NASA says America will win ‘the second space race’ against China

FIRST ON FOX: In a newly released video obtained by Fox News Digital, NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy announced that America will travel back to the Moon before President Donald Trump leaves office, and declared the U.S. will win "the second space race" against China.

The video reveals Duffy’s vision for the agency after Trump appointed him acting administrator while also serving as Secretary of Transportation. 

"We're going back to the moon, and this time, when we plant our flag, we stay," Duffy explains in the video. "I'm committed to getting us back to the moon before President Trump leaves office."

Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy speaks with NASA leadership on Friday, July 18, 2025, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters Building in Washington.  (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

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"China wants to get there, but we're getting there first," Duffy added. "We will win the second space race."

The former Wisconsin Congressman is the first head of NASA who has acknowledged a space race against China, as the Transportation Secretary looks to accomplish the exploration goals Trump has long pushed for. 

Duffy says the Artemis program, named after the twin sister of the Greek Olympian god Apollo, will ultimately get the United States to Mars, indicating that the key space program originated under President Trump’s first term will be an important part of the United States' dominance in space travel. 

Image of an impending nova, which NASA scientists predict can be seen with the naked eye from Earth Summer 2024.  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center)

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American astronauts haven’t touched the surface of the moon since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

The Artemis I mission, completed in 2022, ended in a successful splashdown after launching the sizable Space Launch System (SLS) and orbiting the Orion spacecraft around the moon during a 25-day mission. 

Duffy indicated that the Artemis program is here to stay, despite the president proposing a 24% cut to the agency in his budget.

From left to right, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch participate in a media gather on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, (NASA/Keegan Barber)

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While the Artemis program was thought to be on the chopping block in the proposed multi-billion dollar slash to NASA, sources at the agency told Fox News Digital that Artemis will play a major role in space exploration and will not be fully gutted by the proposal. 

"Our program is called Artemis," Duffy said. "And what we learn through Artemis gets us to Mars."

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news. Story tips can be sent to Preston.Mizell@fox.com and on X @MizellPreston