Questions tagged [artemis-program]
NASA's manned lunar program authorized by Space Policy Directive 1 in December 2017 with the goal of landing the first woman and the next man on the Moon and the first person on the Moon's far side (on the South Pole) as well as establishing a permanent base on the Moon.
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Why does Artemis I need a launch window?
I know that a rocket needs to launch at the right time in order to be able to reach a specific point in orbit (e.g. the ISS). This launch window is quite small (correct?).
But why does Artemis I ...
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What are the Advantages of having a Double-pane Space Helmet?
In the following image of Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU) or Artemis Generation Space Suit, it can be seen the helmet contains double-pane of glass (inside the black rectangle)
What ...
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What is an "octet" in the context of NASA's LunaNET Interoperability Standard? ("internet on the Moon")
The PDF Draft LunaNet Interoperability Specification, LN-IS Baseline V001 September 2, 2021 (found at https://esc.gsfc.nasa.gov/projects/TEMPO?tab=lunanet) has found its way to the popular press.
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Why isn't the Delta IV Heavy ever used for crewed spaceflight?
In 2014 the Orion spacecraft was launched on top of the Delta IV Heavy for the first time. Why do they build another rocket, the SLS, instead of launching the Orion on the Delta also with humans on ...
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What is the difference between the solid fuel Boosters of the Shuttle and Artemis?
The Shuttle boosters had 4 segments and Artemis has 5. What are the differences in total mass, thrust and burn time? Is the thrust profile (thrust over time) the same?
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How can Artemis 1 take so much longer for Earth-Lunar transit than the Apollo missions did?
The Artemis I mission will take 8-14 days to get from Earth to the Moon. Apollo 11 only took 3 days. Similarly the return will be 9-19 days for Artemis I and just over 2 days for Apollo 11.
Why is the ...
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Why does Starship need to transfer crew to/from Orion to land humans on the moon?
In the new NASA Artemis program, Starship needs to transfer the crew to/from Orion.
Why is this even needed?
I thought that the Starship design allows it to travel directly from Earth to the Moon ...
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Cause for Artemis Spacecraft bumpy surface
I watched NASA's YT transmission (TL code 04:06:30) of the launch and I noticed a bumpy surface on the middle section while it deployed the Solar arrays and shortly before separation of the mid-...
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Are the Artemis 1 secondary payloads still viable?
Artemis 1 carries ten cubesats as secondary payloads. One of the concerns prior to the last rollback, in September, was that the batteries were almost out of charge and that there was no way to ...
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Why not crash the ICPS into the Moon?
The Wikipedia article on Artemis 1 says that an ICPS disposal burn was performed after spacecraft separation. This was intended to send the ICPS into heliocentric orbit after passing the Moon. Why ...
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What happens to the propellant in a wet dress rehearsal?
The Artemis 1 mission is going to do a wet dress rehearsal where the rocket will be filled with propellant and the launch sequence will continue until almost the last second. The launch sequence will ...
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How difficult is it to convert a hypergolic based Moon human lander to a cryogenic one?
Recently a study performed by Aerojet Rocketdyne indicated that in order to achieve a 2024 landing using storable propellants will be required. Given that NASA is looking to reduce program risk in any ...
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When cis-lunar Artemis astronauts and folks on Earth communicate via audio (e.g. EVAs) will they still step on each other's words like during Apollo?
It's been fifty years since we've heard astronauts and ground folks talk over each other ("step on each other" in 1970's CB radio parlance). Sitting on the floor a few feet away from our ...
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Space Suit for Artemis, why two contracts instead of only one?
NASA has selected two companies to make spacesuits for its Artemis moon program and future International Space Station (ISS) missions.
Teams led by Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace (with ILC Dover ...
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Is there a certain plan on how Houston will talk with the Artemis 3 crew?
Artemis 3 is going to land on the Moon's south pole, on the far side of the Moon. Therefore, before launching the crew to the Moon, NASA must put (a) communication satellite(s) either into lunar orbit ...
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Reason/meaning of dot/dash pattern in Orion capsule
On the interior pictures of the Orion capsule there is a distinct pattern visible above the Callisto tech demo console:
Source: NASA, highlight by me
What is the reason/meaning of this pattern?
