NASA spends big as US Moon landings slip into 2027
We unpack NASA's $10B contract wave, why 2026 may end with no US landing, and the 2027 gates — Starship refueling, New Glenn, Griffin-1 — that decide who's really ahead.
About the show
Every day, Mooncast calls the second race to the Moon like a championship: the biggest lunar story right now, the standings — who's ahead, who's gaining, who slipped — and the milestones on the line next. Plus the Race Desk, where the show makes measurable calls and scores its own track record, honestly, every episode. Real lunar-program data, told as a story anyone can follow. Informed opinion, not inside knowledge.
Newest episodes
NASA's 10 billion dollar Moon bet, but no landing in 2026
We unpack NASA's huge new spending wave, why Blue Origin and SpaceX still have zero lunar landings, and how China's steady pace is quietly closing the gap.
NASA's Billion-Dollar Moon Bets Meet Slipping Rockets
We unpack NASA's Nov 7 contract blitz, why 2026 may close with no US landing despite the cash, and the real near-term tests from SpaceX, Blue Origin, and China.
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All episodes
NASA spends big as US Moon landings slip into 2027
We unpack NASA's $10B contract wave, why 2026 may end with no US landing, and the 2027 gates — Starship refueling, New Glenn, Griffin-1 — that decide who's really ahead.
NASA's 10 billion dollar Moon bet, but no landing in 2026
We unpack NASA's huge new spending wave, why Blue Origin and SpaceX still have zero lunar landings, and how China's steady pace is quietly closing the gap.
NASA's Billion-Dollar Moon Bets Meet Slipping Rockets
We unpack NASA's Nov 7 contract blitz, why 2026 may close with no US landing despite the cash, and the real near-term tests from SpaceX, Blue Origin, and China.
NASA's $10 Billion Moon Shopping Spree
NASA booked a nuclear rover and a Moon Base pipeline this week — we sort the real signal from the 2028 paper, and flag the two launches that could slip.
NASA's Ten Billion Moon Bet Meets a Blue Origin Slip
NASA just spread billions across eight companies for a Moon base — but Blue Origin broke its 2026 flight pledge, and that one slip moves the timeline more than all the money.
NASA Bets Billions on Blue Origin, Just as It Slipped
We unpack NASA's $10 billion Moon contracting blitz, why it leans on a rocket that just slipped to 2027, and how China's steady roadmap is quietly closing the gap.
Why Artemis Now Hinges on Blue Origin's Unflown Lander
We unpack NASA's reshaped Moon plan, China's concrete 2030 roadmap, and whether this quarter's big US tests — Starship, Griffin-1, Artemis III — actually fly on time.
NASA Bets on Blue Origin, Then New Glenn Slips Again
Why NASA made its most-delayed partner the long pole, what Starship's Nov 13 flight could prove, and why China's slower plan may be the one that holds.
NASA's Artemis reset moves the first Moon landing to 2028
We unpack NASA's "acceleration" that's really a slip, why Blue Origin's unbuilt lander now paces the plan, and how close China actually is.
NASA turns Artemis III into a test flight, landing waits for 2028
We unpack why the first boots-down just slipped to Artemis IV, why Blue Origin is now NASA's pacing partner, and how China's steady roadmap stacks up.
NASA Makes Blue Origin Its Pacing Partner for the Moon
Why NASA turned Artemis III into an orbital shakedown, how China answered with a 2030 roadmap, and the two November launches that could confirm who's really ahead.
Artemis III is now
After a two-hour 'Artemis acceleration' briefing on Oct 23, NASA recast its path to the Moon: Artemis III becomes a four-crew Earth-orbit shakedown in summer 2027 that docks Orion to test versions of both the SpaceX and Blue Origin landers, and those demos decide which lander takes the first boots down on Artemis IV in early 2028, with Artemis V the second landing in late 2028. Administrator Jared Isaacman has since made Blue Origin the schedule pacing item and the priority partner — 'we're not going to launch without Blue Origin in it' — with Blue Moon launching first and Orion docking there before it visits Starship. SpaceX's Starship will now push Orion to the Moon from Earth orbit (still ~22 tanker flights), Blue Origin drops in-orbit refueling for three stacked Blue Moon MK1 tugs, and a new ULA extended Centaur V finally lets Orion reach low lunar orbit. SpaceX has set Starship Flight 15 for NET Nov 12 (a first dual booster-and-ship catch), Blue Origin is targeting a New Glenn return to flight as soon as November, China's Chang'e 7 stays slipped to 2027, NASA's revived VIPER rover is booked on a Blue Moon MK1 for late 2027, and Turkey has emerged as a new entrant with its TLM-1 orbiter now targeting an April 2027 Falcon 9 launch.
Artemis III Becomes a Test Flight, Not a Landing
Why NASA turned its first landing into an orbital shakedown, how the SpaceX-Blue Origin lander flyoff works, and the near-term launches that actually prove progress.
