The Open Gateway: Lunar Exploration in 2050

The Moon, with its fundamental science questions and abundant, potentially useful re-sources, is the most viable destination for near-term future human and robotic exploration. Given what we have learned since Apollo, the lunar frontier now presents an entirely new paradigm for planetary exploration. The Lunar Exploration Roadmap [1], which was jointly developed by engineers, planetary scientists, commercial entities, and policymakers, is the cohesive strategic plan for using the Moon and its resources to enable the exploration of all other destinations within the Solar system by leveraging incremental, affordable investments in cislunar infrastructure. Here, we summarize the Lunar Exploration Roadmap, and describe the immense benefits that will arise from its successful implementation.