NASA recently announced that it’s targeting April 1 for the launch of its highly anticipated lunar-bound mission, Artemis II.
Inside the Orion spacecraft lifted to space by the powerful SLS rocket will be NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, together with CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
Orion won’t touch down on the lunar surface but instead fly around the moon in a mission set to last 10 days from launch to splashdown.
As they become the first humans to fly to the moon in more than five decades, the crew won’t simply be sitting back and admiring the views (though they’ll definitely be doing a bit of that). They’ll be checking out the spacecraft systems alongside a whole host of other carefully planned activities designed to confirm the Orion’s readiness for operational lunar flights.
In an effort to share as much information as possible about the highly anticipated flight, NASA recently shared a day-by-day breakdown detailing everything that’s planned for the mission.
Following launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, for example, the Orion spacecraft and its occupants will be sent to a high-Earth orbit after which they’ll have about 24 hours to perform a thorough checkout of Orion’s systems while still close to home.
“The crew will start testing systems like the potable water dispenser that will provide drinking water and rehydrate the food they brought along, the toilet, and the system that removes carbon dioxide from the air,” NASA explains, adding that they’ll also spend time “rearranging Orion’s interior to function as a living and workspace for four floating people over the next 10 days.”
Importantly, they’ll see how Orion handles in Earth orbit. If any issues occur, they’ll try to resolve them in flight. But if problems persist, it’ll 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 the Orion comes within 4,000 to 6,000 miles of the lunar surface, giving Wiseman, Glover, and Koch, and Hansen a close view of the moon that “should look to them about the size of a basketball held at arm’s length.”
During the flyby, they’ll be able to capture photos and videos of parts of the moon never before seen by humans, all while briefly losing communication with Earth as they pass behind it.
Skipping ahead to day 10, a final return trajectory correction burn will ensure Orion is on the right path for splashdown, with the crew climbing back into their spacesuits for the ride home.
“The crew module will separate from the service module, whose engines have steered them around the moon and back to Earth,” NASA explains. “This will expose the crew module’s heat shield, which will protect the spacecraft and crew as they make their way back through Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures of up to about 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit.”
Finally, similar to how SpaceX’s workhorse Dragon spacecraft returns from the International Space Station, the vehicle will deploy parachutes to slow the vehicle down for splashdown off the coast of California.
Check NASA’s website for the full fascinating breakdown of the most significant crewed space flight since the final Apollo mission way back in 1972.