Charlie Thomas

World’s most important straits

'Male masturbation may have an adaptive benefit: it flushes out damaged, stored sperm.' New Oxford research suggests that the longer sperm are stored before ejaculation, the lower their quality, with implications for men trying to conceive and IVF treatment. Find out more ⬇️

🚨 NEWS FROM NASA In a bold and decisive move, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman just announced a $20 billion plan to build America’s permanent base on the Moon — and they’re doing it in just 7 years. Today, NASA officially confirmed it is cancelling plans for the Lunar Gateway — the small space station that was supposed to orbit the Moon as a waypoint for astronauts. Instead, those components and resources will be repurposed directly for the surface base, accelerating humanity’s return to sustained lunar presence. The goal is clear — move beyond short visits and flags-and-footprints missions. NASA wants a real, long-term foothold on the Moon: habitats, power systems, rovers, scientific labs, and infrastructure that can support crews for months at a time. This base will serve as the foundation for deeper space exploration, resource utilization (like mining lunar ice for fuel and water), and eventually — Mars. The $20 billion investment over the next seven years will reshape major parts of the Artemis program. It comes with real urgency too — China is pushing hard toward its own crewed Moon landing by 2030, and the U.S. is determined to lead, not follow. This isn’t just about science. · A permanent lunar base means:Testing technologies for Mars missions in a real off-world environment · Developing in-situ resource utilization (turning Moon dirt into rocket fuel and oxygen) · Opening the door to a true cislunar economy · Inspiring the next generation of engineers, scientists, and explorers Private industry will play a massive role, as always — with contractors already building key hardware now being redirected. This is the kind of ambitious, focused leadership the space program has needed. From the first boots on the Moon in 1969 to building a thriving outpost there by the early 2030s — what an incredible leap forward. Significanly, the Moon isn’t just a destination anymore: it’s becoming home base for humanity’s expansion into the Solar System.