Why has it taken so long to return to the Moon?

Rebecca MorelleScience editor Buzz Aldrin stood beside a US flag on the Moon in 1969 After its history-making lunar landings, the Apollo programme was cancelled in 1972. Costs had spiralled, priorities had changed, so attention shifted to a more budget-friendly destination: low-Earth orbit. And that’s been the focus for Nasa the last 50 years, starting with Skylab, then the Space Shuttle programme, and more recently the International Space Station. A return to the Moon was mooted in 2005 under N