NASA took its next giant leap to the moon — what comes next?
The mission's goal is to launch an Orion crew capsule on a trip around the moon, but it has been years in the making and far over budget.
Image: Google
TWS
Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the launch director, told her team after the successful liftoff, "We are all a part of something incredibly special. "The first Artemis launch and the first step toward sending our nation back to the moon"
Image: Google
TWS
The mission aims to unlock the secrets of the lunar poles. Astronauts will return to the lunar surface in 2016, the first such mission in 50 years. NASA's spacecraft blasted off at 1:47 a.m. ET on Wednesday.
Image: Google
TWS
The first astronauts will be announced soon on who will be the first to strap into the Orion crew capsule. The SLS rocket will carry four astronauts on a flight around the moon.
Image: Google
TWS
This will be a precursor to a lunar landing, where four more astronauts will fly to the moon, with two actually stepping onto the lunar surface.
Image: Google
TWS
Canada will send a robotic arm to the International Space Station as part of the Artemis program. The Artemis program is an international collaboration, with many nations participating.
Image: Google
TWS
Trump's administration declared that it wanted to advance NASA's plans for the moon when it first took office. To that end, it was decided that "the first woman and the next man" to set foot on the moon would be a part of the Artemis III crew.
Image: Google
TWS
The current astronaut corps at NASA is large and diverse, and the newest class, chosen in 2021, is expected to finish training before any of these missions take off.
Image: Google
TWS
Eventually, whoever is chosen will emerge from a SpaceX Starship. The commercial spaceflight corporation has been tasked by NASA with developing a human landing system variant of its enormous Starship rocket.
Image: Google
TWS
In accordance with the agreement, the corporation will conduct a number of landing trials, including one without crew members prior to Artemis III.
Image: Google
TWS
In accordance with the agreement, the corporation will conduct a number of landing trials, including one without crew members prior to Artemis III.