NASA signaled last summer it planned to accelerate efforts to replace the aging International Space Station. Nearly nine months later, that push appears to have slowed. In a directive signed at the end of July,

As the Artemis II crewed moon mission soars deeper into space than humans have traveled in decades, back on Earth, the White House has proposed slashing NASA’s budget.

In 1989, President George H.W. Bush announced the Space Exploration Initiative with the goals of going back to the moon "to stay" and, eventually, missions to Mars, Muir-Harmony said. The initiative was ended by Bush's successor, President Bill Clinton, due to costs and in favor of less expensive missions.

While NASA avoided the worst of the proposed cuts, it did not escape them entirely. One part of the agency feeling the hurt from the budget is its planetary science program. In addition to Congress’s decision to cancel Mars Sample Return, the program’s overall budget of $2.7 billion in 2025 shrunk by nearly $200 million in 2026.

Russia has delayed the launch of three spacecraft - the Luna-28, Luna-29, and Luna-30

In a video shared on X by NASA, Artemis II astronaut Victor Glover said he had nothing prepared — then delivered a heartfelt meditation on creation, Earth and humanity’s unique bond.

If the pending Artemis II mission is successful, it will not just send Americans around the moon and back for the first time in more than half a century—it will send them further than any human being has traveled into space.

NASA administrator Jared Isaacman and U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) toured Hutchinson's Cosmosphere and visited businesses in and around Wichita which contributed to the construction of the Artemis II rocket.