NASA chief says America is ‘back’ in space race to beat China to moon
NASA plans additional crewed missions in 2027 and 2028
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman discusses ambitious plans for America’s future in space. He emphasizes that a lunar base with uncrewed robotic landers will be built by 2027, followed by crewed missions in 2027 and 2028, leading to future Mars missions.
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America is “definitely back” in the space race, a senior NASA official has declared, as the United States races to beat China to the moon under aggressive pressure from Trump to build a moon base and eventually land Old Glory on Mars.
“We’re definitely on an achievable path right now,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said Saturday. he said.
“There’s no question… President Trump gave us the Artemis program that’s going on right now in his first term… He gave us the resources to actually execute on an achievable plan through the Working Families Tax Cut Act, and he gave us the authority to not just go back to the moon with the national space policy, but to go back, to stay, to build the moon base,” he added.
Isaacman told “Saturday in America” host Kayleigh McEnany that the president has told him repeatedly that NASA “needs to figure out what we need to do to get to Mars.”
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NASA’s Artemis II moon rocket lifts off from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39-B in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (John Raoux/AP Photo)
“That’s exactly why you’re building the moon base, to master the skills with which we can one day send American astronauts to install the Stars and Stripes on Mars,” he added.
The United States is now on a clear path to return astronauts to the lunar surface and stay there, Isaacman said.
“We’re essentially starting to build the moon base right now,” he said, noting that Americans could follow suit as early as 2027, when NASA begins launching nearly monthly robotic missions to the moon’s South Pole.
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The lunar surface fills the frame with sharp detail, as seen during Artemis II’s flyby of the Moon, while a distant Earth is in the background. This image was taken on April 6, 2026 at 6:41 pm EDT, just three minutes before the Orion spacecraft and its crew lost contact with Earth for 40 minutes before passing behind the Moon and emerging on the other side. (NASA)
These missions will lay the foundation for a permanent American presence beyond Earth, as NASA also moves toward its long-term goal of sending astronauts to Mars.
“[We’re going to be] test[ing] mobility, crewed mobility, uncrewed mobility, power, navigation, and in-situ resource production that will be crucial for future missions to Mars.”
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The aggressive timeline comes as China signals ambitions to land astronauts on the moon by 2030, kicking off a new space race between the world’s two superpowers.
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
