NASA recently announced that it is targeting an April 1 launch of its highly anticipated lunar mission, Artemis II.
Inside the Orion spacecraft, which will be lifted into space by the powerful SLS rocket, will be NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen (Canadian Space Agency).
Orion will not touch down on the lunar surface, but will fly around the moon in a mission that will last ten days from launch to splashdown.
Since they’re the first people to fly to the moon in more than five decades, the crew won’t just sit back and admire the view (although they will). definitely will do a bit of that). They will check the spacecraft’s systems, among a range of other carefully planned activities, to confirm Orion’s readiness for operational lunar flights.
In an effort to share as much information as possible about the highly anticipated flight, NASA recently released a day-by-day breakdown detailing everything planned for the mission.
For example, after launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Orion spacecraft and its occupants will be sent into low-Earth orbit, where they will have about 24 hours to thoroughly check the Orion systems while still close to home.
“The crew will begin testing systems such as the drinking water dispenser, which provides drinking water and rehydrates the food brought with it, the toilet, and the system that removes carbon dioxide from the air,” NASA explains, adding that over the next ten days they will also spend time “remodeling Orion’s interior to serve as a living and working space for four floating humans.”
Importantly, they will see how Orion behaves in Earth orbit. If problems arise, they will try to solve them during the flight. However, if problems persist, it will mean a disappointingly early return for the astronauts.
Day 6 could be one of the most exciting for the crew and everyone involved in the Artemis II mission, as Orion is only 4,000 to 6,000 miles away from the lunar surface, giving Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen a close look at the moon, which “to them should look about the size of a basketball held at arm’s length.”
During the flyby, they can take photos and videos of parts of the moon never before seen by humans, while briefly losing communication with Earth during the flyby.
Let’s move on to the 10th day. A final trajectory correction will ensure Orion is on track for the water splashes as the crew climbs back into their spacesuits for the journey home.
“The crew module is separated from the service module, whose engines guided it around the moon and back to Earth,” NASA explains. “This exposes the crew module’s heat shield, which protects the spacecraft and crew as they return through Earth’s atmosphere and in temperatures up to approximately 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Eventually, much like SpaceX’s workhorse Dragon returns from the International Space Station, the vehicle will deploy parachutes to slow the vehicle and splash down off the coast of California.
Visit NASA’s website for the full, fascinating summary of the most significant human spaceflight since the last Apollo mission in 1972.
