Michael Barbaro

It's really a NASA production through and through and not what we think of when we think of the modern space system where things kind of get divided up between NASA and these well-known private companies, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk.

Got it.

So in these next phases, these big private companies are going to be providing some of the really key equipment that will allow NASA to land on the moon.

So in that sense, Artemis II is kind of the end of an era?

You know, Ken, just to end this conversation, it's pretty hard to ignore the context behind

of when Artemis II is happening right now.

We're in the middle of a war.

And it's big, and it's controversial, and it has had ripple effects across the entire world.

And I think of space exploration as, at its best, this big unifying experience for the whole world.

And this mission comes at a moment that's not so unifying.

Here's what else you need to know today.

On Tuesday afternoon, a federal judge ordered that President Trump end construction of his proposed massive ballroom off the east wing of the White House until the project is blessed by Congress.

The decision delivered the first meaningful setback to the president's increasingly bold efforts to redesign the White House.

And for the first time since the start of the war in Iran, the average price of gasoline across the United States surpassed $4 a gallon, a major milestone for consumers.

In Jacksonville, Florida, Cam Judy, the gas station manager we spoke to for Friday's episode, raised his prices on Tuesday to $4.29 a gallon.

That's up more than 50% since the start of the war.

prices are expected to remain high until oil can flow freely through the Strait of Hormuz.

Today's episode was produced by Alex Stern, Jack Disidoro, Rochelle Banja, and Diana Nguyen.

It was edited by Rachel Quester and contains music by Mary Lozano, Dan Powell, and Diane Wong.

Our theme music is by Wonderly.