NASA's Artemis plan to put humans back on the moon now has a price tag

NASA's Artemis program, which aims to put humans back on the lunar surface by 2024, now has a price tag, according to a Thursday interview with the agency's administrator.

Jim Bridenstine told CNN Business it would cost his agency $20 to $30 billion to put humans back on the surface, part of a policy that would also establish a long-term lunar presence beginning in 2028. That translates to an additional $4 to $6 billion a year for NASA, which is already funded to the tune of about $20 billion annually.

"For the whole program – to get a sustainable presence on the moon – we're looking at $20 to $30 billion," Bridenstine told CNN Business. "Think of it as a short-term investment to have a sustainable program on the moon where we're ultimately keeping our eyes on Mars."

By contrast, the Apollo program that took astronauts to the lunar surface in 1969 cost a total of $25 billion, or between $150 billion and $200 billion in 2019 dollars, according to NASA.

If all goes according to plan, NASA would kick off the Artemis program with the launch of its Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center's pad 39B no earlier than late 2020, though there have been concerns about meeting this deadline. It would include the uncrewed launch of an Orion capsule that would orbit the moon, then return to Earth for splashdown.

NASA's choice of Artemis as the program's name has significant roots: Not only was she the goddess of the moon in Greek mythology, but she was also Apollo's twin sister. Along a similar thread, the agency is also planning on putting the first woman on the surface of the moon in 2024.

Contact Emre Kelly at aekelly@floridatoday.com or 321-242-3715. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @EmreKelly.