Should Artemis IV astronauts actually land near the moon's south pole? Artemis II pilot says the lunar equator might be better

Side by side images show a tall white rocket landed on the moon on the left, with a rover on its left on the grey surface. Earth is setting on the horizon against the black of space. On the right, a shorter lander, cylindrical, with a lifting platform lowered to the surface with a rover aboard.

The moon's south pole has long been the target of NASA's Artemis lunar landing missions, but one Artemis astronaut is questioning if that's still the best plan.

NASA's Victor Glover, who piloted the Artemis II mission around the moon this past April, proposed a different approach while speaking at the NASA Exploration Science Forum at the agency's Ames Research Center in California on July 21, according to a report published on Space News. "I think we need to be realistic and work our way to the south pole, and maybe not try to go there first," Glover said.