The full spacecraft will then be put on track for the launchpad with fuelling and integration with NASA’s mega Moon rocket SLS for a launch next year. The ESM-2 will go through further tests before being connected to the Orion crew capsule later this year. The handover is an important milestone for the program, and ESA will continue to work closely with NASA and industry colleagues on getting the Orion spacecraft ready for launch and throughout the Artemis II mission. The ESM-2 has 33 thrusters, 11 km of electrical wiring, four propellant, and two pressure tanks that all work together to supply propulsion and everything needed to keep the astronauts alive far from Earth. The mission will take a minimum of eight days and will collect valuable flight test data, marking the first time in over 50 years that humans have voyaged to our natural satellite. The crew will fly Orion to 8889 km beyond the Moon before completing a lunar flyby and returning to Earth. The ESM-2 will power the Orion spacecraft on the Artemis II mission, which will see four astronauts complete a two-week voyage around the Moon. "I think it's reflective of us, of America," he said.On June 16, 2023, the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA signed papers for the handover of the European Service Module-2 (ESM-2) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA. Mr Nelson also paid tribute to Artemis's goal to land the first woman and person of colour on the moon. The 100m-tall Artemis vehicle climbed skyward in a stupendous mix of light and sound. Improved technology will also help NASA gather more data and samples from the moon's surface, including potential deposits of rare minerals. The American space agency Nasa has launched its most powerful ever rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida. "It didn't end with Apollo 17 - this time we're going back, we're going to learn, and then we're going to Mars - with humans."Ī big part of the Artemis mission objective is about laying the groundwork for a trip to the red planet in the future, by establishing a base on the moon that could see astronauts stay there for weeks or months at a time. He compared Artemis to the space agency's Apollo programme, which last put man on the moon as part of Apollo 17 in 1972. "You definitely knew there was some energy being expended over there!" The boss of NASA has been giving his reaction to the launch, hailing the launch team as "part of a great legacy".īill Nelson, administrator of the space agency, said he watched the launch from the roof of the launch centre. The other directors are launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, who we heard from after the successful launch, and landing and recovery director Melissa Jones, whose team won't come into play until within days of the mission's return to Earth. There are two flight directors for Artemis 1: Rick LaBrode and Judd Frieling.Įach team within the mission has its own directors - for example, the overarching mission management team based at Kennedy Space Center is led by Mike Sarafin, who provides oversight and makes critical decisions during the entire mission. This role leads the team of flight controllers, research and engineering experts, and support personnel, and makes real-time decisions throughout the mission. The flight director is the captain on the ground in all but name. The image below shows the layout of the so-called White Flight Control Room at the centre. The control room is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to make sure everything goes smoothly. While the launch site is in Florida, NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston is where the flight control team is.Īfter launch controllers at Cape Canaveral conducted the countdown, the team at Mission Control Center in the Texas city takes over all the way until Orion splashes back down on Earth in the weeks ahead.
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