Luna Sea

 Sorry. 

Amid all the other distractions here on Earth, I have failed to acknowledge the flight of Artemis II. Four astronauts are on their way to the moon. Or near it, anyway. 

What with all the things blowing up these days, it's hard to pay attention to the controlled burn of a NASA launch that didn't explode like so very many of the Space X firework shows. 

This certainly points to a degree of talent and tenacity on the part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Strapping four humans into what is essentially a high explosive and aiming it not just into the upper atmosphere, but into the space between us and our moon? That must make all those billionaires selling tickets to their zero-gravity carnival rides blush. 

To be transparent, this is a reboot of a show that NASA put on more than fifty years ago. Back when these missions were named for Artemis' brother, and the rockets were named Saturn. 

We're not sending men to Saturn. Or Mars for that matter. Not yet. We have picked up this gauntlet laid down by (checks notes) the uncle of the guy who likes taking cold plunges with faux rock stars while wearing his jeans. We are moving ahead with a space program while wars rage on across the globe. 

Just like they did when the first Apollo missions were being launched. 

Now we're headed back to the stars. Or the moon. But we're doing it with a sense of hope for the future. Or maybe just as an exit strategy.