." What an amazing program, this great power contest, the United States of America during the Cold War and, Of course, we won the first prize, but the important thing is that at the time, all our astronauts were test pilots and fighter pilots and there was no way to Women Today, as part of the Artemis program, we have a very diverse core of highly skilled astronauts including women.Artemis in Greek mythology happens to be the twin sister of Apollo. "

He added, "So now when we go back to the moon, we go with all of America, and I think that's an excellent message."

Before the start of the lunar and martian missions, NASA will send astronaut Andrew Morgan and a multinational team of space travelers to the International Space Station on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the United States. landing on the Apollo moon on July 20th.

A NASA administrator claims that Americans would be on Mars today - they had not had to take political risk
The NASA InSight spacecraft launches May 5, 2018 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas-V rocket, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
ROBYN BECK / AFP / Getty Images

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