My ...
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What is the cabling on the exterior of the SLS solid rocket boosters that wasn't on the shuttle solid rocket boosters?
I noticed what appears to be foamed-over cabling running roughly parallel to the systems tunnel on the exterior of the SLS Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs). The cabling appears to run all the way from the ...
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How many stages (approximately) will likely be used to get NASA astronauts to the Moon's south pole and safely back to Earth?
UPDATE: See Space News' NASA tweaks call for lunar lander concepts which links to:
FedBizOpps: Human Landing System - Integrated Lander
NASA.gov: NextSTEP H: Human Landing System - Integrated Lander; ...
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What will the live video and audio quality be like when astronauts next set foot on the moon?
What will the live video and audio quality be like when we watch an Artemis crewmember set foot on the moon?
The quality of the original Apollo footage from the 1960's is terrible by today's standards....
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Orion re-entry velocity: Why is it higher than Apollo?
Title says it all. I am puzzled why Orion will be traveling faster than Apollo.
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What is the inclination limit for Artemis landings?
Inspired by Did any of the Apollo lunar modules land significantly off level? I'd like to know if there is an inclination limit for the Artemis Human Landing System?
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Why will Artemis II not orbit the Moon?
The Artemis II mission will loiter in an elliptical, high-Earth orbit before the Orion uses its own propulsion to complete the trans lunar injection (tli), thus using the fuel it might’ve otherwise ...
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Which RS-25s are on the Artemis 1 rocket?
The SLS core to be used for the Artemis 1 flight will use four RS-25 engines. These reusable engines were used on the Space Shuttle Orbiter previously.
Is there a listing of which SSMEs are planned ...
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How can SLS be ready to carry humans after just a single test flight?
Artemis I is the maiden flight of the SLS, and the very next SLS mission, Artemis II, is planned to already carry a human crew.
I don't understand how this is possible. How can a hyper-complex rocket, ...
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How does the Orion communicate with Earth?
Early renders of the Orion spacecraft show a deployed high-gain antenna dish like on the Apollo CSM. The Orion that actually materialised has no such thing. What does it use instead?
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How can an Astronaut survive for six days inside a Spacesuit?
In the video #AskNASA | What are the Next Generation Spacesuits?, spacesuit engineer Dustin Gohmert says the following about the Orion Crew Survival Suit (Orange Spacesuit):
This suit is also ...
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Demonstrative examples of NASA "programs that go too long, that cost too much... end up getting cast out later"?
Spaceflight Now's NASA lays out $28 billion plan to return astronauts to the moon in 2024 quotes NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, and includes the following:
Bridenstine acknowledged the challenge ...
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Are Artemis missions launched into a free return trajectory like the Apollo program?
The Apollo program spacecrafts were put on a free return trajectory after during the TLI maneuver.
Does Artemis mission also put crafts on a free return trajectory?
If no, what are the redundancy ...
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What are we going to do on the moon?
I understand that (after the early stage), we will assemble a gateway and have starship flights to the moon.
But I am not sure if we know what will we be carrying to the moon?
A 100-ton payload, of ...
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Does the Artemis III mission have a backup plan if the astronauts are unable to ascend from the Moon?
For the unlikely scenario where the Artemis III astronauts having landed on the Moon press the ascent button and nothing happens, will NASA have a backup or rescue contingency plan?
If so, what ...
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Will the Artemis I SLS do a static fire on the pad following rollout?
Following the rollout for the Artemis I wet dress rehearsal, or the rollout for launch, will the core stage perform a static fire on the pad?
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SLS SRB sound suppression system
The Shuttle, in addition to the water deluge system, used a series of red nylon bags filled with water at the base of each SRB for additional sound suppression. Does the SLS, whose boosters produce ~...
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Will Artemis 2 and/or subsequent Artemis moon flights be able to break humanity's Earth distance record?
How high above the Moon are Artemis' Orion spacecraft going to orbit, in comparison to the Apollo spacecraft? Will their flights surpass or be able to surpass humanity's current record of the farthest ...
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Are L1 and L2 orbital periods always half the orbital period of the massive bodies?
