Space tourism: Artémis 2 flies (finally) to the Moon
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Nearly sixty years after the Apollo 11 mission, which saw Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin take man’s first steps on the Moon, a rocket took off today, April 2 at 12:35 a.m. (French time) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida towards the Earth’s natural satellite, in front of more than 400 000 tourists came to attend this historic launch.
« This is an important step on the road to a long-term return to the Moon and missions to MarsAccording to Nasa.
Remember that this Artémis 2 mission is being carried out under implicit pressure from China, which aims to walk on the Moon by 2030.
The rocket and the ship
The Space Launch System, abbreviated SLS, is an American super-heavy space launcher developed by NASA since 2011 and whose first flight took place on November 16, 2022.
98 meters high and non-reusable, the unit cost of an SLS launcher is $2.2 billion and the production rate of the SLS is limited to one per year until 2030.
Furthermore, the SLS should restrict its use to Artemis missions only and in particular to gradually establish a base on lunar soil, theoretically to use it as a springboard to go further.
The interior of the Orion capsule offers a habitable volume of approximately 9 m3; it is in this space that the four astronauts will spend around ten days.
The mission
The mission is made up of different stages.
– First step: after takeoff, after about twenty minutes Orion’s European-made solar panels will deploy and begin to power the spacecraft.
Then approximately three hours after launch, Orion will separate from the rocket’s upper stage and station in Earth orbit for approximately 24 to 25 hours and conduct various checks and maneuvers to ensure the reliability and safety of the craft.
– Second stage: if these tests are conclusive, the spacecraft will then leave Earth’s orbit and continue on its way for a three or four day journey to the Moon.
– Third step: arriving near the Moon, the Orion spacecraft will circle it and the astronauts, who will then become the human beings to have traveled furthest from Earth, will begin their observations to allow NASA to choose the best moon landing site for Artemis 4.
For information, the flight over the far side of the Moon will not last more than 3h30.
– Fourth stage: return trip which will last three or four days and landing, the vessel being slowed down by powerful parachutes, in the Pacific, off the coast of California.
It is important to remember that the mission is not without risks: the spacecraft has never transported anyone and must reach the Moon more than 384,000 kilometers from Earth, or 1,000 times further than the International Space Station.
Let’s also remember the Orion capsule will travel at more than 40,000 km/h on its return… This is almost twice as fast as when the astronauts return from the ISS!
The crew
The crew is made up of four astronauts: three Americans and one Canadian.
– The mission commander will be the American Reid Wiseman. Aged 50, he is a former Navy test pilot and former NASA chief astronaut. To his credit, a 165-day mission in the International Space Station (ISS).
– The pilot, Victor Glover. Aged 49, he will be the first African-American to travel to the Moon. To his credit a mission to the International Space Station.
– Christina Koch, a 47-year-old American and engineer by training, will become the first woman to participate in a lunar mission. She holds the record for the longest continuous space flight carried out by a woman (328 days) and participated in the first 100% female spacewalk.
– Canadian Jeremy Hansen, a 50-year-old former fighter pilot, will be the blue of the mission, since on this occasion he will fly for the first time in space.
A fifth member will also be part of the crew, namely the plush “Rise” who will have the role of detecting microgravity when the crew has crossed Earth’s gravity.
The objectives
Through this mission, NASA wants to ensure that everything works perfectly before attempting a moon landing in 2028 during the Artémis 4 mission.
This mission should confirm the success of the previous empty test of the rocket and the spacecraft in 2022.
Note that unlike the time of Apollo, NASA is collaborating this time with other countries, particularly European ones, and the private sector including the companies SpaceX and Blue Origin which are working on future moon landings.
Note that this deadline of 2028 still makes many experts doubt because the astronauts will need a moon landing… which is still under development by the companies of billionaires Elon Musk (SpaceX) and Jeff Bezos (Blue Origin).
To conclude and to show the media impact that this Artemis 2 mission can have, the new boss of NASA, recently appointed by Donald Trump, Jared Isaacman, promises: “ I guarantee you, this year you will see more kids dressed as astronauts for Halloween than you have seen in a long time. »
Michael Messager
