\u201cSpaceX had the contract for Artemis III,\u201d Duffy said, referring to the agency\u2019s planned crewed moon mission. \u201cBy the way, I love SpaceX, it\u2019s an amazing company. The problem is they\u2019re behind. They\u2019ve pushed their timelines out and we\u2019re in a race against China.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe president and I want to get to the moon in this president\u2019s term, so I\u2019m going to open up the contracts,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to let other space companies compete with SpaceX, like Blue Origin.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nasa\u2019s program stems from Donald Trump\u2019s first term, when he directed Nasa<\/a> to begin new efforts to get humans to the moon. The last crewed moon mission was the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.<\/p>\n In 2021, Nasa announced a $2.89bn contract<\/a> with Musk\u2019s SpaceX to develop a landing system, using the company\u2019s Starship landing system, that will carry humans to the moon\u2019s orbit and surface. While Nasa is also working with other commercial companies, including Blue Origins \u2013 owned by Jeff Bezos \u2013 and the defense companies Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman and Draper for other components of the project, SpaceX plays a key role as the company building the actual landing system.<\/p>\n Last December, Nasa announced delays<\/a> to two planned missions, with the next Artemis mission, which would get astronauts around the moon, scheduled for April 2026 and an actual moon landing pushed back to mid-2027.<\/p>\n SpaceX\u2019s Starship rocket has undergone several failed launches<\/a> over the last two years since the rocket was first tested in 2023.<\/p>\n Musk, who still serves as the company\u2019s CEO, was a close ally of Trump\u2019s during his 2024 presidential campaign and was an active participant in the Trump administration<\/a> as head of the so-called \u201cdepartment of government efficiency\u201d (Doge).<\/p>\n But Musk\u2019s relationship with Trump went cold<\/a> amid disagreements over the tax and spending bill Trump and congressional Republicans passed earlier this year, which Musk called \u201cutterly insane and destructive\u201d. Musk later accused Trump of being named in the \u201cEpstein Files\u201d.<\/p>\n In June, the White House abruptly removed<\/a> its nomination for Jared Isaacman, a billionaire private astronaut who is close to Musk, as head of Nasa. Instead, Duffy, who was already confirmed as transportation secretary, was named the interim head of the independent agency.<\/p>\n Duffy on Monday said that Nasa was pushing up its timeline for its next Artemis mission from April 2026 to February 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to push this forward and win the second space race against the Chinese,\u201d Duffy said. \u201cGet back to the moon, set up a camp, a base.\u201d<\/p>\n Quick GuideContact us about this storyShow The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know.<\/p>\n If you have something to share on this subject, you can contact us confidentially using the following methods.<\/p>\n Secure Messaging in the Guardian app<\/p>\n The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said.<\/p>\n If you don’t already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS<\/a>\/Android<\/a>) and go to the menu. Select \u2018Secure Messaging\u2019. <\/p>\n SecureDrop, instant messengers, email, telephone and post<\/p>\n If you can safely use the Tor network without being observed or monitored, you can send messages and documents to the Guardian via our SecureDrop platform<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760989088_821_4000.jpg\")
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