The dearMoon crew shared their frustration on social media after the mission’s sudden cancellation.
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa cancels planned June 1 moon flight due to delays with SpaceX starship megarocket, which has yet to make a single manned test flight. Maezawa originally booked the private trip in 2018 and invited eight artists to join him with the expectation that the project, called dearMoonwill be launched by the end of 2023.
“I can’t plan my future in this situation and I feel terrible making the crew members wait longer, hence the difficult decision to cancel at this time,” Maezawa said in declaration on X (formerly Twitter). “I apologize to those who were excited for this project to happen.
Connected: A Japanese billionaire has canceled a private flight around the moon in SpaceX’s giant Starship
The dear Moon crew consists of eight artists working in disciplines ranging from music to photography, film and YouTube. Although no scientific experiments or other responsibilities were expected from the crew (other than basic mission safety duties), the hope was that the artists would create works inspired by travel.
After Maezawa’s decision to abort the mission, some of the crew members expressed disappointment at losing their chance to fly in space.
“I regret to share this unpleasant news,” said Yemi AD, one of the dearMoon team members and a multidisciplinary creator, in X’s statement. “Although the #dearMoon mission has ended, my commitment to space exploration projects and supporting disadvantaged young people to achieve their own Moon photos remains unwavering.”
I am sorry to share this unpleasant news. Although the #dearMoon mission has come to an end, my commitment to space exploration projects and supporting underprivileged young people to achieve their own Moon photos remains unwavering. In addition to my work with the Moonshot Platform… https://t.co/FCO6bvXsuT pic.twitter.com/NLfYa0kelsJune 4, 2024
Crew member and Everyday Astronaut founder Tim Dodd also shared feelings of disappointment in the lengthy response to the mission cancellation. “But the reality is that I’m going to have to allow myself to grieve this loss as it became a big part of my life, my dreams and my visions,” Dodd said in his post on X.
I am sorry to share this unpleasant news. Although the #dearMoon mission has ended, my commitment to space exploration projects and supporting underprivileged young people to achieve their own Moon photos remains unwavering. In addition to my work with the Moonshot Platform… https://t.co/FCO6bvXsuT pic.twitter.com/NLfYa0kelsJune 4, 2024
Meanwhile, other crew members criticized Maezawa’s decision, suggesting it was unilateral and hasty.
“You didn’t ask us if we minded waiting, or give us an option, or discuss that you intend to cancel until you’ve already made the decision,” dearMoon team member and photographer from Ireland Rhiannon Adam said in declaration to X. “I can only speak for myself, but I was going to wait until it was ready.”
Sorry, but as a crew member it doesn’t wash. You didn’t ask us if we mind waiting, give us an option, or discuss that you intend to cancel until after you’ve already made the decision. I can only speak for myself, but I would wait until it was ready.June 1, 2024
Director and crew member Brendan Hall shared similar sentiments in a public statement released online, suggesting that the decision to cancel was made by Maezawa alone and that the crew would have waited longer for Starship to be ready.
“Our crew, from the many conversations we’ve had together, was willing to wait as long as it took to make this flight happen,” Hall the statement said. “As many of us know, changing timelines are the inherent nature of spaceflight. Every day, the space industry achieves a milestone that was once thought impossible. During these years, our crew was well informed about Starship development through publicly available information and discourse, and we knew that we would potentially be investing many years into this mission. The cancellation of this mission was sudden, brief and unexpected.
SpaceXStarship’s Starship and its Super Heavy booster represent the world’s tallest and most powerful rocket ever flown. The the first unmanned test flight launched in April 2023 but failed to reach space. The second test flight in November 2023 flew higher but also failed.
During the vehicle’s third flight test, on March 14 of this year, Starship reached orbital velocity, but neither the spacecraft nor the booster survived re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere. A fourth Starship test flight launched on June 6, during which the vehicle performed a successful landing burn before crashing into the Indian Ocean.
Despite the vehicle’s progress, Maezawa’s decision to cancel the flight ultimately came down to uncertainty about when the Starship would be ready to fly the dearMoon mission.
“I understand the financial implications for MZ that this was expensive. It was a generous dream. But the reality is, that’s it,” said Adam in another post by X. “To take it away so unceremoniously and with so little regard for us — it undermines the stated values of the mission that we’ve come to trust.”
DoD also commented on the optimistic schedule of the project and the lack of transparency.
“The only thing I find difficult to coordinate is the schedule. Had I known this could end within a year and a half of its public announcement, I never would have gone along with it,” Dodd later expressed in his post on X. “We had no prior knowledge of this possibility. I made my point, even before the announcement, that dearMoon was unlikely to happen in the next few years.”
While Dodd noted that he was “extremely disappointed,” he also stated that he had “made new friends, had new adventures, and learned more about [himself]” via dearMoon, despite the mission being cancelled.
