Artemis program, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Washington, D.C., USA

The Orion spacecraft is one of the major components of NASA’s Artemis program, which will return humans to the Moon by 2024 in preparation for future missions to Mars. Astronaut Randy Bresnik explains the role of Orion, in conjunction with the Space Launch System, Gateway lunar outpost and new lunar lander, in carrying a new generation of astronauts to the surface of the Moon and then safely home again to Earth.

Click to expand...

International partnerships for the Moon and Mars, an update on that historic all-woman spacewalk, and a milestone for the James Webb Space Telescope … a few of the stories to tell you about –- This Week at NASA!

Click to expand...

Exploration Ground Systems accomplished many milestones in 2019 on the way to Artemis I. From moving the mobile launcher out to Launch Pad 39B for testing and validation, to conducting launch countdown simulations in Firing Room 1, we are going! Artemis I will be the first test of the Space Launch System and Orion capsule on a journey around the Moon.

Click to expand...

The first class of astronauts in the Artemis Generation have graduated after two years of astronaut training. These 13 men and women from both the U.S. and Canada are now ready to travel to the International Space Station, the Moon and beyond.

Click to expand...

NASA has selected three American companies – Blue Origin, Dynetics and SpaceX – to design and develop human landing systems for the Artemis program. With these awards, NASA is on track to land the next astronauts on the lunar surface by 2024, and establish sustainable human exploration of the Moon by the end of the decade.

Click to expand...

At NASA, we have always answered the innate call to explore and our achievements have changed the course of history. Now, we’re returning to the Moon under the Artemis program to learn to live and work on another world for the benefit of humanity.

NASA has selected an initial team of astronauts – the Artemis Team – to help pave the way for our next human missions on and around the Moon. The Artemis program includes sending the first woman and next man to walk on the lunar surface. Let's meet the team!

Click to expand...

The Vice President introduces the Artemis team of astronauts, progress on hardware for upcoming Artemis missions, and the science priorities for our next human mission on the Moon … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!

Click to expand...

The Orion spacecraft with European Service Module will fly farther from Earth than any human-rated vehicle has ever flown before. This video gives an overview of the first mission – without astronauts – for Artemis, focussing on ESA’s European Service Module that powers the spacecraft.

The spacecraft will perform a flyby of the Moon, using lunar gravity to gain speed and propel itself 70 000 km beyond the Moon, almost half a million km from Earth – further than any human has ever travelled.

On its return journey, Orion will do another flyby of the Moon before heading back to Earth.
The total trip will take around 20 days, ending with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean without the European Service Module – it separates and burns up harmlessly in the atmosphere.

The second Artemis mission will have a similar flight plan but with astronauts. The third Artemis mission will see astronauts taken to the lunar surface.

The European Service Module is ESA’s contribution to NASA’s Orion spacecraft that will send astronauts to the Moon and beyond. It provides electricity, water, oxygen and nitrogen as well as keeping the spacecraft at the right temperature and on course.

The European Service Module has 33 thrusters, 11 km of electrical wiring, four propellant and two pressure tanks that all work together to supply propulsion and everything needed to keep astronauts alive far from Earth – there is no room for error.

Click to expand...

We are targeting 3:45 p.m. EDT on Thursday, March 18 for the second hot fire test of the core stage for the Space Launch System rocket at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

Engineers will power up all the core stage systems, load more than 700,000 gallons of supercold propellant into the tanks, and fire the rocket’s four RS-25 engines at the same time to simulate the stage’s operation during the launch of our first Artemis mission to the Moon.

Click to expand...

NASA test-fired the core stage engines of the Space Launch System rocket on March 18, 2021 at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. The test lasted 499 seconds.

Click to expand...

NASA is getting ready to send astronauts to explore more of the Moon as part of the Artemis program, and the agency has selected SpaceX to continue development of the first commercial human lander that will safely carry the next two American astronauts to the lunar surface.

The agency’s powerful Space Launch System rocket will launch four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft for their multi-day journey to lunar orbit. There, two crew members will transfer to the SpaceX human landing system (HLS) for the final leg of their journey to the surface of the Moon. After approximately a week exploring the surface, they will board the lander for their short trip back to orbit where they will return to Orion and their colleagues before heading back to Earth.

Click to expand...

The Artemis I mission to the Moon presented by Mike Sarafin, Artemis I mission manager.
Artemis I is currently scheduled for launch on 29 August 2022, at 12:33 UTC (08:33 EDT).

Click to expand...