Two British-born astronauts have been selected for Nasa's Artemis programme, marking a significant step in the UK's ambition to secure a role in lunar exploration and, critics argue, a new space race for resources. Sarah Jenkins reports.
At a joint press conference in Houston, Nasa and the UK Space Agency confirmed that engineers Emily Carter from Sheffield and Marcus Okonkwo from Glasgow will join the next crew destined for the Moon. The announcement, made alongside business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, was framed as a triumph for British science and a reaffirmation of the 2020 Artemis Accords, which the UK signed to back peaceful lunar cooperation.
But for those watching the economy from the ground, the news raises questions about priorities. “This is all very exciting for the space sector,” said Dr. Anika Patel, a political economist at the University of Manchester. “But the UK is facing a cost-of-living crisis, stagnant wages, and regional inequality. The government is spending billions on space while schools and hospitals struggle.”
Reynolds countered that the investment, including £1.6 billion for the UK Space Agency over the next three years, will create high-skilled jobs and bolster the North’s engineering base. Carter, who grew up in a council house in Sheffield, said her appointment shows that “opportunity is not just for the privileged few.”
Yet the reality for many is different. In Glasgow, where Okonkwo’s family still lives, the shipyards are a shadow of their former selves, replaced by service sector jobs and zero-hour contracts. “My dad worked on the Clyde,” Okonkwo said. “He would have loved to see this. But he also worried about the price of a pint."
The Artemis programme aims to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon by the end of the decade, with an eye on mining helium-3 for energy. Proponents say this could be a economic game-changer. But trade unions have warned that without proper regulation, it could mirror the “resource grabs” of the past.
For now, Carter and Okonkwo are the faces of a new British space ambition. As they train for the 2026 mission, their home country continues to grapple with inflation, strikes, and a housing crisis. The Moon, it seems, is a distant comfort.
