China News Service, August 20. According to the "Washington Post" report, on the 19th local time, NASA announced 13 potential landing areas for the next U.S. manned lunar landing.
Image source: Screenshot from NASA's official website.
According to reports, these sites are located near the south pole of the moon and contain different geological features.
They are safe landing sites, close enough to permanently shadowed areas where astronauts can go on moonwalks.
According to previous reports, the United States is implementing the "Artemis" plan, which aims to return to the moon in 2025.
A person in charge of the "Artemis" program said that these sites are far from the Apollo lunar exploration sites, "now we are going to a completely different place."
NASA official Mark Kirasic said, "The selection of these areas is another big step for humans to return to the moon, which will be the first lunar landing since the 'Apollo' program."