NASA plans to put men on the Moon in 2027, a fact you’re probably unaware of. Artemis III would be the first time a human being sets foot on Luna since December 1972, but if it happens, the public will likely react with a collective shrug. While opinion polls show broad support for NASA as an institution, just 12% of Americans believe returning to the Moon (or sending manned missions to Mars) should be its top priority. In the public’s mind, NASA should be committed to research, development, and monitoring for dangerous asteroids, forever policing a void that no longer captivates us.
This disinterest is reflected in our science fiction. Before the Space Race, a trip to the Moon was an inherently marketable movie premise, while the Race itself provided plenty of dramatic fuel. But as the years passed and the Moon landings faded into history, merely going to space was no longer interesting — you needed aliens, clones, or Jedi to sell tickets. Recent historical dramas like First Man and Hidden Figures have offered exceptions, but both films, while successful, made less money combined than Apollo 13.
