Artemis II, endangered species and oil, snowpack crisis

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  For Scientific American Science Quickly, I'm Kendra Pure Lewis, in for Rachel Feldman.

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  You're listening to our weekly Science News Roundup.

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  First, a quick update on NASA's moon mission, which lifted off last week.

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  Last Thursday, Artemis II left Earth orbit,

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  making the four astronauts on board the first humans in over 50 years to do so.

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  And today is a critical day for the mission,

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  as it plans to execute a historic lunar flyby and go farther from Earth than any human ever has.

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  In environmental news, last Tuesday, the Endangered Species Committee exempted oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico

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  from the Endangered Species Act, or the ESA,

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  despite widespread consensus that it could lead to some species going extinct.

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  The last time the committee met was in 1992, under President George H.W. Bush.

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  Back then, members voted to exempt logging in the habitat of Oregon's northern spotted owl,

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  a bird that is under threat of extinction.

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  That request, however, was ultimately withdrawn.

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  This time, the committee convened at the request of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

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  The Defense Secretary said the move was necessary for national security in light of ongoing lawsuits.

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  This pending litigation in district courts seeks to stop Gulf oil and gas activities rather than allowing the integration

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  of oil and gas production with responsible endangered species protections.

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  Hegseth didn't specify which lawsuits he was referring to.

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  According to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration,

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