FROM THE E DITOR
COVER: MAGIC TORCH THIS PAGE: GETTY IMAGES X2, BBC, DANIEL BRIGHT
We’re going back to the Moon. The Artemis 1 mission, which is prepping for a rescheduled launch date as I write (following an engine problem during the initial lift-off attempt), marks the start of a journey which will end with humans walking on the lunar surface again. Once that happens, it’s just a matter of time until the Artemis astronauts will begin scouting for a nice, safe location where NASA can establish a more permanent base on the Moon.
At the same time, further out into space – at what’s called Lagrange Point 2 (L2) – the James Webb Space Telescope is quietly showing us the Solar System and everything beyond in a whole new light. And even further out, the Mars Perseverance Rover has just picked up a sample of rock from the Red Planet’s surface that could tell us where all its water went.