It is a huge step towards diversity.
NASA plans to land the first person of color on the moon as part of an international space flight program, an agency official said on Friday.
“NEW: @NASA will land the first woman and * first person of color * on the moon in the Artemis program,” NASA Press Secretary Jackie McGuinness wrote on Twitter.
The news comes after a September announcement that the agency will send the first female astronaut to the moon as part of the same program in 2024.
McGuinness told The Post on Friday that NASA has not yet determined who the black person or female astronaut would be – or whether he will be the same individual.
“There have been no specific crew selections yet,” she said. “Any specific crew tasks will be done closer to launch.”
She added that the mission could now be postponed until 2025 or later.
“The Biden administration supports the objectives of the Artemis program. However, given the funding levels for the human landing system over the past two years, a monthly landing target in 2024 does not seem realistic. “
In 2019, NASA announced the Artemis program, which will land the first American on the moon since the Apollo lunar mission in 1972.
The program includes research into trade partnerships and other economic opportunities related to space travel.
NASA’s goal is to pour this research and revenue into Mars exploration missions, which are more than 139 million miles farther from Earth than from the Moon.