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SPACE POWER

BACK TO THE MOON: NASA SETS MARCH 6 FOR ARTEMIS II. More than 50 years after Apollo, NASA is preparing to send astronauts around the Moon by 2028 — this time aboard a rocket that’s never carried people before. NASA is targeting March 6 for the launch of Artemis II, the first crewed mission of the agency’s new deep-space architecture. Four astronauts will ride the Artemis II mission atop the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and travel in the Orion spacecraft on a 10-day trip around the Moon. If successful, they’ll venture farther from Earth than any humans since 1972.

—> WHAT’S THE SPACE LAUNCH SYSTEM? The Space Launch System (SLS) is NASA’s most powerful rocket, built to send astronauts beyond low Earth orbit. It’s the backbone of the Artemis program, designed to carry the Orion spacecraft around the Moon and eventually support missions to Mars. At liftoff, it generates more thrust than the Saturn V rockets used during Apollo. Put simply: SLS is America’s heavy-lift vehicle for sending humans to deep space.

(Image credit: Space News, NASA/Ben Smegelsky)

—> MEET THE CREW: Commander Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen are now entering quarantine. Artemis II will mark the first time SLS and Orion carry humans — a high-stakes debut for a program designed to anchor U.S. lunar strategy for the next decade.

—> MEET THE FUTURE’S BOTTOM LINE: For investors and policymakers, Artemis isn’t just exploration — it’s an industrial policy engine supporting the U.S. space supply chain. COMPANIES IMPACTED BY ARTEMIS: Lockheed Martin — Prime contractor for Orion. Artemis II is a proving ground for its deep-space crew vehicle… Boeing — Lead contractor for the SLS core stage. Launch success = validation after years of cost scrutiny… Northrop Grumman — Builds the solid rocket boosters delivering most of the thrust at liftoff… Aerojet Rocketdyne — Supplies upgraded RS-25 engines powering the core stage.

—> MEET THE FUTURE: This is more than a launch window. It’s a stress test of America’s post-Apollo space architecture — hardware, workforce, and political will. In one month, Americans will have a better understanding if they’ll return to land on the Moon by 2028 or sooner.

Sources: SpaceNews; NBC News

hello, future. it’s me, kev.

…and this is a dispatch from the digital frontier. It’s time to meet the future NOW — with the latest on markets, tech, and freedom. The day is 53. The year is 2026. The planet is Earth. The planet has complete 14.5 percent of its orbit around the Sun. I’m your host for the future, Kevin Cirilli —> LinkedIn.

Cirilli on C-SPAN. Watch here. Thank you, C-SPAN.

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SPACE POWER // BUSINESS

SPACEX WANTS TO PUT DATA CENTERS IN SPACE. SpaceX just filed paperwork with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) asking for permission to build “orbital data centers.” That means giant computers floating in space instead of sitting in buildings on Earth.

—> WHY PUT THEM IN SPACE? In space, there’s lots of sunlight for solar power and no weather to worry about. Space is also very cold, which helps cool down computers. Cooling is one of the hardest and most expensive parts of running data centers on Earth.

—> WHY YOU CARE: If approved, this could change how the internet and AI are powered. Instead of giant buildings using tons of land and electricity, some computing power could live in orbit. Elon Musk isn’t just launching rockets. He may be trying to move part of the internet into space.

Source: FCC Filing (SAT-LOA-20260108-00016)

DISCLOSURE REPORT // ALIENS // UAPs // UFOs

THE POLITICS OF ALIENS. Disclosure isn’t fringe anymore. It’s ballot-adjacent. This week on HELLO FUTURE with Kevin Cirilli, Kevin sits down with Dr. Peter Skafish, executive director of the prestigious SOL Foundation to unpack how unidentified aerial phenomena — UAPs — moved from tabloid punchline to bipartisan pressure point.

