NASA Wants Permanent Moon Base by 2024

December 8, 2006  Bethesda, Maryland - NASA's longest serving astronaut is John Young who landed on the moon in 1972 with the Apollo 16 crew. In March 2005, he was the keynote speaker at the Lunar and Planetary Institute conference in Houston. He told nearly fifteen hundred scientists and engineers from around the world:

"NASA is in the deadly serious business of saving the human species. I think over this century, if we industrialize the moon and use its resources, I think it can save civilization. I think over the long haul, going to Mars will extend civilization. But I think the moon has the capability to save us."