Artemis 2 Explained

Artemis 2
Names List:Artemis 2
Exploration Mission-2 (EM-2)
Mission Type:Crewed lunar flyby
Operator:NASA
Mission Duration:10 days (planned)
Spacecraft:Orion CM-003
Crew Size:4
Crew Members:Reid Wiseman
Victor Glover
Christina Koch
Jeremy Hansen
Launch Date:September 2025 (planned)
Launch Rocket:Space Launch System Block 1
Launch Site:Kennedy Space Center, LC-39B[1]
Recovery By:U.S. Navy (San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock)
Landing Site:Pacific Ocean (planned)
Interplanetary:
Type:flyby
Distance: (planned)
Crew Photo:Artemis_2_Crew_Portrait.jpg
Crew Photo Caption:Official Crew Portrait (Clockwise from left) Koch, Glover, Hansen, Wiseman
Programme:Artemis program
Previous Mission:Artemis 1
Next Mission:Artemis 3

Artemis 2 (officially Artemis II)[2] is a scheduled mission of the NASA-led Artemis program. It will use the second launch of the Space Launch System (SLS) and include the first crewed mission of the Orion spacecraft. The mission is scheduled for no earlier than September 2025.[3] Four astronauts will perform a flyby of the Moon and return to Earth, becoming the first crew to travel beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. Artemis 2 will be the first crewed launch from Launch Complex 39B of the Kennedy Space Center since STS-116 in 2006.

Originally designated Exploration Mission-2 (EM-2), the mission was intended to collect samples from a captured asteroid in lunar orbit by the now-cancelled robotic Asteroid Redirect Mission;[4] it was renamed after the introduction of the Artemis program.

History

See also: Asteroid Redirect Mission. In 2017, Exploration Mission-2 was a projected single-launch mission of a Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1B with an Exploration Upper Stage, lunar Block 1 Orion spacecraft, and a payload insertion of . The plan was to rendezvous with an asteroid previously placed in lunar orbit by the robotic Asteroid Redirect Mission and have astronauts perform space-walks and gather samples.[5] After the cancellation in April 2017[6] of the Asteroid Redirect Mission, an 8-day mission was proposed with a crew of four astronauts, sent on a free-return trajectory around the Moon.[7] Another proposal suggested in 2017 was to take four astronauts aboard Orion on an 8-to-21–day trip around the Moon to deliver the first element of the Deep Space Gateway.[8] In March 2018, it was decided to launch the first Gateway module on a commercial launch vehicle[9] because of delays in building the Mobile Launcher needed to hold the more powerful Exploration Upper Stage.[10] The launcher was selected to be the SpaceX Falcon Heavy.[11]

On February 11, 2023, NASA flipped the engine section for the Artemis 2 core to horizontal, the final major milestone before mating the section to the rest of the vehicle. On March 20, the engine section was mated with the Artemis 2 core stage in Building 103 at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. NASA expected the core stage, complete with engines, to be delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in summer 2023.[12] In May, the delivery date was moved to late fall 2023.[13] [14] The RS-25 engines with serial numbers E2047, E2059, E2062, and E2063 were installed on the core stage in New Orleans by September 25, 2023.[15] [16] Finally in June 2024, NASA announced the planned delivery of the fully outfitted core stage to KSC in July 2024, which was successfully carried out from the 16th to the 25th.[17] [18] [19] The adapters needed for integration of the full vehicle also reached substantial completion in June 2024, and were also planned for shipment to KSC.[20]

The crew was announced on April 3, 2023, as stated by NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, in his "State of NASA" speech reacting to President Joe Biden's FY2024 budget proposal.[21] The announcement occurred at a NASA facility at Ellington Field outside Houston.[22] They appeared later that day at nearby NRG Stadium for the 2023 March Madness championship game.[23]

Proposed secondary payloads

NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI) sought proposals in 2019 from U.S. institutions and U.S. companies to fly their CubeSat missions as secondary payloads aboard the SLS on the Artemis 2 mission.[24] [25] NASA would accept proposals for both 6-unit and 12-unit CubeSats.[26] As with the Artemis 1 mission, the CubeSats flying on Artemis 2 were to be mounted on the inside of the stage adapter ring between the SLS upper stage and the Orion spacecraft, and will be deployed after Orion separates. Selections were initially planned to be made by February 2020,[24] but in October 2021, NASA dropped all secondary payloads from the mission.[27]

Launch date

During preliminary reviews in 2011, the launch date was placed somewhere between 2019 and 2021, but afterwards the launch date was delayed to 2023.[28] [29], the mission is expected to launch no earlier than September 2025.

