Earlier this month, NASA announced its updated intentions to land the first woman on the moon. According to the Orlando Sentinel, this mission will bring the first person of color to lunar soil. This decision is a significant reversal from the agency’s publicly stated objectives tied to the Artemis program. Once this specific language was removed from NASA’s Artemis landing page, that was a big change. This language had really focused attention on the historic, pioneering inclusion of different astronauts.
The Artemis program started in 2019 during the Trump administration. It aimed to put humans back on the lunar surface in 2027. It was on track to become the first of its kind in history. For the first time, it will send a female astronaut and an astronaut of color to the moon. Recent alterations to the design of Nasa’s website have tainted this promise. The phrase "The first woman and person of color on the moon" has been removed, although the website continues to highlight objectives such as scientific discovery and preparing for human missions to Mars.
"In keeping with the president's executive order, we're updating our language regarding plans to send crew to the lunar surface as part of Nasa's Artemis campaign." – Allard Beutel, Nasa spokesperson
Nasa has done a lot to take steps in favor of diversity. This move goes to show how serious it is about shedding its past reputation of being mostly staffed by older white men. Upcoming missions such as Artemis II, currently scheduled for April 2026, fully illustrate this evolution. The mission will have a very diverse crew, including female astronaut Christina Koch and African American astronaut Victor Glover, as they orbit the moon without landing.
The historical context of Nasa’s missions paints a very different picture. The reality is that all 12 astronauts who walked on the moon through those six Apollo missions from 1969 to 1972 were white men. They were all between the ages of 36 and 47. Guion Bluford’s historic flight as the agency’s first Black astronaut in space. He piloted a mission on Challenger in 1983, the same year Sally Ride became the first American woman in space.
Nasa previously affirmed its commitment to inclusivity on its Artemis landing page by stating: “Nasa will land the first woman, first person of color, and first international partner astronaut on the Moon using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before.”
The development marks a distinct change in Nasa’s story, though it keeps true to its overall theme for lunar exploration.
"We are exploring the moon for scientific discovery, technology advancement, and to learn how to live and work on another world as we prepare for human missions to Mars." – Nasa (from the Artemis website)