(When) will we go to the moon again?

The footprints of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin have been undisturbed on the surface of the moon for 50 years now. With no wind to stir them, they’ll probably remain that way until a meteor disturbs them. Unless, that is, future generations of astronauts (or lunar rovers) happen to wander past and mess around with them.

The chance of that happening has been pretty remote for the past few decades, as Nasa and other space exploration agencies around the world have prioritsed other missions. The success of these, from the Hubble space telescope close to home (well, by Nasa standards anyway) to the New Horizon mission to Pluto, is spectactular.