NASA science leader responds to Artemis II critics | Elizabeth Vargas Reports

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]This mission was really something. I I have to tell you.

[00:00:04]From start to finish, but especially the finish. I don't know, the start was pretty spectacular, too. Um, and it really united a lot of millions of Americans. We were showing watch parties at our on our show on Friday night. As people were gathered to watch Artemis 2.

[00:00:20]Uh, everybody was nervous. Finally make its landing. What do you make of these skeptics who say this was basically a billion-dollar PR stunt? That it this wasn't scientifically necessary. We've already been to the moon. Why are we going around it? What's the big deal?

[00:00:36]Give me Give me your response.

[00:00:38]You know, I think first and foremost, um, exploration drives innovation, and technology development, which of course is great for us in NASA with the in our international commercial partners, but it also makes its way into everyday life. But scientifically, I have to go back to the science here. You know, I think there is this misconception of been there, done that. We sent people to the surface with Apollo. Why go back? Do we have anything left left to learn? And the answer is, you know, I think I try to kind of compare it to if you were an alien that was visiting Earth for the very first time, and you wanted to understand planet Earth and see what we had to offer, and only going to Yellowstone National Park or the American Midwest. It would be cool. You would get great stuff, but you wouldn't understand our planet and the diversity of what we have here on Earth. With Apollo, we learned so much about the near side. That's the side of the moon that always faces our planet. But we visited a relatively geographic and geologically not diverse area.

[00:01:37]So, with the Artemis missions, we're seeking to explore the far side, which we've never sent people to before, as well as the lunar South Pole.

[00:01:44]This is really interesting scientifically, and I could I could talk for the rest of the time you have here on why they are scientifically interesting. But looking to the future, you know, it does enable a longer-term sustained presence on the lunar surface, and it does ultimately help you to establish this moon base and turn our eyes to Mars.

[00:02:01]>> Right. And this was an important crucial step to having that moon base, right?

[00:02:06]Absolutely. I mean, it's a really It of course was a test flight. This was the first crewed flight of the Orion vehicle. It was the first time astronauts had launched via the SLS platform, and we learned a lot first and foremost about how to fly the vehicle.

[00:02:20]That's going to be really critical for our next few Artemis missions here coming up in the next few years, where we have to do things like docking with our human landing system providers to actually get us to the surface of the moon. So, first and foremost, our job was to launch the crew safely, operate and learn about the vehicle, and return them safely home. Of course, we were able to accomplish some really great science along the way, and I think as you pointed out earlier, the public was inspired about it. Did you find out that the dark side of the moon is different from the side of the moon we always see?

[00:02:50]We've never seen the dark side of the moon before. What surprised you about it?

[00:02:54]So, we have had, many decades of wonderful orbiting spacecraft that have provided us with really wonderful pictures, and also other instrumented data of the lunar far side.

[00:03:05]However, there were big chunks of the far side that human beings had never seen before, ever, even in Apollo.

[00:03:12]Because when Apollo missions launched, they prioritized launching into periods where the near side of the moon was illuminated, and therefore the far side of the moon was in darkness from their perspective. Color is important, and the nuance that human beings can provide about color and subtle albedo variations on the moon tell us something scientifically. We got eyes on some parts of the moon uh last week for the very first time.

[00:03:35]Bottom line, uh, I think everybody wants to know. So, in 10 seconds, how are our four astronauts doing? I don't know. I was so struck by how happy and exuberant they all looked, how healthy and normal. Like it's like, you dude, you just went like 250,000 miles away from planet Earth, and now you're you're petting your dog and and getting, you know, your neighbors are honking horns and and throwing parades for you.

[00:04:03]I've worked with these four people. I've been so fortunate over the last several years, and I can definitely say say that what you see is what you get. They are that excited. They're doing great.

[00:04:11]They're excited to be out with their families, and I'm excited to debrief with them. All right. Captain Kelsi Young, thank you so much for joining us.

[00:04:17]Really appreciate it. Come back and let us know what you discover once you start applying for all that data. I'm very very curious to know. Okay.

[00:04:25]Thank you for watching. Subscribe below and download our NewsNation app right now on your phone, and you will get fact-based, unbiased news for all Americans.