No US return to the Moon before 2026

WASHINGTON: The return of humans to the Moon, already postponed last week by Nasa from 2024 to 2025, will actually take place in 2026 “at the earliest”, according to a US government audit published on Monday.

The Artemis program to return Americans to the Moon is encountering “technical difficulties and delays heightened by the Covid-19 pandemic and weather events,” Nasa’s auditing body, the Office of Inspector General, said in a report.

“Nasa’s goal to land astronauts on the Moon’s South Pole in late 2024 faces multiple significant challenges including major technical risks, an unrealistic development schedule, and lower-than requested funding levels,” the report said.

First, the new space suits…