Understand continued research goals of space exploration
Along with the innovations for the Artemis Program to support future missions, other research is happening that will benefit from the mission.
One example is the study of rocks. It has been more than 50 years since a person was last on the surface of the Moon, which means the rock samples were collected more than 50 years ago. We know rocks tell rich and vibrant histories of the land that they come from. Even on Earth, the study of rocks gives us insight into prehistoric times and the evolution of our present-day Earth.
Rocks collected from the Moon are stored in the lunar sample building at the Johnson Space Center where they're available for study by NASA Scientists. Some of the samples were even locked in canisters before leaving the Moon and are considered pristine. The problem is that there's a finite number of samples and many research questions to ask. Teams of people analyze and categorize Moon rocks and then determine the risks involved in using parts of samples to conduct research. Sometimes these requests are denied to help NASA maintain the health of the entire sample and preserve as clear a picture as possible of what has been discovered in physical form.
New missions to the Moon are planned as part of the Artemis program. These missions bring an opportunity to increase the size of the rock samples gathered and discover new rocks that might be of interest in learning what has happened on the Moon's surface over the past 50 years. Astronauts and geologists can work together to decide the types and quantities of rocks required and what metadata to collect.
Also, now that machines are involved in the exploration of the Moon's surface, computer scientists have become involved in the conversation to help ensure the rovers can contribute to the data collection as well. Deciding how to program a robot to collect rock samples, collect metadata, and not disturb the sample area is non-trivial. It's especially difficult when you consider that developers can't test the robots in a moon-like environment before sending them on the mission.