Artemis III Becomes a Test Flight, Landing Slips to 2028
NASA just turned the first Moon landing into an orbital shakedown — here's what that means for SpaceX, Blue Origin, and China's steady march.
NASA recasts Artemis III as a 2027 lander fly-off
Why NASA turned its next Moon landing into an orbital test, how SpaceX and Blue Origin dropped their hardest bets, and which dates we expect to slip.
Artemis III is no longer a landing, boots slip to 2028
NASA reframes its first landing as an orbital test — we unpack why that's a slip dressed as acceleration, and how China keeps closing in quietly.
NASA recasts Artemis III as a test, Moon landing slips to 2028
We unpack NASA's "acceleration" briefing — why the first boots just moved to 2028, how SpaceX and Blue Origin became a fly-off, and what to watch in November.
NASA's Artemis reset: first boots slip to Artemis IV
NASA reframed Artemis III as an orbit-only test and set up a SpaceX-Blue Origin lander fly-off — we unpack why this "acceleration" is really a 2028 slip.
NASA recasts Artemis III: landers face a 2027 fly-off
We unpack NASA's big Artemis replan — why the first landing became an orbital test, how SpaceX and Blue Origin now compete for boots-down, and whether 2028 holds.
Artemis III becomes a test flight, Moon landing slips to 2028
We unpack NASA's big Artemis rewrite — why the first landing moved, the lander fly-off it set up, and the refueling demo the whole 2028 plan rides on.
NASA recasts Artemis III as a demo, first boots slip to 2028
We unpack NASA's "acceleration" briefing — why the Moon landing moved to 2028, what it now rests on, and the Nov 8 Starship test that's the real check.
Artemis III won't land: NASA's acceleration, decoded
We unpack why NASA's "acceleration" briefing actually defers the first landing to Artemis IV, what gates it, and why China may be the steadier bet right now.
NASA defends a 2028 Moon landing it quietly pushed back
We unpack today's Artemis briefing, why the first landing slipped to Artemis IV, and the two November test flights that'll tell us if 2028 is still real.
NASA Reframes Artemis III as the Moon Landing Slips to 2028
NASA's Oct 23 "acceleration" briefing looks like a delay in disguise — we unpack the real timeline, Starship's orbit milestone, and why China keeps quietly closing the gap.
NASA's Artemis acceleration, and the Moon landing it defers
We unpack why NASA's "acceleration" briefing actually pushes boots on the Moon to 2028, why Griffin-1's November try matters more, and how China keeps closing the gap.
NASA's Artemis acceleration and the real 2028 landing
We unpack what NASA's Oct 23 briefing really means — Artemis III becomes a demo, boots slip to 2028 — and why a November robotic landing may be the quarter's real win.
NASA's Artemis acceleration, and the landing that slipped
We unpack NASA's Oct 23 briefing — why "acceleration" may mean the first boots-on-Moon moved to Artemis IV — and why Voyager's Griffin could beat crews to the South Pole.
NASA's Artemis acceleration pitch meets a slipping clock
NASA says it can land crew by 2028 — we weigh that Oct 23 promise against a late SLS, unflown landers, and the robotic mission that could reach
NASA's Artemis Reset and Griffin's Shot at the South Pole
We unpack why NASA's Oct 23 "acceleration" briefing may really mask a slip to Artemis IV — and why Voyager's November Griffin landing is the next real test.
NASA vows to speed up Artemis — can a 2028 landing hold?
We unpack NASA's Oct 23 acceleration briefing against a slipping schedule, plus why Voyager's Griffin-1 could be November's quiet milestone.
Griffin-1 clears tests for NASA's first Moon Base
We unpack Voyager's Griffin-1 heading to the lunar South Pole as soon as November, why the "Moon Base" label oversells it, and the China steps worth watching.
Artemis II flew crew, but the landing keeps slipping
We unpack why America's return to the Moon's surface just got harder, how China keeps hitting its marks, and the five dates worth watching into 2027.
Artemis II flew, but Moon landings keep sliding to 2027
Crews are finally looping the Moon again, yet every lander that actually touches down just slipped — here's who's really ahead, and why 2028 looks shaky.
Artemis flew crew, but the Moon landers keep slipping
We unpack why the US and China are racing ahead on crewed tests while the actual landing hardware — Starship, Blue Moon, Chang'e 7 — keeps sliding, and what to watch next.
Artemis II circled the Moon, but the landers keep slipping
We unpack why humans flew the Moon again yet boots-on-ground keeps sliding — Blue Moon and Starship delays, China's steady climb, and who's really ahead.
Artemis II flew, but the 2028 US landing looks shaky
Why America leads on flown hardware yet its Moon landing hinges on fuel transfers that keep slipping, how China's steady march closes the gap, and the dates to watch next.
Artemis II Flew, But Starship Refueling Decides the Race
We unpack why America's lunar lead is narrower than it looks, how China is closing in, and the two tests that could decide who lands crew next.
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