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Cosmic Space

Orion moonship fires up its engine to leave Earth behind

Orion thrusters and crescent Earth against the blackness of space
A webcam view from NASA's Orion space capsule shows its thrusters at left and a crescent Earth at right. (NASA Photo)

NASA’s Orion space capsule successfully fired its main engine today for a maneuver that sent the four astronauts of the Artemis 2 mission out of Earth orbit and onward to the moon.

The translunar injection burn lasted five minutes and 50 seconds, and committed the spacecraft to a course that will result in a lunar flyby and a gravity-assisted U-turn on April 6. “Looks like a good burn,” capsule communicator Chris Birch said at Mission Control in Houston.

The trajectory is designed so that the capsule, christened Integrity, will return to Earth on April 10 without requiring any further major engine firings. “From this point forward, the laws of orbital mechanics are going to carry our crew to the moon, around the far side and back to Earth,” said Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.

After the burn, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen paid tribute to the Artemis team. “We firmly felt the power of your perseverance during every second of that burn,” he told Mission Control. “Humanity has once again shown what we are capable of, and it’s your hopes for the future that carry us now on this journey around the moon.”

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Astronauts begin first trip to the moon in decades

SLS lifts off from Florida launch pad
NASA’s Space Launch System rises from its Florida launch pad, sending the Artemis 2 crew into orbit. (NASA via YouTube)

After years of postponements and close to $100 billion in spending, NASA has launched the first mission to send astronauts around the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The 10-day Artemis 2 mission began today with the liftoff of NASA’s 322-foot-tall Space Launch System rocket from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. ET (3:35 p.m. PT). NASA is streaming live coverage of the flight via YouTube and Amazon Prime.

During the last two hours of the countdown, engineers addressed concerns about the rocket’s flight termination system and instrumentation for a battery on the launch abort system. “Godspeed, Artemis 2,” launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson told the crew just before liftoff. “Let’s go!”

Artemis 2 is the first crewed test flight in a series leading up to a moon landing that’s currently scheduled for 2028. It follows Artemis 1, which sent a crewless Orion around the moon in 2022. This time, four astronauts are riding inside Orion: NASA mission commander Reid Wiseman, NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Victor Glover, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

“Great view,” Wiseman told Mission Control during the rocket’s ascent. “We have a beautiful moonrise, we’re headed right at it.”

Koch will be the first woman to go beyond Earth orbit. Similar firsts apply to Glover as a Black astronaut, and Hansen as a non-American astronaut.

Although Artemis 2’s astronauts won’t be landing on the lunar surface, they’ll follow a figure-8 trajectory that will send them 4,700 miles beyond the far side of the moon and make them the farthest-flung travelers in human history.

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Milestone moon mission gets a boost from the Northwest

Sen. Maria Cantwell and L3Harris' Brent Urke pointing to a model of Orion space vehicle at L3Harris' Redmond facility
Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Brent Urke, program manager for L3Harris’ facility in Redmond, Wash., check out a model of the Orion spaceship that’s due to take four astronauts around the moon as early as this week. Cantwell is pointing to the model’s set of eight R-4D thrusters. An actual R-4D thruster, manufactured in Redmond, is sitting on the table at far left. (GeekWire Photo / Alan Boyle)

NASA’s most powerful rocket is due to send four astronauts on a round-the-moon journey as early as this week, and although the launch team has to make sure everything goes right in Florida, the mission’s success will also depend on hardware that was built in the Seattle area.

During a visit to two of the contractors for NASA’s Artemis moon program, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell said that when it comes to spaceflight, it’s important to get the little things right.

“A lot of people think, ‘Oh, well, we know how to build big rockets,’ right?” the Washington state Democrat said at Karman Space & Defense’s manufacturing facility in Mukilteo, Wash. “But do we know how to separate payloads and return them, and do all of that? That’s what we’re doing here in Puget Sound. … I think that’s the untold story that people don’t understand.”

NASA’s big story will focus on the first humans to go from the Earth to the moon since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Artemis 2’s crew won’t land on the lunar surface during what’s expected to be a 10-day mission. But because their figure-8 route takes them 4,700 miles beyond the moon’s far side, they’ll set a new distance record for human travel beyond Earth.

