Key Points U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said SpaceX is falling "behind" schedule to get the U.S. back to the moon. Duffy, who was named acting NASA administrator this summer, said he will open the contract to other companies such as Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. Elon Musk-backed SpaceX is one of the contractors participating in NASA's Artemis mission to establish the "first long-term presence on the Moon." watch now Proxy advisor ISS recommends Tesla shareholders oppose Musk's $1 trillion pay plan SpaceX won a contract in 2021 to provide a lunar landing system for astronauts on the Artemis III mission. In December, NASA pushed back the next Artemis missions, with the next launch to send astronauts around the moon and back delayed until April 2026 and the trip to land two astronauts on the south polar region of the Moon moved to 2027. Duffy said Monday that he thinks the April launch can happen in early February and the agency is looking to get "back to the moon in 2028" with two potential companies. Duffy highlighted Blue Origin as a potential competitor that could take over. "They push their timelines out, and we're in a race against China," Duffy said of SpaceX. "The president and I want to get to the moon in this president's term, so I'm going to open up the contracts." Rocket tests for SpaceX and the space sector haven't always been smooth sailing. The company launched its eleventh Starship test rocket earlier this month following a string of stumbling blocks and explosions. Firefly Aerospace 's Alpha rocket exploded last month, shortly after the Federal Aviation Administration cleared it to continue testing. The ongoing government shutdown could put a dent in plans to reopen contracts. CNBC's request for comment on the contracting process was answered with an automatic reply that the agency was closed. CNBC previously reported that NASA employees working on the Artemis missions with contractors such as SpaceX and Blue Origin would continue working during the shutdown. watch now