Crew

Artemis 2 is to be crewed by four astronauts: Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor J. Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen.[30] On November 22, 2023, Jenni Gibbons was announced to be Hansen's backup; she will join the mission if Hansen is unable to.[31] [32] On July 3, 2024, Andre Douglas was announced to be the backup for the three NASA astronauts.[33] [34]

Glover, Koch, and Hansen are to be the first person of color, woman, and non-American to go beyond low Earth orbit respectively. Hansen and Gibbons are Canadian and have been assigned by the Canadian Space Agency; a 2020 treaty between the United States and Canada led to their involvement.[35]

Mission

The Artemis 2 mission plan is to send four astronauts in the first crewed Orion MPCV spacecraft into a lunar flyby for a maximum of 21 days using the Block 1 variant of the Space Launch System. The mission profile is a multi-trans-lunar injection (MTLI), or multiple departure burns, and includes a free-return trajectory from the Moon. The Orion spacecraft will be sent to a high Earth orbit with a period of roughly 24 hours. During this time the crew will perform various checkouts of the spacecraft's life support systems as well as an in-space rendezvous and proximity operations demonstration using the spent Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS) as a target. When Orion reaches perigee once again, it will fire its main engine to complete the TLI maneuver, which will send it to a lunar free-return trajectory, before returning to Earth.[36] [37]

Optical communications

Artemis 2 will test and demonstrate optical communications to and from Earth using the Orion Artemis II Optical Communications System (O2O).[38] The O2O hardware will be integrated into the Orion spacecraft and includes an optical module (a 4inches telescope and two gimbals), modem and control electronics.[38] O2O will communicate with ground stations in California and New Mexico.[38] The test device will send data to Earth with a downlink rate of up to 260 megabits per second.[39]

Trajectory overview

Artemis 2's trajectory can be divided into several key phases:[40]

