July 2019, ScientificAmerican.com 83or to produce fuels of hydrogen and
oxygen. Therefore, the moon is a step-
ping-stone to go farther: to Mars.
But this is far in the future—it will
take decades. Even though some are
announcing goals of shorter periods,
we will see that this is not possible.
It’s been 50 years since Apollo 11.
Why has it taken us so long to send
astronauts back?
Forward.Forward, sorry. But why do you
think now is the right time?
I see, worldwide, the readiness to work
together. I had discussions with the
Chinese, with the Americans, with the
Japanese, with the Russians, and all
of them are looking to work together
in the exploration of the moon, Mars
and beyond.
I hope it will not be like in the old
time, going West and staking our claim.
I hope that we will not have fences onthe surface of the moon. In Germany, we
have some experience with fences and
walls. I hope this can be done in a much
better way.What do you see as the biggest hurdle
for the Moon Village to succeed?
There is a kind of paper you can hold
in your hand, where I think George
Washington is on one side. [ Laughs. ]
So, money.If we were launching the Moon
Village today, would you go?
I have an appointment for dinner, but I
would skip that if somebody said I could
go right now. Yes, I would call my family,
and I would do it—I would go immedi-
ately. I’m a curious person, and this curi-
osity would be the driver for me. But
I would only go with a return ticket.“I hope it will not be like in the old
time, going West and staking our
claim. I hope that we will not have
fences on the surface of the moon.”
MORE TO EXPLORE
Forming a Moon with an Earth-like Composition via
a Giant Impact. Robin M. Canup in Science, Vol. 338,
pages 1052–1055; November 23, 2012.
Tidal Evolution of the Moon from a High-Obliquity,
High-Angular-Momentum Earth. Matija C ́uk et al.
in Nature, Vol. 539, pages 402–406; November 17, 2016.
The Origin of the Moon within a Terrestrial Synestia.
Simon J. Lock et al. in JGR Planets, Vol. 123, No. 4,
pages 910–951; April 2018.
Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis Program:
https://sservi.nasa.gov/articles/
apollo-next-generation- sample-analysis-program
Moon Village Association: https://moonvillage
association.org
Transcripts from Apollo 11: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/
a11trans.html
Outer Space Treaty of 1967: http://www.state.gov/t/isn/5181.htm
FROM OUR ARCHIVES
The Exploration of the Moon. Wilmot Hess, Robert Kovach,
Paul W. Gast and Gene Simmons; October 1969.
The Scientific Legacy of Apollo. G. Jeffrey Taylor; July 1994.
scientificamerican.com/magazine/sa