Artemis Project 1, the new mission to return to the moon.
Project Artemis is a NASA-powered space program that aims to bring the next generation of men
and women to the Moon. Its primary mission is to establish the first lunar base with water,
fuel, food, and labor, where there can be a permanent human settlement like
on the International Space Station (ISS) and which will eventually become a stop for the
future human-crewed missions to the planet Mars. Are they ready for the new space age? Let's go!
WHAT IS THE ARTEMIS PROJECT? The Artemis project is divided into three stages:
Artemis 1: Which will consist of an uncrewed flight test of the Space Launch System (SLS)
and the Orion spacecraft around the Moon, where the next generation of spacecraft that
will take humans to the Moon and Mars will be tested, as well as new technologies that
will provide life support for extended stays in space. After many tests and some hurdles,
NASA finally set the launch date for the Artemis 1 mission in February 2022.
Artemis 2: This stage will take four astronauts to the low orbit of the Moon inside the Orion
spacecraft, with help The provisional cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) astronauts will orbit the
Moon for several to study the possible landing zones, then another series of missions will
follow to leave resources on the Moon that will serve for astronauts who make the moon landing.
Among these resources is a non-pressure rover that will help them make long-distance trips,
tools to collect samples of dust and lunar rocks, and the most critical payload, the GATEWAY,
a multi-purpose outpost in orbit around the Moon that provides essential support for the long-term
human return to the lunar surface which will be like a miniature International Space Station
(ISS) around the Moon. the Moon. (Start date is subject to Artemis 1)
Artemis 3: It will be the first flight test with a crew of 4 astronauts of the Space Launch
System (SLS) and the Orion spacecraft around the Moon. after this, two other expeditions will be
carried out for the verification and validation of navigation systems and later in mission four the
Orion spacecraft and a crew of four will travel once again to the Moon, this time to make history
with the first woman and the next man to walk on its lunar surface, thus beginning with the new
space age. The third stage will seek a constant permanence of people on the Moon responsible for
building the Gateway will be an outpost in orbit around the Moon, like an ISS, but on the Moon.
This will serve as a multi-purpose outpost that provides essential support for the long-term human
return to the lunar surface. Its primary mission is to stop deep space exploration beyond the Moon,
starting with the first human-crewed missions to Mars. (Start date is subject to Artemis 2)
In this series of videos, we will talk in detail about the three stages of the project, but today
we will focus on Artemis 1. WHY ARTEMIS?
The Artemis project bases its name on the Greek goddess of the Moon Artemis,
sister of the god Apollo, the name given to the lunar missions that took the first
men to the Moon; hence this project is called "sister of the Apollo."
However, the Artemis project will have much more indefinite and important objectives for humanity.
While the Apollo program had as its primary mission to place the first humans on the lunar
surface, in the governmental background, this mission had, above all, a political purpose.
Back then, the world was still closing the scars of the Second World War, and nations competed
fiercely to prove who had the best weaponry and the most advanced technology; for that reason,
the FormerSoviet Union and the United States faced each other in what is now known as "The space
race" which consisted of demonstrating which of the two nations had the most advanced technology.
For some years, the Soviet Union seemed to have all the advantage as it was the first to place an
artificial satellite in orbit (Sputnik 1), the first transcontinental rocket (the-7) capable
of attacking any nation in the world at any time, and the first human being in space, Juri Gagarin.
Because of this, former U.S. President John F. Kenedy released the declaration that the U.S.
would place the first human being on the surface of the Moon in the late 60th, and in one way or
another, the U.S. achieved it not once but six times with the triple missionsApollo11,
12, 14, 15, 16 and 17. Thus declaring themselves as undisputed winners of the space race.
While the Apollo missions had defined goals such as collecting the most lunar samples and bringing
them to Earth, what prompted or encouraged the government to perform the missions was
mainly the fear that the Soviet Union would win the space race.
That is, everything had a more political than scientific purpose.
The Artemis project starts from a vision based on science and commerce, not on the political,
this one of the main focuses will be scientific research that seeks to rekindle the passion
for discovery and trade with the materials that we can extract from the Moon and that
is very scarce on Earth, the project Artemis to start with the early stages of space mining.
This time it will not only go to NASA but it is planned to go with several commercial partners
that will provide economic resources and boost development, discoveries, jobs on the Moon and
of course, the need to have a permanent settlement on the natural satellite that allows the resupply
of supplies and personnel. WHY THE MOON?
It's been more than 50 years since the first humans set foot on the Moon, and since then,
we've learned a lot of things, technologies have improved, cars are more powerful,
and systems have been miniaturized enough to carry entire computers in the palm of our hands.
We currently know that there is water ice at the poles of the Moon.
Water is the essential element of humanity, serves as fuel, helps us grow food,
and can be mixed with other less abundant chemicals to create functional materials.
Other precious minerals are deposited in lunar rocks such as ilmenite, anorthite,
olivine, gabbro-type rocks, basalts rich in alumina, and basaltic rocks
rich in potassium as rare Earth containing phosphorus, aluminum, iron, and titanium.
