NASA's Jared Isaacman says the Moon is a proving ground for Mars

Jared Isaacman, who runs NASA, said the Moon is where the agency will test what it needs for Mars. He spoke on the podcast MTS, in an episode posted Thursday, Sept. 17.

For most people this is about how their tax money gets used. Isaacman said NASA has committed a lot of taxpayer resources and made promises on the Moon for 36 years. He also said a real economy in orbit can't be paid for by taxpayers alone.

Isaacman said the Moon is only three days from home. That makes it a good place to test habitats, spacesuits, mobility and power. In his words, the Moon is a "great proving ground for where we go next, which is Mars." The quote starts at 5:51. He also said SpaceX has not taken its eye off Mars. SpaceX sells launches and has its own stake in a Moon economy.

The story in the news today comes from The Times of India on MSN. Its headline reads "NASA's 2028 moon landing plan: SpaceX, Blue Origin race to build lunar landers." It reports that Artemis III is set for 2027. Astronauts will test landers built by SpaceX and Blue Origin, ahead of a landing in 2028.

Isaacman then looked much further out. He called fission power, which splits atoms for energy, the first step, because it helps ships go farther without refueling. He expects fusion next. He said matter annihilation is something his grandkids probably won't live to see.

Watch the 3 minutes where he explains it.5:09