Landing on the Moon by 2024 won’t be easy, but it’s not impossible. That’s an important distinction.
It’s important to step back and recognize that the president of the United States stated that NASA should “use any means necessary” to achieve a rapid goal of returning to the Moon. This doesn’t happen often. We will know in April if he is serious about this or not, based on whether the money shows up (and it has to be additional funding, not money taken from NASA’s science and aeronautics projects). Should that happen, the proposal must make it through a skeptical Congress and make it through quickly in order to begin the project in earnest. Building the political coalition to support this endeavor will be no easy task.
So I remain skeptical, and so should you. Many times in the last 50 years have the hopes and dreams of space advocates been dashed by the practical difficulties of politics. But I will allow myself to feel a little optimistic until we know for sure otherwise. It’s okay to feel excited about the future.