Are L1 and L2 libration point orbital periods always half the orbital period of the massive bodies?
The halo orbital period of JWST is a half a year. https://webb.nasa.gov/content/about/orbit.html
The ...
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Are deep-space EVAs part of the Artemis plan?
During Apollos 15, 16, and 17, the first deep-space EVAs were performed to retrieve film canisters from the exterior of the vehicle while in translunar space on the way home, producing what is, ...
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Will the Orion glass cockpit with CCD be tested with prospective astronauts on the ground during the upcoming Artemis 1 test flight ? If not, why?
Image credit: DesignNews article: "Exclusive: A Closer Look at NASA's Orion Glass Cockpit"
Will there be video cameras onboard the Orion spacecraft that registrate the glass cockpit displays ...
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What will be the pressure inside the Orion spacecraft?
On wikipedia, I believe that it will be the same as at sea level (101 kPa), or reduced (55 - 70 kPa). But what pressure will be normal in the cabin? What will the pressure be there during the flight?
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Why does the ICPS carry extra hydrogen?
The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS) of the Space Launch System is essentially the Delta Cryogenic Second Stage (DCSS) lifted from the Delta IV rocket. However, among other minor changes, the ...
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What is the differences in between SLS Block I and SLS Block 2?
Other than mass to orbit how will the SLS Block 1 differ from SLS Block 2?
What differences in construction will be made ?
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Media coverage of Artemis vs Apollo
I remember the launch of Apollo 7 - the first crewed flight of the Apollo spacecraft. I was in grade school; we all gathered in the gym/auditorium to watch it on live TV. I was about 9 in 1967, and ...
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Will or could real-time HDTV broadcasts be possible from the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis I spaceflight around the Moon?
Earhrise, image taken from Apollo 8 by William Anders, Credits: NASA
Starting with Apollo 8, there where 4 (!) crewed missions to the Moon in one year time !
(Apollo 8, 10,11 and 12)
Will or could ...
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What would have happened if lightning struck the Orion LES instead of the umbilical tower?
Yesterday, a lightning struck the SLS' umbilical tower during a scrubbed wet dress rehearsal.
Is it normal for a lightning to strike the umbilical tower instead of the 3 lightning arresters around the ...
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Why is the re-entry velocity of Orion almost the same as the escape velocity?
I have read that the predicted re-entry speed on the Artemis I mission for the Orion spacecraft into the Earth's atmosphere is about 24,500 mph or 10.9 km/s. Why is it almost the same as Earth's ...
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Will NASA put astronauts into a polar lunar orbit? If so, how?
The NASA news item New Space Policy Directive Calls for Human Expansion Across Solar System says:
New Space Policy Directive Calls for Human Expansion Across Solar System
and the administration is ...
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Besides landing several folks on the Moon and returning them safely to the Earth what criteria did Human Landing System proposals to NASA meet?
The new NASA video NASA 2021: Let's Go to the Moon shows artwork for three very different spacecraft sitting on the lunar surface with the overlain caption
Selecting A Human Landing System
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Which radio communication protocol will Artemis voice communications likely use?
For want of a better term, is it possible crews will use 'non-digitally modulated' radio to communicate with earth?
Apollo missions had very effective communication, with a ~2.5 second 'round trip' ...
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From where will the planned Artemis I launch be visible?
The latest planned Artemis I launch window is 69 minutes long, opening 2022-11-14T00:07:00−05:00, which if used will lead to a launch in complete darkness. I'm interested in the possibility of ...
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Why is the Orion spacecraft so big?
The Orion spacecraft which is to be used for the Artemis missions will be rated for 6 astronauts. Why so many? Given the "political" assignment is to put "a woman and another man to the ...
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Why was the Orion spacecraft slower after the return powered flyby burn?
I'm closely following NASA's Artemis 1 mission and all the broadcasts. This week the return powered flyby burn took place, the Orion spacecraft flew around the moon and started its way back home.
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Why doesn't NASA just again build the Altair LM or a modified Apollo LM for the Artemis project?
The Altair lunar module was part of the wonderful Constellation program cancelled in 2010; just the Orion spacecraft has been retained which is to deliver a crew into lunar orbit. The new carrier ...
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