We’re here outside the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
I’m Joshua Santora, and today I’m going to be your tour guide, taking you behind the
scenes of the Exploration Ground Systems Program.
They’re responsible for all the infrastructure to build, launch and recover the world’s
most powerful rocket, the Space Launch System, or SLS, and the Orion crew capsule.
Those three major elements make up the Artemis program, which is our mission and our drive
to return to the moon and go farther beyond to Mars and even world’s unknown.
Our tour stops today include an underway recovery test, where you’ll get a firsthand look
at what it’s like to be on a NAVY ship trying to pull a spaceship out of the Pacific Ocean.
Be sure to enjoy the view and look around as we go, and let’s get going.
Goal one was to build.
This high bay was previously used by the shuttle program and had to be completely overhauled
with brand new platforms custom-made for the Space Launch System, or SLS.
There are 10 levels of platforms, and they have been designed in a modular fashion where
the platform inserts can change to accommodate different rockets or future configurations
of SLS.
The distance the platforms extend and retract can change, just like kitchen drawers, and
even the vertical location of each platform in the High Bay can change.
These platforms allow up-close access to do stacking and checkout of the vehicle before
rolling out to the launch pad.
This high bay represents one of many facilities that had to be built or modified to be ready
for future vehicles.
We’ve also had to build incredible pieces of software to perform necessary functions
and provide launch controllers the data they need.
As you can see, this 510-foot-tall high bay is just one example of how massive the challenge
has been for us.
The second major function of EGS is to launch.
Launch is the culmination of years of intense labor to actually get the hardware into space.
It’s also the culmination of a two-day, around-the-clock procedure to prepare, power,
and fuel the vehicle for flight.
Right now, the teams around the room are working together to walk through full simulations
of the countdown procedure.
It’s a procedure that takes up books that fill entire shelves.
Everything is choreographed and meticulously planned.
The teams here are even simulating failures and unexpected situations to ensure they’re
ready to tackle any challenge that arises on the journey to liftoff.
Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the first female launch director, is leading the entire team
and preparing them for Artemis launches.
Her task is no small one.
She has to know that her people are ready not only to launch, but ready to stop a launch
if circumstances arise that demand caution.
It’s not an easy thing to be the one who says, “We can’t launch today.”
The final phase of the responsibility of EGS is to recover.
Once SLS leaves Earth, EGS hands the reins over to the Johnson Space Center and Mission
Control in Houston.
But as soon as Orion returns to Earth, EGS resumes control.
Once Orion touches down gently in the Pacific Ocean, it will be the job of teams on a ship
just like this to get to the capsule quickly, secure it, and get the astronauts out safely.
Then they have to pull Orion into the well deck of a Navy landing platform dock ship,
just like what you see here now.
The partnership that NASA has formed with the U.S. Navy is proving to be invaluable,
as they have provided all the necessary support to ensure mission success.
They have provided the help of several vehicles, each outfitted with an enormous well decks
to be able to grapple Orion and pull her inside to safety.
That might sound like it’s pretty easy, but this is the ocean, which can be a very
unforgiving place.
These teams have spent years using mockups, like this one, to practice understanding how
Orion will move in the ocean and what to expect.
There is also a wave-monitoring system onboard to chart the best course for minimal energy
in the well deck—that is to say… we want as few waves as possible.
They practice for when conditions are ideal, and they practice for when things go wrong.
The mission isn’t over until everyone is home safely.
We hope that you will continue to track our progress as we work towards the first woman
and next man to walk on the moon.
From NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for Exploration Ground Systems, that’s all we have time
for today.
We build, launch and recover for the next evolution in humanity’s deep-space exploration.
And remember, even the sky isn’t the limit.