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Returning to the Moon! Will The Artemis Mission Provoke Wonder Or Be Met With A Collective “Meh?”

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on by

Moon shot by yours truly.

Do you think we should return to the moon? It's a simple question that evokes many complexities. As someone who, since childhood, has loved space missions, science fiction movies, and still hopes to have a priestly assignment on the Moon, I say let's go... and could you sneak me on the mission somehow! At the same time, I realize that I am no pragmatist. Any space mission, no matter how large or small, can face immediate opposition amid the struggles our world faces. Global hunger, poverty, and the ongoing impact of a global pandemic would understandably lead many to argue, "Forget the Moon, we have too many things to address in this world before we explore other worlds." This is a valid argument and I wouldn't blame anyone for feeling this way.

Still, both personally and in my priestly ministry, I have come to appreciate the power of symbol. Sometimes, when our chins are down we need something to catch our eye to pick them up. Where the eyes go the chin will follow. Could a return to the Moon to put, quote NASA, the first woman and the next man on the Moon lift our eyes, chins, and hearts as a people? Could this be a moment of cultural wonder that, similar to the Mercury and Apollo missions, evokes a universal sense of awe and wonder?

I am excited to have my "Apollo Moment" of watching the first woman and next man walk on the Moon. At the same time, I also fear it could be met with a collective "meh" by our world that now finds cyberspace to be the new frontier instead of outer space. One only needs to watch the movie Apollo 13 to see a theatrical depiction of the struggles lunar missions faced just two missions removed from the historic Moon landing of Apollo 11. The highpoint of this struggle came when the "live from the LEM" show that was supposed to be aired on television got scrubbed, described as making a mission to the Moon look as exciting as a trip to Pittsburg (no offense to our Pittsburg readers). Looking at the original footage, it does become clear why the broadcast wasn't nominated for any Emmy awards.

In the weeks to come, I'm going to reflect on the Artemus mission in more detail. For now, I will leave you with a couple NASA videos to explain the Artemus Mission and ask you to reflection on a simple, yet complicated question.

Should we return to the Moon? 

Leave your comments below and, together, let us get excited for the upcoming Moon missions! In time, may that excitement prepare us for the long term missions of sending humanity to Mars!

The Penumbral Lunar Eclipse from this morning. Captured this with my Fujifilm x-t4, 1/250th of a shutter, ISO160, at 400mm.

 

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About Fr. James Kurzynski

Fr. James Kurzynski is a priest of the Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin and a hobby astronomer. Originally from the small town of Amherst in rural central Wisconsin, Fr. James completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point, majoring in Applied Music (Saxophone, Voice, and Composition). After graduating from UW-SP, Fr. James worked at the University of Nebraska at Kearney as a Hall Director and pursued a M.S.ed. in Group Counseling. After a year at UNK, Fr. James left his position to attend the University of Saint Mary of the Lake - Mundelein Seminary to discern his priestly vocation.

Fr. James earned a Bachelor in Sacred Theology, a Master of Divinity, and a License in Sacred Theology. While pursuing these degrees, Fr. James also studied Spiritual Theology with the Institute of Priestly Formation at Creighton University and completed the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.

Fr. James was ordained a priest June 28, 2003. Fr. James’ first assignment was as an Associate at the Tri-Parishes of St. Mary’s - Durand, Holy Rosary Parish - Lima, and Sacred Heart Parish - Mondovi. After two years, Fr. James was assigned as Chaplain and Instructor of Religion at Regis Middle and High School and was also assigned Associate Vocation Director. In his final year at Regis, Fr. James was also appointed Parochial Administrator of Saint Raymond of Penafort Catholic Church, serving south east Eau Claire County. From 2012-2015, Fr. James served as Pastor of Roncalli Newman Parish, serving the college students of Western Technical College and the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse. In 2015, Fr. James was named Pastor of St. Joseph's Parish in Menomonie, Wisconsin, which also serves St. Joseph's Grade School (3K thru 6) and the Newman Center at the University of Wisconsin - Stout. In 2017, in addition to his responsibilities to St. Joseph Parish and StoutCatholic, Fr. James was also named Pastor of St. Luke Parish in Boyceville, Wisconsin. In July of 2018, Fr. James was named the Pastor of St. Olaf Parish in Eau Claire. Wisconsin. Fr. James also teaches Introduction to Philosophy for the Diocese of La Crosse’s diaconal formation program.

