VP Pence Issues 2024 Moon Landing Mandate

Vice President Mike Pence, speaking at the fifth National Space Council meeting, directed NASA to land American astronauts on the Moon within five years — by 2024 — four years ahead of schedule. He declared NASA would use 'any means necessary,' including commercial rockets, and warned that contractors unable to meet the goal would be replaced. This political mandate became the forcing function for the entire accelerated Artemis program.