Georgia Southern expert says Artemis II mission is “starting point” for what’s next

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Artemis II astronauts are back on Earth, and a Georgia Southern aerospace expert says the splashdown is just the beginning.

NASA confirmed the Orion capsule’s splashdown off the California coast, closing out a nine-day crewed test flight around the moon — a return to lunar spaceflight not seen in more than half a century. The mission covered nearly 700,000 miles as it traveled around the moon and back.

Dr. Valentin Soloiu, director of Georgia Southern’s Aerospace Laboratory, the mission’s success can be summed up in one word.

“Finally,” Soloiu said. “Finally we realized as a nation, working on the same target, and we need to be the front runners.”

Soloiu leads an aerospace lab that works with NASA on technology designed to support life beyond Earth. He said Artemis II is a proof-of-concept mission that will help set up the next phase of exploration — but before anyone talks about Mars, there’s one place to master first.

“Before we conquer Mars, we need to conquer the moon,” Soloiu said.

Soloiu said “conquering” the moon means creating sustainable systems that do not rely on constant supply runs from Earth. That includes using resources available on the lunar surface.

“Why do we need to bring everything from Earth?” Soloiu said. “There are a lot of minerals that are very valuable that can be used for different modules.”

He said future efforts will also rely heavily on robotic technology due to radiation and harsh environmental conditions and would also be used to assit in gathering resources and building habitatable stations.

When asked why any of this matters, Soloiu says it comes down to who we are.

“It’s the nature of human to challenge. Challenge brings development,” Soloiu said. “If you just sleep all day you don’t develop. Challenges is painful, it’s expensive, but challenges develop the humankind.”

He adds that he hopes his students will be part of the missions that follow, and that for them, Artemis II will not be history — but a starting point.