In regard to his interest in astronomy, Fr. James is a member of both the Chippewa Valley Astronomical Society and the La Crosse Area Astronomical Society. He taught an Introduction to Astronomy course during his time at Regis High School in Eau Claire. Fr. James' first involvement with the Vatican Observatory came when an inquiry led to the development of the first "Faith and Astronomy Workshop" (FAW), designed for parish educators and clergy that are not professional scientists.

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Comments

Returning to the Moon! Will The Artemis Mission Provoke Wonder Or Be Met With A Collective “Meh?” — 7 Comments

  1. Returning to the moon is a thing that has been discussed for a very long time, with various presidents saying we are going back, etc. — and so far it has never happened. I hope it does happen, but for now I am in the ‘meh’ category, not because I am hung up on cyber stuff, but because I’ve gotten excited about stuff before.

    (Just how long has the new space telescope been on the verge of launch?)

    • Sadly, I fear the “meh” might win out. I sure hope it doesn’t. I really appreciate the “guard your heart” approach that you suggest. When people get let down, there comes a point that detaching one’s heart from a desire is needed. I’m not there yet, but perhaps I should be. I would love to see a mission to the Moon!

      And I completely understand the new space telescope argument. Something I learned at FAW was that space missions need to have a practical aspect that can benefit humanity. I know a new set of Moon missions will lead to technological advancements, but why should we go other than the natural desire to explore? I sure wish that was enough to merit the trip, however!

  2. To the Moon? Absolutely yes!
    I’m 59, so I remember the glory days of Apollo.
    The driving reason for those days is gone(thankfully and hopefully never to return?) But it was our first venture out of the “nest” and into our back yard. Another step is obviously Mars, but I do not think we have sufficient knowledge or experience without taking a great risk of tragedy/setbacks. The Moon offers us a chance to do some backyard camping, and a springboard to future endeavors! I don’t think it’s “meh” so much as concern for the immediate problems of the world that will delay us.
    Yeah, I’m still waiting for my Chevrolet flying car, but great alternatives/benefits have come along due to the “Space Race”. We just have to make sure a mal-programmed HAL9000 doesn’t control the internet.
    “Sorry Dave, I can’t let you go to the Moon”

  3. I can think of no single project that would more thoroughly reignite public enthusiasm for the space program than a permanent human presence on the Moon. Live pictures of Lunar colonists exploring its canyons, mountains, volcanoes, and craters would surely be “must see” television. The amazing images we get from robotic probes to asteroids and comets, or from Martian rovers, all to often are met with a “Meh” BECAUSE THERE ARE NO PEOPLE IN THEM. Just look at all the photos in your family albums from vacations years ago. The pictures of waterfalls or mountain streams are given scarcely a glance (no matter how beautiful), while the photos of family members standing in front of that same scenery are treasured and memorized.

    • I love your optimism Bob and hope that putting people on the Moon will reignite interest in the space program! Question: I get your point about rovers, but what how would you respond to this argument: It would would make more sense to send rovers because it would cost less and we could do more science vs sending a person to the Moon but the expense of keeping people safe would limit the science that could be done on the Moon? Curious to get your thoughts (or anyone else’s).

  4. In the short run (which is, I guess, were we are right now) it does make sense to send out robots. They can go to places humans cannot (like the radiation soaked environs of Jupiter or the truly hellish surface of Venus), and can endure years-long voyages out to the distant parts of our Solar System. And true, with robots we do not need to worry about expensive (and heavy) life support systems.

    But.. and this is a HUGE but… if something goes wrong or needs repair on a robotic probe, there is (usually) no way to fix the problem. A human “handyman” could possibly with the twist of a screwdriver or a tap with a hammer save millions of dollars of hardware that would otherwise have to be written off. And even our most sophisticated of robotic probes (such as the Curiosity rover) cannot operate with the speed of human explorers. It’s been years since Curiosity landed on Mars, but it still hasn’t traveled further than an Apollo style crewed rover could have traversed in a single day!

    So quite contrary to human explorers “limiting” the amount of science that could be done on the Moon, they would greatly increase it.

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