Astronomy Prints 🌌: Space Minds: How NASA is thinking about a moon base

Monday, October 19, 2026

Space Minds: How NASA is thinking about a moon base

10/19/2026

Watch and listen to the Space Minds podcast by SpaceNews

Get annual access for 5 users from $1,000: Start a multi-user subscription to SpaceNews so all of your team has the coverage they need. Learn more.

In this episode, SpaceNews’ Mike Gruss talks with NASA’s Shatel Bhakta, the principal systems engineer for Moon Base, about what’s needed between now and 2028 and the incremental steps to the future.

FROM THE CONVERSATION

Mike Gruss: [Building a moon base] is framed as a race sometimes with China, and I wanted to hear how you thought about that. I'm not being flip about it but what does winning mean, or what does a winner get?

Shatel Bhakta: It may be considered a race, but I think any good competitor knows first you've got to focus on yourself. We know that we can do better ... I use the analogy that we're kind of playing the role of Dr. Strange of trying to figure out all the different possibilities that could happen in the future for the evolution of Moon Base, but trying to choose a path for NASA now and for the industry now that would give us the best chance at success in the near term. And so as you're trying to do that, the challenges that are in front of us are more internal than they are external.

Gruss: So it's an internal race, not an external race.

Bhakta: To me it is. But it'd be nice if we won the larger race too.

FROM SPACENEWS

Gen. Michael Guetlein at the 2026 Icon Awards: The direct reporting program manager for Golden Dome for America joins us on Dec. 1 in Washington, D.C. to deliver a keynote address during our awards program. See the list of finalists and secure your spot as we gather to announce our 2026 winners, recognizing leaders and accomplishments that exemplified excellence across the industry during the last 12 months. Register today – early bird pricing ends Oct. 31.

📨 Don't miss what's next. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters:

SpaceNews Mission Brief: Orbital Data Centers: A series explaining the latest developments in the rapid race to conceive, finance, develop and launch the future of on-orbit computing.

Europe Report: Tracking the policy landscape, investment climate and regional priorities driving Europe’s space ambitions.

First Up: Every weekday morning, Jeff Foust delivers the day's most important industry headlines.

Military Space: Veteran defense journalist Sandra Erwin with weekly news and insights for the military space professional.

China Report: Biweekly news and analysis from correspondent Andrew Jones on business, politics and technology in the Chinese space industry.

SpaceNews Mission Brief: Golden Dome: Explaining the Golden Dome initiative and what it means for the space industry.

Editor’s Choice: Our most important recent stories you may have missed, with background and insights from editors, reporters and contributors.

Opinions: A weekly digest of the latest commentary and analysis.

SpaceNews This Week: The week’s top headlines and our conference coverage.

Subscribe to SpaceNews

This email has been sent to generalastronomy110.stnirp@blogger.com because you previously opted in to receive emails from SpaceNews. Unsubscribe here. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters.