🇺🇸▼
Spaceflight captures the attention of global audiences most effectively when it centers on human stories. While human space travel is inherently hazardous, the prospect of people venturing into the unknown remains a powerful driver for exploration. This tension between danger and ambition serves as the central premise of the blockbuster film 'Project Hail Mary.' The narrative follows a long-shot mission with a familiar goal: saving humanity from extinction. Although the specific threat in this story is unique, moviegoers are accustomed to the genre of a heroic quest to rescue Earth from certain doom. Like many popular films in this category, ranging from 'Armageddon' to 'Interstellar,' the hero's journey involves a seemingly impossible mission into the deep void of space. These stories resonate because they mirror our own aspirations and fears regarding the cosmos.
The upcoming flyby mission is primarily about testing equipment for a lunar landing scheduled for 2028. However, the broader plan was outlined in detail in March 2026 by NASA officials: to establish a permanent base on the Moon. The release of 'Project Hail Mary' is perfectly timed for the beginning of this new era in space exploration. NASA's Artemis II mission, which launched on April 1, 2026, successfully sent four astronauts around the Moon. This path took them deeper into space than any humans had ever traveled before. This historic flight marked a critical step toward future lunar and planetary missions. It represented a significant shift from robotic curiosity to a permanent human presence on the celestial frontier.
NASA is not alone in its lunar ambitions. Private space companies, including SpaceX and Blue Origin, are developing next-generation spacecraft, rovers, and drones to facilitate the creation of an American Moon base. Furthermore, other nations, notably China, are working diligently toward their own lunar outposts. These nations and corporations view the Moon as a stepping stone toward more ambitious goals. The ultimate objective is a major human migration into deep space, which includes a significant presence on Mars. As we stand on the brink of this expansion, it is worth reflecting on what those investing billions in human space exploration are trying to accomplish.
As a biologist, I recognize the significant limitations of humans as space explorers. While scientists have learned a great deal about how space conditions affect the human body and mind, sending people on longer missions deeper into space will expose them to unknown health risks. This is the core argument presented in my book, 'Becoming Martian: How Living in Space Will Change Our Bodies and Minds.' The unknowns are substantial and require careful consideration before committing to long-duration travel. 
Subcommittees in both the House and Senate passed bills to codify these initiatives into law, making the goal of creating a permanent base on the Moon official U.S. policy. They appeared to have bipartisan support, and votes in both houses of Congress were expected soon.
Plans to send people to the Moon and beyond were accelerating rapidly. NASA's new administrator, Jared Isaacman, argued that beating China to the Moon was a matter of national security. He called the Moon 'the ultimate high ground' and emphasized that control of the lunar surface is strategic. He also promoted the economic benefits of establishing a space economy that includes mining and manufacturing on the Moon. These arguments were gaining traction in the highest levels of government. The United States and China are both targeting landing humans on Mars in the 2030s. Their intention is to build the necessary infrastructure to enable long-term habitation on the red planet. In March 2026, NASA announced that the agency intends to test nuclear propulsion during an uncrewed flight to Mars in 2028. Nuclear-powered rockets have the potential to substantially reduce the time it takes to reach Mars. Shorter travel times would make crewed flights to the red planet significantly more feasible by reducing the duration of exposure to space hazards.
Despite the technological advancements, one must ask why people need to go to Mars at all. As with the Moon, the purported motivations for both the U.S. and China establishing a human presence on Mars are scientific, economic, and geopolitical. Yet, these are distinct objectives that are often conflated in public discourse. Confusing these goals can lead to misguided priorities in how we allocate resources and design missions. In terms of science, NASA has had dramatic success with its Mars rovers. The agency discovered potential biosignatures the year prior, which could be the best evidence yet that the planet was once home to microbial life. These robotic explorers are capable of conducting complex chemical analyses and sending data back to Earth with incredible precision.
Likewise, some economic objectives, such as establishing mining and manufacturing facilities, could potentially be accomplished using AI-equipped robots. Companies like Tesla are developing such advanced robotic systems. Robots are a long way from being able to accomplish the full range of tasks that a human can do, but prioritizing robotic activities could lower the exposure that people have to the extreme hazards of space. This approach allows us to gather resources without risking human lives. If having people on the Moon and Mars is indeed necessary to achieve these objectives, we must be clear about the risks that the people undertaking these missions will be assuming. The stakes are incredibly high, and the margins for error are non-existent.
The physical toll of space travel is the primary challenge facing human explorers. The 24 Apollo astronauts who traveled to the Moon are the only people who have ever been past the Van Allen radiation belts. These are areas of space surrounding our planet formed by Earth's magnetic field that trap high-energy particles. By trapping radiation from the Sun and from deep space, our planet's magnetic field is part of what makes Earth habitable for us and other life forms. The Moon and Mars lack such protective magnetic fields. Consequently, radiation levels on their surfaces are substantial and dangerous. NASA researchers are now conducting experiments on rodents using simulated galactic cosmic rays. These particles are largely blocked by Earth's magnetic fields but reach the lunar and Martian surfaces unimpeded. Preliminary results suggest that this type of radiation may impair cognitive abilities, but the actual effects on people over long durations remain unknown. The biological impact of long-term exposure is a major gap in our knowledge.
Similarly, while medical researchers know that floating in a zero-g environment causes muscle atrophy and bone density loss during long stays on the International Space Station, they know relatively little about how partial gravity affects muscles and bones. The Moon has one-sixth the gravity of Earth, and Mars has a little over one-third. The human body evolved for Earth's gravity, and we do not yet know how it adapts to these intermediate forces over years rather than days. Pilots on Earth can simulate partial gravity for up to 30 seconds at a time during parabolic flights. However, only the 12 Apollo astronauts who walked on the Moon have ever experienced it for longer than that. The longest they stayed was about three days. Scientists can only speculate about whether prolonged exposure to the partial gravity of the Moon or Mars would have consequential health effects. The lack of long-term data is a significant barrier to interplanetary colonization.
Sending robots to space avoids having to deal with the severe risks to human health. But there are distinct downsides to this approach. Not only do robotic space missions have fewer capabilities than crewed missions, they often fail to capture the public interest and imagination in the same way that human missions can. They do not demonstrate national prestige in the same visceral manner. The four members of the Artemis crew have captivated people worldwide watching their daring mission around the Moon. They have inspired hope and wonder, much like moviegoers rooted for Ryan Gosling's character in 'Project Hail Mary' as he boldly sought to save humanity from certain doom on the big screen. This shared sense of wonder is what drives exploration forward.
That human interest is the common link that ties together public and private space ambitions worldwide. While robotic missions are more practical and cost-effective, they simply do not inspire the masses the way a human crew can. Humans possess a unique ability to adapt, think creatively, and take risks in the face of danger. Beyond achieving any economic, political, or scientific goals, space exploration is ultimately about people doing difficult things together. It is a testament to our resilience and our relentless curiosity to explore the final frontier. The decision to send humans remains a choice to prioritize the human experience, accepting the risks involved in the pursuit of our deepest aspirations.