All these materials are currently in high demand for digital technologies
such as computer circuits or mobile phone chips.
And it is estimated that this demand will only increase, so it will be essential to
find the means to extract it from the soil and take advantage of it on the Earth.
MISSION STAGES Artemis 1 will be carried out by a spacecraft
sectioned into three main stages: The Space Launch System (SLS), The Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
(ICPS), and the Orion Space Capsule; let's see what function each one will fulfill.
Stage 1: Space Launch System (SLS) NASA's SLS rocket will be tasked with carrying
the Orion spacecraft into low Earth orbit. The first flight test of the SLS will be launched
from Launch Complex 39B at NASA's modernized spaceport at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The SLS will feature a configuration for a lift capacity of 70 metric tons and will carry an
uncrewed Orion spacecraft beyond low-Earth orbit to test the performance of the integrated system.
As the SLS was upgraded and improved with each launch,
it is estimated to provide an unprecedented lifting capacity of 130 metric tons (143 tons),
more than the Saturn V could carry at its peak. This will allow us to
plan missions even further into our solar system and make interplanetary trips. (4)
Stage 2: The Provisional Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS)
The ICPS will be placed in the middle of the SLS and the Orion capsule.
The ICPS is a liquid oxygen/liquid hydrogen-based propulsion system
whose sole function is to supply astronauts with fuel and supplies during long-duration missions.
On the First Orion Capsule Test Mission, dubbed "Exploration Mission-1," ICPS will
give Orion a big boost needed to fly past the Moon before the spacecraft returns to Earth.
For subsequent long-duration missions in deep space,
this intermediate stage will be replaced by a more powerful upper Etapa in SLS needed to take crews
and their spacecraft farther than ever before, even to an asteroid and ultimately to Mars. (5)
Stage 3: Orion Crew Module (CM) The crew module is the only part
of the ship that will return to Earth and take humans further than ever. The CM will
serve as the exploration vehicle that will take the Artemis project crew into space
and even to the Moon, provide emergency abortion capability,
sustain the team during space travel, and provide safe re-entry from incredible space return speeds.
This spacecraft uses the same basic configuration as the service and command module
used at the time by the Apollo spacecraft (CSM)
that took the first astronauts to the Moon, but with a larger diameter,
an updated thermal protection system, and several other moderate technologies such as touch screens,
radiation monitoring systems and air quality. Water recycling and reuse system, among others.
All this is achieved because, unlike CSM modules, The Orion CM module works
with solar energy instead of fuel, allowing longer trips and greater energy capacity.
For this reason, the Orion CM will be the first spacecraft designed for humans,
capable of supporting long-duration missions
in deep space with life support of up to 21 days of active crew time.
Another essential feature that the Orion crew module will have is a new parachute
system combined with retrorockets and airbags for capsule recovery from your era. This will
eliminate the costs of using a fleet of ships as on Project Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo flights.
However, it will maintain its landing capability in case of
any emergency. (6) THE MISSION
Although stage 1 of the Artemis project does not contemplate a human-crewed mission, its success is
vital. Based on this, the following stages, Artemis 2 and Artemis 3, will be developed.
Suppose all goes well in February 2022 from Launch Complex 39B at NASA's modernized spaceport
at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In that case, the SLS will be launched with a critical payload,
the ICPS, and the Orion spacecraft. The SLS will take both into Earth orbit.
Once it has reached orbit, the SLS missions will have ended and return to the surface.
In space, the ICPS will complete an orbit around the Earth to gain momentum
with the help of the planet's gravitational assistance and depart
on a 4-day journey to the Moon with the CM module of the Orion spacecraft on top.
During the trip, the Orion spacecraft will deploy 13 "CubeSat" satellites
that will perform various experiments and measurements in the interplanetary medium,
such as radiation, the spacecraft's temperature, radiation absorption,
etc., effects of radioactivity on living beings, among many others.
Once on the Moon, the ICPS will perform several orbits around the natural satellite
and, before returning to Earth, will propel the Orion spacecraft into a distant retrograde
orbit around the Moon, moving more than 60,000 km away from the Moon, becoming
the spacecraft created for human transport that has reached the farthest in history.
Once the long-distance flight is complete, the ICPS will return the Orion spacecraft to Earth,
and when it is close to orbit, it will be decoupled so that the Orion spacecraft
can safely re-enter the Earth's atmosphere.
Finally, the Orion spacecraft will use the parachute and retro-thrusters systems to land
gently on the ground, ready for the next mission, having the ability to be reused up to 10 times.
If all goes well, with the data being collected, NASA will begin preparations
for the Artemis 2 mission that will take the next generation of humans to the Moon.
These missions together will mark a before and after in the history of humanity.
They will be the beginning of an era in which living on the Moon will no longer be a dream,
and it will be a reality.
If you are interested in knowing what this second stage of the Artemis mission will consist of,
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