NASA first reached the moon through its Apollo 11 lunar mission in 1969. It has been five decades since the last moon landing occurred.
This time, through Artemis, NASA will attempt to build a stronger human presence on the lunar surface.
Artemis the Greek Goddess
The Artemis program is the space mission taking humanity back to the moon again. The aim of this mission is not just to reach the moon but also to build a long-term presence on and around the lunar surface.
NASA decided to name this mission Artemis, as she is known to be the goddess of the moon in Greek mythology. Aside from that, Artemis is also the twin sister of Apollo.
As we can recall back in history, NASA's mission name to the moon in the previous decade was popularly known as Apollo. This is a notable connection to the mission that launched humans to the Moon for the first time 50 years ago.
NASA and SpaceX
The lunar mission Artemis will work closely with commercial and private institutions to collaborate on the moon landing and successfully build a long-term presence on the moon.
Elon Musk's aerospace company, SpaceX, is one of the companies with which they will be closely collaborating.
According to Space, NASA selected SpaceX to build the first crewed lunar lander for the agency's Artemis program in April 2021.
As part of the Artemis program, NASA and SpaceX will work together to land astronauts on and around the moon by the middle of the 2020s. By the end of that decade, humans will have set up a permanent presence on and around the moon.
The SpaceX CEO has always envisioned humankind building a base on Mars. With that, Elon Musk believes that a moon landing will be possible in this decade.
Lunar Gateway
The Lunar Gateway is a small space station that is located above the Moon. It's meant to be a flexible platform for missions to the Moon and other places in space.
As reported by Royal Museums Greenwich, the Lunar Gateway, in contrast to the International Space Station (ISS), will not be continuously manned but instead serve as a temporary base where astronauts can dwell and conduct research for brief periods of time. It will also be able to carry on scientific study even when human lunar flights are not taking place.
The Orion module will connect with the Space Station's Gateway, and the astronauts will then transfer to the Lunar Landing Module from there.
Space Launch System
NASA planned and built the Space Launch System for the Artemis program in order to be able to safely launch astronauts as well as extremely massive cargo into orbit.
It is made up of various sections, each of which performs a distinct role from the others. Cargo is kept in a space under the Orion spacecraft, and the exploration upper stage is below it. It has a large core stage with four RS-25 engines and two extended solid rocket boosters that are mounted on the side of the SLS rocket.
The Space Launch System (SLS) is the most powerful and largest space rocket ever built.
When all of the components of the SLS space rocket are combined, it becomes the most powerful rocket in the world. NASA's latest SLS rocket outperforms the legendary Saturn V in terms of performance.
Orion Spacecraft
Orion is the name of the crewed spaceship component of the SLS that will be used for the moon landing. As one of the most easily recognized constellations in the sky, Orion is also known as Artemis' hunting companion in classical mythology. Orion is also known as the Hunter.
Orion, which is a component of the SLS rocket, is a spacecraft. The Orion crew module has three parts: the heat shield, the crew module, and the docking port. Each of them is unique, but they all work together.
Orion is a three-part spacecraft designed for deep space exploration by humans. Up to four astronauts will be able to live and work in the Orion crew module during the duration of the mission.
Life support systems, oxygen systems, and the module's own engine and fuel reserves are all part of the service module's abilities.
When the Orion spacecraft goes into space, the Launch Abort System is a part of it that has its own engines and can get the crew module back to Earth if something goes wrong during launch.
NASA Artemis I
It was previously known as Exploration Mission 1, and it is an uncrewed mission that is designed to conduct extensive testing of the Space Launch System (SLS) and the Orion module.
The Space Launch System (SLS) will launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and once in space, the Orion module will detach and travel to the Moon.
During its journey around the Moon, it will travel 62 miles above the lunar surface before continuing on for another 40,000 miles beyond the Moon. It will splash down in the Pacific Ocean near California after a journey that will take 20 to 25 days, depending on the weather.
Before launching Artemis I, NASA will test the SLS and the Orion spacecraft for a wet dress rehearsal. The wet dress rehearsal is the final test of the engineers to assure themselves that their operations are working correctly and safely.
NASA Artemis II
Humans will travel further into space than they have ever gone before on this historic crewed spaceflight for the Artemis Program.
After being launched into space by the SLS rocket, the four-person crew will fly the Orion module 8889 kilometers beyond the Moon, complete a flyby of the Moon, and return to Earth in the Orion module. The mission is expected to last between eight and ten days and will gather valuable flight test information.
NASA Artemis III
According to NASA, the first Moon landing is expected to take place on the third mission to the Moon.
Following the success of the Artemis 2 mission, four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft will dock with the Lunar Gateway and remain in space for 30 days before returning to Earth. After that, the human landing system will transport two astronauts to the Moon's South Pole, a region that has never been visited by humans before.
A week on the Moon's surface is expected to be spent by the astronauts exploring and conducting a variety of scientific studies, including sampling water ice, which was discovered on the Moon for the first time in 1971.
From Moon to Mars
Continuing our exploration of the lunar surface will allow us to learn more about our universe, gain access to lunar resources, and prepare for long-term space travel to Mars. The new investigations and technological experiments that are currently being carried out are geared toward preparing us for a return to the Moon.
As we prepare to travel to Mars, living on the Moon will demonstrate humans' deep space capabilities to future generations. NASA believes that anything we can do on Mars must first be done on the Moon.
Women in Space
Artemis will also feature the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface. The trip to the Moon is estimated to be a 3-day journey, 240,000 miles away from Earth.
Related Article: Life on Mars? NASA Discovers Abundant Water Source In The Red Planet
