NASA's Artemis 3 mission, aimed at returning humans to the Moon, is now facing a fierce competition between two billionaires, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. With the mission's timeline pushed back to 2028 due to delays in the development of SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System, Blue Origin is positioning itself as a strong contender for the lunar lander contract.
Recent disclosures by Ars Technica indicate that Blue Origin has devised a strategy to achieve a crewed Moon landing without the need for complex orbital refueling, which SpaceX’s plan requires. Internal documents reportedly outline this accelerated mission plan, although Gizmodo could not verify their authenticity. Blue Origin has yet to comment on these reports.
The rivalry intensified when Musk shifted SpaceX’s focus from Mars colonization to developing a Moon city, marking a significant change in direction for the company. This announcement came shortly before Bezos shared a cryptic image of a tortoise, symbolizing Blue Origin’s slow and steady approach to the space race, reminiscent of Aesop’s fable.