The first opportunity for liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is scheduled for 6:24 p.m. ET (3:24 p.m. PT) on April 1, with backup dates available through April 6. NASA plans to provide live video coverage of the countdown and launch via YouTube, starting at 12:50 p.m. ET (9:50 a.m. PT) on launch day.

This will be the second launch for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, which sent an uncrewed Orion space capsule around the moon for the Artemis 1 test mission in 2022. The Artemis 2 crew — including NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen — will be the first people to ride an Orion into space.

If all goes according to plan, Artemis 2 will clear the way for NASA to test the lunar landers built by Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space ventures in 2027, then for Artemis 3 to put astronauts on the surface of the moon in 2028. And that’s just the start.

“Ultimately, Artemis is about returning to the moon and building a permanent moon base that can then be used for accelerating our travel to Mars,” Cantwell said.

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Universe Today

Two space telescopes see Saturn in a different light

Views of Saturn captured by JWST (left) and Hubble (right).
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope acquired the infrared view of Saturn at left on Nov. 29, 2024. The Hubble Space Telescope's corresponding visible-light view, at right, was captured on Aug. 22, 2024. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC), Michael Wong (UC Berkeley); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI)

NASA is serving up a double scoop of delicious Saturn imagery in two flavors — near-infrared and visible light. The subtle differences between the James Webb Space Telescope’s infrared view and the Hubble Space Telescope’s visible-light view can help scientists dig deeper into the workings of the ringed planet’s atmosphere.

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Universe Today

NASA pivots to moon base and nuclear Mars mission

Illustration: Space Reactor-1 approaching Mars
An artist's conception shows Space Reactor-1 Freedom approaching Mars. (NASA via YouTube)

NASA’s leaders today laid out an ambitious multibillion-dollar space exploration plan that calls for building a moon base over the next decade and launching a nuclear-powered probe to Mars by 2028.

The space agency is also pressing the pause button on its multibillion-dollar plan to create a moon-orbiting outpost known as the lunar Gateway, and on its plan for transitioning from the International Space Station to commercial outposts in low Earth orbit.

Instead, NASA says it aims to work with commercial partners to procure a government-owned Core Module for the ISS. That module would serve as the attachment point for commercial space modules that could eventually detach to become free-flying space stations.

Meanwhile, the Power and Propulsion Element that was designed for the Gateway would be repurposed for the Mars probe known as Space Reactor-1 Freedom. SR-1 Freedom would be powered by a nuclear electric propulsion system and drop off a payload capable of deploying three helicopters in the Martian atmosphere. Such a mission, known as Skyfall, builds on the success of NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter on Mars and parallels a concept proposed last year by AeroVironment.

NASA is aiming to launch SR-1 Freedom, land astronauts on the lunar surface with its Artemis 4 mission and start laying the groundwork for a moon base with Artemis 5 by the end of 2028, when President Donald Trump’s term in office comes to a close.

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Cosmic Space

NASA’s moon rocket returns to launch pad after tune-up

Nighttime rollout of SLS rocket on mobile launcher
NASA's Space Launch System rocket rolls out from the Vehicle Assembly Building in Florida. (NASA Photo)

It took longer than expected, but NASA’s Space Launch System rocket is back on its launch pad in preparation for sending four astronauts on a historic round-the-moon mission as early as next month.

The 322-foot-tall SLS rocket, topped by NASA’s Orion crew capsule, began rolling out from the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 12:20 a.m. ET March 20 (9:20 p.m. PT March 19). The start of the trip was delayed by more than four hours due to concerns about high winds in the area.

NASA’s rocket and its massive mobile launcher made the 4-mile trek to Launch Complex 39B in 11 hours, traveling at a top speed of less than 1 mph. The trip required the use of a crawler-transporter — the same vehicle used for the Apollo and space shuttle programs, now upgraded for NASA’s Artemis moon program.

The Apollo connection is particularly fitting because this mission, known as Artemis 2, will mark the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972 that astronauts have been sent around the moon. No landing will be made this time around, but the crew is due to go about 4,700 miles beyond the moon’s orbit during their 10-day mission. That would set a new distance record for human spaceflight.

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NASA overhauls moon plan — and Blue Origin may benefit

Illustration: Blue Moon lander on lunar surface
An artist’s conception shows the integrated design for the Blue Moon lander. (Blue Origin Illustration)

NASA is reworking its Artemis moon program to add a test mission for commercial lunar landers in low Earth orbit next year, with a crewed lunar landing to follow in 2028 at the earliest. The revised plan raises the profile of the Blue Moon lander that’s being built by Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space venture.

