Before heading back to the Moon, NASA is studying samples brought back 50 years ago

NASA is currently studying old, still intact, lunar samples brought back from its legendary Apollo missions on the Moon. This announcement comes at a time when the American federal space agency is carefully preparing its return to the Moon, via its next Artemis missions.

It took nearly 50 years for NASA to decide to open the last lunar sample brought back by the Apollo 17 mission, in December 1972. Never opened before, it is currently being studied in Houston via the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division, which meticulously stores all of NASA's extraterrestrial samples.

Researchers are currently attempting to extract potential lunar gases from the inner core container, an operation that could take several weeks.

The goal, of course, is to learn even more about the lunar surface in preparation for future Artemis missions to the Moon's south pole. According to the researchers, understanding the geological history and evolution of these lunar samples will help NASA prepare for its Artemis program.

The goal is to bring a crew to the Moon by 2024, before establishing a permanent base that will serve as a kind of lab environment for a future trip to Mars. It will then of course be time to bring back brand new samples to be sealed and stored.