NASA looks to build moon base network for upcoming Artemis missions

Subsequent Artemis missions will work towards building a permanent human colony on the moon that will serve as a stepping stone for human exploration of Mars as well as other regions of the Solar System.

Now, it turns out that NASA may be looking to expand those initial plans by working with international partners to establish a series of moon bases.

At the press conference, Free explains that NASA is analyzing the potential benefits of building several moon camps with the aid of Artemis program partners such as the European Space Agency (ESA).

One of the key benefits would likely be that it would add redundancy to missions that could face catastrophic emergencies on the moon. According to Free, it would also allow the Artemis program to maximize its scientific potential.

"So we can maybe have two or three sites to go to that help our science diversity because the reason we're doing Artemis in the first place is for science," Free said. 

When will NASA establish its moon bases?

NASA and other countries' space agencies — including China and Russia — are targeting exploration of the lunar south pole due to the fact that it is known to contain large amounts of water ice that could be harvested for future colonies.

It will be some time, though, before NASA looks to build a network of moon bases. "We're probably looking at the later missions,  like [Artemis] 7, 8, and 9, where we're starting to look at adding permanent habitation on the surface," Free explained.