NASA has come up with yet another mission with the main purpose of scientific and technological investigations. NASA wants to ensure a safe “module entry, descent, splashdown, and recovery” for the crew while sending the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket up above. The Orion spacecraft is to be sent on its four-week journey around the Moon, while the SRS carries 10 satellites of its own.
This Artemis I mission is NASA’s forward movement to bring life to the Moon after nearly half a century. After this mission, the short list of those who have been on the moon will include female astronauts and astronauts of color! NASA plans to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before, hopefully accomplishing this feat by 2025. Following the Artemis I mission is Artemis II, projected to send astronauts to the moon and back in 2024. Finally, rounding off these missions is Artemis III, expected to put astronauts down on the moon, near the lunar south pole by 2025 or 2026.
Artemis I is expected to break records, with the Orion spacecraft staying in space longer than any other without docking to a space station. Orion is also anticipated to return back to the Earth faster and hotter than ever before. Despite a lack of crew, Artemis I carries a mannequin uniquely dressed in the form of a Snoopy cuddly toy dressed in an iconic orange NASA jumpsuit. There will be radiation sensors onboard to monitor levels during the flight.
Artemis I is distinctive for its new computing abilities, able to program many more complex operations than before. The mission will take approximately 26 and 42 days, orbiting the moon in retrograde (opposite direction of the moon’s tilt).
After months and weeks of change and perfecting this mission, Artemis I is ready for launch, aiming to provide a foundation for deep space exploration, as well as a new capacity for humans on the moon, possibly even extending human presence beyond the moon.
Sources: https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-1, https://www.space.com/artemis-1-going-back-to-the-moon, https://www.space.com/pink-moon-artemis-1-launch-pad
Super interesting!