Reuters Science News Summary

Following is a summary of current science news briefs. Astronauts hailed as heroes 50 years after historic moon landing

Capping a week of celebrations over the historic Apollo 11 mission, Vice President Mike Pence joined astronaut Buzz Aldrin on Saturday at the launch pad in Florida that sent the moonwalker and his two crew mates to space for humankind's first steps on the lunar surface 50 years ago. Pence joined NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon behind his fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center for a ceremony commemorating the 50th anniversary of the moon landing that enthralled people around the world in 1969. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin complains about current U.S. lunar ability

When President Donald Trump asked Buzz Aldrin, the second human ever to walk on the moon, what he thought about the United States' current ability to operate in space 50 years after the Apollo 11 mission, the ex-astronaut had a ready response. "Actually, I've been a little disappointed over the last 10 or 15 years," Aldrin told Trump on Friday. Explainer: NASA aims to build on moon as a way station for Mars

Unlike the Apollo program that put astronauts on the moon 50 years ago, NASA is gearing up for a long term presence on Earth's satellite that the agency says will eventually enable humans to reach Mars. "Now, NASA is working to build a sustainable, open architecture that returns humanity to our nearest neighbor," Jim Bridenstine, the administrator of the U.S. space agency, said in a statement to a Senate committee on Wednesday.

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