The buzz is building for NASA’s Artemis II mission that will send four astronauts on a 10-day voyage around the moon.
The highly anticipated endeavor will be the first crewed moon-bound flight since the final Apollo mission way back in 1972.
The four crew members — Americans Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Christina Koch, together with Canadian Jeremy Hansen — could begin on their epic journey as soon as February 6, though NASA has yet to confirm a concrete schedule.
They’ll be blasted into orbit by NASA’s powerful SLS (Space Launch System) rocket before continuing the rest of their voyage inside the Orion spacecraft.
In preparation for the mission, the astronauts have begun a routine two-week quarantine period at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The important procedure limits the crew members’ exposure to others in the days before they lift off, reducing their chances of becoming ill before or during the mission.
“Beginning quarantine now preserves flexibility as teams work toward potential opportunities in the February launch period,” NASA said on its website. If engineers experience any issues with the rocket during the final preparations, the crew can come out of quarantine and re-enter 14 days before a new target date is set.
“If testing continues to go well and activities progress toward a possible launch next month, they will fly to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida about six days ahead of launch,” NASA said. “There, the Artemis II crew will live in the astronaut crew quarters inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building before launch day.”
During quarantine, the astronauts live together and are able to have regular contact with friends, family, and colleagues while observing quarantine guidelines. These include avoiding public places, wearing masks, and maintaining a certain distance from others they come into contact with as they continue their final training activities.
Meanwhile, some 900 miles east at the Artemis II launch site at Kennedy, NASA engineers are continuing with the vehicle preparations, with mechanical power systems, cryogenic propellant lines, and engines all reported to be in good shape. The next big event is a wet dress rehearsal for the SLS rocket, which is set for this weekend.
The Artemis II mission will test the systems and hardware required for progressively complex crewed missions aimed at exploring more of the moon for scientific discovery and potential economic benefits. The moon is also being lined up as a stepping stone for the first crewed mission to Mars.