“We’re all in!” Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp said in a post to X.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, who took up his post last December, announced the schedule shift today. “This is going to be our pathway back to the moon,” he said.

The next step in the pathway is the same as it has been: NASA is getting set to use its giant Space Launch System rocket to launch four astronauts on a 10-day trip around the moon in an Orion capsule. That Artemis 2 mission is currently set for no earlier than April, due to a helium leak that forced this week’s rocket rollback from the launch pad for troubleshooting.

NASA’s previous plan called for following up on Artemis 2 with a crewed lunar landing next year for Artemis 3. However, the development of the SpaceX Starship lander for that mission has proceeded more slowly than expected.

Under the revised architecture, Artemis 3 becomes a crewed orbital test for SpaceX’s Starship and/or Blue Origin’s Blue Moon lander. The mission could also test the next-generation spacesuits that are being developed for extravehicular activities. The Artemis program’s first crewed lunar landing would follow in 2028, presumably using either Starship or Blue Moon.

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Cosmic Space

Moon rocket goes back to the garage for troubleshooting

SLS rocket and Orion crew spacecraft inside VAB
NASA has returned its Space Launch System rocket and Orion crew capsule to the Vehicle Assembly Building. (NASA Photo / Cory Huston)

NASA rolled the giant rocket that’s slated to launch four astronauts on a round-the-moon trip back to its garage today to troubleshoot a problem with its helium pressurization system.

The Space Launch System rocket, topped by an Orion crew capsule, returned to the 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at about 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT), NASA said. It took more than 10 hours for NASA’s crawler-transporter to make the 4-mile trip from Launch Complex 39B.

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Helium problem forces NASA to delay moon mission

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and troubleshooting team at launch pad with SLS rocket in background
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, far left, accompanies a troubleshooting team at the Artemis 2 launch pad. (NASA Photo)

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman says the giant rocket set to send four astronauts around the moon for the history-making Artemis 2 mission must be rolled back from its launch pad to troubleshoot a technical problem.

The 10-day mission, previously scheduled for as soon as March, is now postponed until April at the earliest. “I understand people are disappointed by this development,” Isaacman said in a posting to X. “That disappointment is felt most by the team at NASA, who have been working tirelessly to prepare for this great endeavor.”

The technical issue cropped up just days after a successful launch-pad rehearsal at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Data from the Space Launch System rocket’s upper stage registered an interruption in the flow of helium, which is used to pressurize the propellant tanks and purge the engines. “Last evening, the team was unable to get helium flow through the vehicle,” Isaacman wrote today. “This occurred during a routine operation to repressurize the system.”

Isaacman said the helium pressurization system worked correctly during this week’s wet dress rehearsal. For what it’s worth, a problem with a helium valve cropped up during preparations for the uncrewed Artemis 1 round-the-moon mission in 2022, leading NASA managers to take corrective actions.

The current problem could be due to a failure at any of several points in the helium system. “Regardless of the potential fault, accessing and remediating any of these issues can only be performed in the VAB,” said Isaacman, referring to the 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building where the SLS and its Orion crew capsule were stacked for launch.

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NASA completes rehearsal for Artemis moon launch

SLS rocket illuminated by lights at launch pad
NASA's Space Launch System rocket stands on its Florida launch pad. (NASA Photo / Aubrey Gemignani)

NASA counted down to T-minus 29 seconds during a smooth rehearsal for a historic launch that could send astronauts around the moon for the first time in more than half a century.

The run-through at Launch Complex 39B, at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, was known as a wet dress rehearsal because it involved filling up the propellant tanks on NASA’s Space Launch System, a 322-foot-tall rocket that made its debut with 2022’s uncrewed Artemis 1 mission.

The only major component that was missing at the launch pad was the crew. NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, the commander for the Artemis 2 mission, said in a posting to X that he was watching the proceedings from Launch Control.

Once NASA reviews the results of the two-day rehearsal, mission managers will decide whether to give the final go-ahead for the Artemis 2 crew’s 10-day trip around the moon and back.

Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, said the space agency is targeting March 6 for liftoff. “Every night I look at the moon, and I see it, and I get real excited because I can really feel she’s calling us,” she told reporters today. “And we’re ready.”

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