What’s Houston’s Next ‘Moon Shot’?

On this date 47 years ago, Neil Armstrong became the first man on the moon. It was one of Space City's greatest moments — and one of humankind's, as well. But it really began, in earnest, seven years earlier when President John F. Kennedy, in a speech at Rice University, challenged America “to go to the moon…in this decade…because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.”

At the time, some of the technology necessary to successfully put astronauts on the moon, and bring them home safely, had simply not been invented or tested. It was, in many ways, a leap of faith. And since then, the term “moon shot” has come to represent such an overreach, seeking to achieve a seemingly unreachable goal. So we ask you: what’s Houston’s next moon shot?

We also talk with News 88.7 reporters Carrie Feibel, Gail Delaughter, Laura Isensee and Amy Bishop about the next moon shots that may be pursued in Houston in health and science, transportation, education and the arts.

(Above: Astronaut Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon during Apollo 11, July 20–21, 1969. Photo: Wikipedia Commons/Public Domain)