Launch

Earth orbit and systems checkout

Translunar injection

Lunar flyby

Return trajectory

Re-entry and splashdown

Similar missions

In December 1968, the Apollo 8 mission, crewed by astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders, flew their command and service module beyond low Earth orbit and completed ten orbits of the Moon. Similar to the planned Artemis 2 mission in that it was crewed and did not land, it differed by being placed into orbit.[41] Apollo 13 (1970) was the only Apollo mission, and only crewed spaceflight to date, that flew past the Moon by a free-return trajectory.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Exploration Systems Development Status. Hill. Bill. March 2012. NASA Advisory Council. 2012-07-21. 11 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170211204753/https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/630149main_5-Hill_SLS. live.
  2. Artemis: brand book. Washington, D.C.. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 2019. NP-2019-07-2735-HQ . MISSION NAMING CONVENTION. While Apollo mission patches used numbers and Roman numerals throughout the program, Artemis mission names will use a Roman numeral convention..
  3. Web site: Foust . Jeff . NASA delays Artemis 2 and 3 missions . . 9 January 2024 . 10 January 2024.
  4. News: Foust . Jeff . March 25, 2015 . NASA Selects Boulder Option for Asteroid Redirect Mission . . 2015-03-27 . 7 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231007155621/https://spacenews.com/nasa-selects-boulder-option-for-asteroid-redirect-mission/ . live .
  5. News: Wall . Mike . April 10, 2013 . Inside NASA's Plan to Catch an Asteroid (Bruce Willis Not Required) . . April 10, 2013 . 1 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190801032556/https://www.space.com/20612-nasa-asteroid-capture-mission-explained.html . live .
  6. News: Foust . Jeff . June 14, 2017 . NASA closing out Asteroid Redirect Mission . . September 9, 2017 . 15 June 2017 . https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20170615143924/http://spacenews.com/nasa-closing-out-asteroid-redirect-mission/ . live .
  7. Web site: Hambleton . Kathryn . August 4, 2017 . NASA's First Flight With Crew Will Mark Important Step on Journey to Mars . 2017-12-08 . . 28 July 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200728214952/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-first-flight-with-crew-will-mark-important-step-on-journey-to-mars/ . live .
  8. Web site: Gebhardt . Chris . April 6, 2017 . NASA finally sets goals, missions for SLS – eyes multi-step plan to Mars . . 3 May 2017 . 21 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170821221210/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2017/04/nasa-goals-missions-sls-eyes-multi-step-mars/ . live .
  9. Web site: NASA FY 2019 Budget Overview . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20191204033859/https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/nasa_fy_2019_budget_overview.pdf . 4 December 2019 . 12 November 2021 . . 14 . Supports launch of the Power and Propulsion Element on a commercial launch vehicle as the first component of the LOP – Gateway.
  10. Web site: Berger . Eric . 2018-04-13 . NASA may fly crew into deep space sooner, but there's a price . 2023-04-06 . . en-us . Without the Exploration Upper Stage, NASA will not be able to fly, in a single flight, crew members and pieces of a deep space gateway it hopes to build near the Moon in the 2020s . 26 October 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191026101148/https://arstechnica.com/science/2018/04/nasa-likely-to-fly-first-deep-space-mission-on-less-powerful-rocket/ . live .
  11. Web site: Foust . Jeff . 2021-02-10 . NASA selects Falcon Heavy to launch first Gateway elements . 2022-09-04 . . en-US . 7 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231007155621/https://spacenews.com/nasa-selects-falcon-heavy-to-launch-first-gateway-elements/ . live .
  12. Web site: Richardson . Derek . Artemis 2 Space Launch System core stage nearly complete . SpaceFlight Insider . 23 March 2023 . 31 March 2023 . 31 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230331085930/https://www.spaceflightinsider.com/missions/artemis-program/artemis-2-space-launch-system-core-stage-nearly-complete/ . live .
  13. Web site: Clark . Stephen . Rocket Report: Iran launches satellite; Artemis II boosters get train ride . Ars Technica . September 29, 2023 . October 2, 2023 . 29 September 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230929111259/https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/09/rocket-report-iran-launches-satellite-artemis-ii-boosters-get-train-ride/ . live .
  14. Web site: Sloss . Philip . Artemis II Moon mission transitioning from planning to preparation . NASASpaceFlight.com . May 2, 2023 . June 6, 2023 . 2 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230502201704/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2023/05/artemis-ii-update/ . live .
  15. Web site: Mohon . Lee . Kevin . O'Brien . Space Launch System Engines: Launching Artemis Astronauts to the Moon . NASA . October 27, 2022 . June 26, 2023 . 26 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230626184639/https://www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/space-launch-system-engines-launching-artemis-astronauts-to-the-moon.html . live .
  16. Web site: Mohon . Lee . All Engines Added to NASA's Artemis II Moon Rocket Core Stage – Artemis . NASA Blogs . September 25, 2023 . September 25, 2023 . 25 September 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230925202615/https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2023/09/25/all-engines-added-to-nasas-artemis-ii-moon-rocket-core-stage/ . live .
  17. Web site: NASA Invites Media to Rollout Event for Artemis II Moon Rocket Stage - NASA . 2024-06-12 . en-US.
  18. Web site: Artemis II Core Stage on the Move . NASA . July 16, 2024 . July 26, 2024.
  19. Web site: Core Stage for NASA's Artemis II Mission Arrives at Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building . YouTube . . July 25, 2024 . July 26, 2024.
  20. Web site: 2024-06-25 . Six Adapters for Crewed Artemis Flights Tested, Built at NASA Marshall - NASA . 2024-06-25 . en-US.