—DEMOCRATS USED TO LEAD DISCLOSURE. During the Cold War space race, John F. Kennedy framed the Moon as destiny. In the 1990s, President Bill Clinton tried to send agents to Area 51 at Roswell to better understand the issue. The late-Gov. Bill Richardson stunned then MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews after a DNC debate where he said live on-air that the government wasn’t fully transparent about Roswell. And John Podesta— long before it was cool — pushed for releasing UAP files and made it part of the 2016 platform conversation. He doesn’t get enough credit.

—> REPUBLICANS ONCE MOCKED IT. During the 2012 GOP primary, Newt Gingrich floated a Moon colony idea and was openly laughed at by Mitt Romney. Space ambition was treated as spectacle, not strategy.Today: Space is smart politics, policy, and imperative to national security.

—> MEET THE MOMENT: President Donald Trump says he’ll release the files because of public demand. Before he became HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was briefed on UAP issues during his campaign.

—> OBAMA’S MIC-CHECK. Former Presidnet Barack Obama has publicly acknowledged unexplained aerial phenomena exist. Obama is subtly nudging Democrats not to dismiss the issue outright. The message: ignore this at your own political risk.

—> MEDIA EXECUTIVES DROPPED THE BALL. For decades, major outlets buried UFO stories behind stigma. Any journalist who wanted to dig deeper was met with ridicule, condescension, and elitism… as if we should just be wearing tin foil hats and were peddling conspiracy theories. When Pentagon-confirmed UAP videos emerged, the press played catch-up. The moment was bigger than the coverage... and especially bigger than the failed legacy media executives who refuse to try new ideas on any issue.

Sigh… I’m still an optimist… I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…

—> FLASHBACK: HISTORY RHYMES. In the 17th century, the Catholic Church condemned Galileo Galilei for supporting heliocentrism — the idea that Earth revolves around the Sun. Today, the Vatican Observatory studies the cosmos, and Pope Francis has famously said he would baptize an alien if one asked. Discovery doesn’t shrink faith. It expands it. Disclosure doesn’t negate dogma. It’s affirms it.

—> BOTTOM LINE: UAPs aren’t just a science story. They’re a trust story. A power story. A generational story. The politics of aliens may say less about little green blobs — and more about who controls information in the 21st century.

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ONE MORE THING

—> ONE MORE THING: KEV’S BIAS. It’s easy to forget how fast the future is moving. Last week, mtf hosted Damon Feltman, CEO of the Space Force Association, for a private breakfast briefing with some of the most influential leaders in the space economy.

On Friday, iHeartRadio put meet the future (mtf.tv) in more than than 50 stations, breaking down the latest from the frontlines of AI, quantum, and space.

And on Saturday, we were on C-SPAN talking about the next frontier industries — quantum computing, space exploration, and the power shifts reshaping the global economy.

The future isn’t coming. It’s looking for its next host.

People ask why I care about aliens and UAPs. Simple. How depressing would it be if we were totally alone in the universe? As Tom Hanks says in Apollo 13, “We’ve never lost an American in space. We’re sure as hell not going to lose one on my watch.”

That spirit — pushing outward, not shrinking inward — echoes John F. Kennedy’s call: “We choose to go to the Moon… not because it is easy, but because it is hard.”

Believing there’s more out there isn’t sci-fi. It’s optimism. It’s hope. It’s American. And it’s on all of us to discover our place in the universe.

With gratitude,

Kev

ABOUT mtf.tv’s meet the future: mtf.tv’s meet the future is a cutting-edge platform focused on addressing key challenges at the intersection of national security, technology, and business. With a mission to embrace freedom to meet the future’s challenges and opportunities, mtf.tv offers forward-thinking media offerings and forums. mtf.tv produces the daily HELLO FUTURE show on iHeart Media’s Premiere Network, which reaches 9 in 10 Americans. iHeart | iTunes | Spotify | Amazon | Pandora

mtf.tv’s meet the future founder Kevin Cirilli.

The future is what you make it… and we want to grow… we especially want to grow with you if you believe in our mission: embrace freedom to meet the future’s challenges and opportunities.

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