India's Chandrayaan-2 Captures Apollo Landing Sites

Recent images from India's Chandrayaan 2 orbiter have confirmed the locations of the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 landing sites over 50 years after the historic missions, emphasizing the ongoing interest in lunar exploration. The Apollo missions, which concluded in 1972, are pivotal in space history, with Apollo 11's Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin being the first men on the moon. Looking forward, plans for a sustainable lunar economy are set to advance in 2025, driven by technology developments in transportation, refueling, and lunar enterprises, with SpaceX's Starship poised to revolutionize payload delivery. Starship can transport up to 100 metric tons to the moon, vastly increasing efficiency compared to traditional rockets. Additionally, the University of Illinois students proposed THEIA, a lunar infrastructure module aimed at supporting long-term missions through essential services like power and communication. As interest in the moon escalates, both governmental and private entities are positioning for a future where the moon serves as a launchpad for deeper space exploration, including missions to Mars.