Artemis I – Terug naar de Maan (2) infographic
Graphic shows details of the Artemis I Moon mission.
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NASA’s Artemis I in "generale repetitie" (2)

By Ninian Carter

September 20, 2022 - Artemis I is an unmanned flight designed to test the viability of the new SLS launcher and Orion capsule for crewed flights. It is the first step in NASA’s much-heralded return to the moon.

Technical setbacks over the weekend and on Monday, including multiple lightning strikes, pressurisation problems and a stuck valve have caused NASA to scrub Artemis I’s three-day “wet dress rehearsal” – fuelling of the rocket and a simulated full countdown.

The uncrewed Artemis I mission is due to take-off in June on a flight that will last 26-42 days:

1) Space Launch System (SLS) super heavy-lift launch vehicle blasts off from Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, carrying an empty Orion crew module.

2) Solid rocket boosters and core stage separation – ship enters Earth orbit.

3) Ship journeys to Moon (8-14 days), deploying 10 CubeSats along the way.

4) Enter into orbit around Moon (6-19 days).

5) Return flight to Earth (9-19 days).

6) Crew module separation and splashdown in Pacific Ocean.

If successful, Artemis II is scheduled to blast-off in May 2024, with a crew of four astronauts, on a lunar-flyby-return-to-Earth test mission.

Assuming success of Artemis II, Artemis III is set to land two humans on the Moon in 2025, and keep them there for a week – making it the the first human moon landing since Apollo 17 in 1972 (53 years ago).

Sources
PUBLISHED: 20/09/2022; STORY: Graphic News
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