ARTEMIS
Artemis . . . in ancient Greek mythology . . . “twin sister of Apollo,”
“wild animals . . . and hunting” . . . “the goddess of the moon.”
16Nov22 NASA launched . . . via a 32-story rocket,
uncrewed Orion spacecraft . . . to the moon.
“A multiyear project . . . to return to our closest celestial neighbor,
half a century after our last visit.”
© Forrest W. Heaton and NASA
NASA, along with it’s European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and Canadian Space Agency partners has estimated it will take approximately ten years to go back to the moon. The first reason is the difficulty to safely accomplish the task. The second is the cost. The third is radiation in deep space. This program is intended to first flyby the moon and then reach into deeper space. This will test both the radiation factor and a fourth factor, the heat shield. The heat shield needs to protect the four astronauts intended for launch in 2024 and safely return through Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds.
We would not be surprised if perhaps many of our dear readers remember huddling in your home or a friend’s home to watch Neal Armstrong land on the moon, Apollo 11, 20Jul69. It was a glorious night, a momentous achievement, one few to none of us will forget.
Artemis I was uncrewed (with the exception of mannequin Commander Moonikin Campos and two torsos Helga and Zohar in the spacecraft, Orion.) The mannequin and two torsos have good reasons to be on Orion; look them and the derivation of their names up if you can set aside the time. It will be fun. On 16 November 2022, Artemis I blasted off from Kennedy Space Center. On 21 November 2022, Orion “flew past the Apollo 11 mission’s Tranquility Base, the site of the first-ever moon landing.” NASA’s plan for Artemis I was accomplished—a 25-day mission, “approximately 1.3 million miles, farther than any other spacecraft designed for humans has ever flown.” Splashdown in the Pacific ocean occurred Sunday 11Dec22 at 12:40 pm Eastern time. The New York Times’ Eric Berger called Artemis I “. . . the beginning of the new beginning.”
Artemis II will be crewed and flyby the moon. Artemis III, currently scheduled for a 2025 launch, will land humans on the moon including the first woman and the first person of color.
NASA’s intention is to achieve the first long-term presence on the moon, an intention which may be challenged by another nation such as China. (The Pentagon has predicted that:” “China will surpass American capabilities in space by 2045.”) But the main objective of the Artemis project is NASA’s sustained commitment for the exploration of Mars. Quoting the New York Times’ columnist Peter Baker in his Nov22 article “To The Moon,” “. . . the moon could be used as a base for deep-space missions without the cost and burden of lifting heavy rocket fuel off the Earth, which has six times the gravity of the moon.” Jim Free, NASA’s Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems Development, advised: “This isn’t just one flight and we’re done . . .” He explained that “components are already being built up through the Artemis V mission with an eye on a lunar base and then Mars.”
The Artemis program, as noted in a Dec22 New York Times article, “. . . has leaned increasingly on commercial space.” This involves companies such as SpaceX and others. From the same article : “Artemis also sought to build in international cooperation from the beginning . . .” All of this helps NASA in continuation vs. cancellation.
The photos NASA has posted on the internet (nasa.gov) are amazing! We’ve so much to learn! And, isn’t it fun to witness this beginning!
