Artemis 2 Moon Mission to launch on April 1

RambleTamble

RambleTamble

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The Artemis 2 mission is the first crewed flight of NASA's Artemis program, scheduled to launch on April 1, 2026. This historic 10-day mission will send four astronauts around the Moon and back to Earth, marking the first time humans have ventured beyond low Earth orbit since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

Artemis_2_map_march_2023.jpg

Principal Rocket Manufacturers
  • Boeing: Built the 65-meter (212-foot) Core Stage, which serves as the rocket's backbone and houses the flight computers and propellant tanks.
  • Northrop Grumman: Manufactured the Twin Solid Rocket Boosters, which provide over 75% of the initial thrust at liftoff. They also built the Abort Motor and Attitude Control Motor for the Orion spacecraft's Launch Abort System (LAS).
  • Aerojet Rocketdyne (an L3Harris Technologies Company): Provided the four RS-25 main engines at the base of the core stage, which were refurbished and upgraded from the Space Shuttle program.
  • United Launch Alliance (ULA): A joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin that built the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS), the rocket's upper stage responsible for pushing the Orion spacecraft toward the Moon.
  • Teledyne Brown Engineering: Manufactured the Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter (LVSA), which connects the core stage to the upper stage.
 
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Key purposes of the Artemis 2 mission include:

  • Crewed System Validation: Testing the Life Support System in deep space to ensure it can support humans for extended durations, which was not tested on the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission.
  • Testing Deep Space Navigation: Confirming that the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft operate as designed, including human-in-the-loop manual maneuvering of the spacecraft.
  • Reaching New Distances: Testing navigation and communication systems while traveling further from Earth than any human has before.
  • Preparation for Future Landings: Preparing for future missions to the lunar surface by establishing operational procedures and testing crew performance in deep space.
  • Lunar Flyby and Return: Executing a free-return trajectory around the Moon's far side, providing critical insights for future missions like Artemis 3.
The crew, consisting of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, will orbit the Earth to adjust their trajectory before heading to the Moon
 
They had a program where you signed up to have your name included on a disk that will go along on the launch.

I signed the Littles up and they were quite excited, especially the 6-year-old who has a great interest in the space program and who plans to be an astronaut.

I could print off an impressive "boarding pass" and a packet of info about the program and bios of the crew. The 6-year-old has everything hanging on her wall.

I'll be out in the yard watching and, we're told, if the atmospheric conditions are favorable, we might be able to hear the roar of takeoff. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
 
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