  21. Web site: Foust . Jeff . March 9, 2023 . White House proposes $27.2 billion for NASA in 2024 . March 10, 2023 . . 7 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231007155621/https://spacenews.com/white-house-proposes-27-2-billion-for-nasa-in-2024/ . live .
  22. Web site: Pearlman . Robert Z. . 2023-04-03 . NASA Announces the Astronaut Crew for Artemis II Lunar Flyby . 2023-04-03 . . en . 3 April 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230403202218/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa-announces-the-astronaut-crew-for-artemis-ii-lunar-flyby/ . live .
  23. Web site: Koch . Christina . 11 April 2023 . You stood. All of you. You stood for taking on the challenge. For doing things that are hard. For exploring together. Of all the things we did last week to introduce Artemis II, this unexpected standing ovation was the moment I realized—You're all behind this. We are going. . 2023-04-13 . Twitter . en.
  24. Web site: Hill . Denise . 6 August 2019 . NASA's CubeSat Launch Initiative Opens Call for Payloads on Artemis 2 Mission . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806064039/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-cubesat-launch-initiative-opens-call-for-payloads-on-artemis-2-mission/ . 6 August 2019 . 6 August 2019 . . NASA is seeking proposals from U.S. small satellite developers to fly their CubeSat missions as secondary payloads aboard the SLS on the Artemis 2 mission under the agency's CubeSat Launch Initiative (CSLI).
  25. Web site: Klotz . Irene . 5 August 2019 . NASA Scouting Cubesats For Artemis-2 Mission . subscription . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806064025/https://aviationweek.com/awinspace/nasa-scouting-cubesats-artemis-2-mission . 6 August 2019 . 6 August 2019 . . NASA on August 5 released a solicitation for cubesats to ride along with the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule, with the caveat that selected projects fill strategic knowledge gaps for future lunar and Mars exploration.
  26. Web site: Foust . Jeff . 2019-08-08 . NASA seeking proposals for cubesats on second SLS launch . 2023-04-06 . . en-US . 15 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230515160759/https://spacenews.com/nasa-seeking-proposals-for-cubesats-on-second-sls-launch/ . live .
  27. Web site: Kurkowski . Seth . 2021-10-21 . Alabama students forced to pivot satellite design after being dropped from Artemis II . 2021-12-13 . Space Explored . en-US . 21 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211021150122/https://spaceexplored.com/2021/10/21/alabama-students-forced-to-pivot-satellite-design-after-being-dropped-from-artemis-ii/ . live .
  28. Web site: Hambleton . Kathryn . March 8, 2019 . NASA's Deep Space Exploration System is Coming Together . . 10 March 2019 . 1 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190801183030/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-deep-space-exploration-system-is-coming-together/ . live .
  29. Web site: Sloss . Philip . December 28, 2018 . Crewed Orion spacecraft passes critical design review . March 9, 2019 . . 16 February 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190216153635/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/12/crewed-orion-passes-critical-design-review/ . live .
  31. News: 22 November 2023 . Canadian Space Agency astronauts Jenni Gibbons and Joshua Kutryk to contribute to future missions, from the International Space Station to the Moon . . CNW Group . Longueuil, Quebec . 22 November 2023.
  32. News: Nassar . Hana Mae . Canadian astronauts receive new assignments . 22 November 2023 . CityNews . 22 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231122161422/https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2023/11/22/canadian-astronauts-gibbons-kutryk/ . 22 November 2023 . Vancouver . live.
  33. Web site: NASA announces Artemis 2 moon mission backup astronaut — Andre Douglas will support 2025 lunar liftoff . Elizabeth . Howell . July 3, 2024 . July 6, 2024.
  34. Web site: NASA Announces its Artemis II Backup Crew Member for Moon Mission - NASA . 2024-07-03 . en-US.
  35. News: Connolly . Amanda . December 16, 2020 . A Canadian astronaut will be on NASA's Artemis deep space lunar orbit as well the first non American to leave earth orbit . . December 16, 2020 . 16 December 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201216151622/https://globalnews.ca/news/7525408/nasa-artemis-program-canadian-astronaut-moon/ . live .
  36. Web site: Hambleton . Kathryn . 2018-08-27 . First Flight With Crew Important Step on Long-Term Return to Moon . 2023-04-06 . . 30 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180830041134/http://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-first-flight-with-crew-important-step-on-long-term-return-to-the-moon-missions-to . live .
  37. Web site: Sloss . Philip . 25 June 2020 . NASA studying practice rendezvous options for Artemis 2 Orion . . 27 June 2021 . 27 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210627132313/https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/06/nasa-rendezvous-options-artemis-2-orion/ . live .
  38. Web site: Murphy . Kendall . June 3, 2021 . Lasers Light the Way for Artemis II Moon Mission . 2023-04-06 . Exploration and Space Communications . . 3 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210603201309/https://esc.gsfc.nasa.gov/news/Lasers_Light_the_Way_for_Artemis_II_Moon_Mission . live .
  39. Web site: Schauer . Katherine . August 11, 2022 . What's Next: The Future of NASA's Laser Communications . . 3 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230303005655/https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/the-future-of-laser-communications/ . live .
  40. Web site: Artemis II . 2024-06-03 . www.esa.int . en.
  41. News: Wood . Charlie . 25 February 2017 . Apollo 8 redux: Why NASA may send humans around the Moon, again . The Christian Science Monitor . 4 March 2017 . 4 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170304125622/http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/Spacebound/2017/0225/Apollo-8-redux-Why-NASA-may-send-humans-around-the-moon-again . live .

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