Artemis - Blog Posts

Name the Artemis Moonikin!

Choose your player!

As we gear up for our Artemis I mission to the Moon — the mission that will prepare us to send the first woman and the first person of color to the lunar surface — we have an important task for you (yes, you!). Artemis I will be the first integrated test flight of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion crew capsule. Although there won’t be any humans aboard Orion, there will be a very important crewmember: the Moonikin!

The Moonikin is a manikin, or anatomical human model, that will be used to gather data on the vibrations that human crewmembers will experience during future Artemis missions. But the Moonikin is currently missing something incredibly important — a name!

There are eight names in the running, and each one reflects an important piece of NASA’s past or a reference to the Artemis program:

1. ACE

ACE stands for Artemis Crew Explorer. This is a very practical name, as the Moonikin will be a member of the first official “crew” aboard Artemis I.

The Moonikin will occupy the commander’s seat inside Orion, be equipped with two radiation sensors, and wear a first-generation Orion Crew Survival System suit—a spacesuit astronauts will wear during launch, entry, and other dynamic phases of their missions. The Moonikin will also be accompanied by phantoms, which are manikins without arms or legs: Zohar from the Israel Space Agency and Helga from the German Aerospace Center. Zohar and Helga will be participating in an investigation called the Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment, which will provide valuable data on radiation levels experienced during missions to the Moon.

2. Campos

Campos is a reference to Arturo Campos, an electrical engineer at NASA who was instrumental to bringing the Apollo 13 crew safely back home.

Apollo 13 was on its way to attempt the third Moon landing when an oxygen tank exploded and forced the mission to abort. With hundreds of thousands of miles left in the journey, mission control teams at Johnson Space Center were forced to quickly develop procedures to bring the astronauts back home while simultaneously conserving power, water, and heat. Apollo 13 is considered a “successful failure,” because of the experience gained in rescuing the crew. In addition to being a key player in these efforts, Campos also established and served as the first president of the League of United Latin American Citizens Council 660, which was composed of Mexican-American engineers at NASA.

3. Delos

On June 26, 2017, our Terra satellite captured this image of the thousands of islands scattered across the Aegean Sea. One notable group, the Cyclades, sits in the central region of the Aegean. They encircle the tiny, sacred island of Delos.

According to Greek mythology, Delos was the island where the twin gods Apollo and Artemis were born.

The name is a recognition of the lessons learned during the Apollo program. Dr. Abe Silverstein, former director of NASA’s Glenn Research Center, said that he chose the name “Apollo” for the NASA's first Moon landing program because image of "Apollo riding his chariot across the Sun was appropriate to the grand scale of the proposed program." Between 1969 and 1972, we successfully landed 12 humans on the lunar surface — providing us with invaluable information as the Artemis program gears up to send the first woman and the first person of color to the Moon.

4. Duhart

Duhart is a reference to Dr. Irene Duhart Long, the first African American woman to serve in the Senior Executive Service at Kennedy Space Center. As chief medical officer at the Florida spaceport, she was the first woman and the first person of color to hold that position. Her NASA career spanned 31 years.

Working in a male-dominated field, Long confronted — and overcame — many obstacles and challenges during her decorated career. She helped create the Spaceflight and Life Sciences Training Program at Kennedy, in partnership with Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, a program that encouraged more women and people of color to explore careers in science.

5. Montgomery

Montgomery is a reference to Julius Montgomery, the first African American ever hired at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station to work as a technical professional. After earning a bachelor's degree at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, Montgomery served in the U.S. Air Force, where he earned a first class radio-telescope operator's license. Montgomery began his Cape Canaveral career in 1956 as a member of the “Range Rats,” technicians who repaired malfunctioning ballistic missiles.

Montgomery was also the first African American to desegregate and graduate from Brevard Engineering College, now the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida.

6. Rigel

Rigel is one of the 10 brightest stars in Earth's sky and forms part of the familiar constellation Orion. The blue supergiant is about 860 light-years from Earth.

The reference to Rigel is a nod toward the Orion spacecraft, which the Moonikin (and future Artemis astronauts!) will be riding aboard. Built to take humans farther than they’ve ever gone before, the Orion spacecraft will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry crew into space and provide safe re-entry back to Earth.

7. Shackleton

Shackleton Crater is a crater on the Moon named after the Antarctic explorer, Ernest Shackleton. The interior of the crater receives almost no direct sunlight, which makes it very cold — the perfect place to find ice. Our Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft (LRO) returned data that ice may make up as much as 22% of the surface material in Shackleton!

Shackleton Crater is unique because even though most of it is permanently shadowed, three points on the rim remain collectively sunlit for more than 90% of the year. The crater is a prominent feature at the Moon’s South Pole, a region where NASA plans to send Artemis astronauts on future missions.

8. Wargo

Wargo is a reference to Michael Wargo, who represented NASA as the first Chief Exploration Scientist for the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. He was a leading contributor to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), which launched together on to the Moon and confirmed water existed there in 2009.

Throughout his time as an instructor at MIT and his 20-year career at NASA, Wargo was known as a science ambassador to the public, and for his ability to explain complex scientific challenges and discoveries to less technical audiences. Following his sudden death in 2013, the International Astronomical Union posthumously named a crater on the far side of the Moon in his honor.

Want to participate in the naming contest? Make sure you are following @NASAArtemis on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to get notified about the bracket challenges between June 16 and June 28! Learn more about the Name the Artemis Moonikin Challenge here.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

The Big Build: Artemis I Stacks Up

Our Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is coming together at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida this summer. Our mighty SLS rocket is set to power the Artemis I mission to send our Orion spacecraft around the Moon. But, before it heads to the Moon, NASA puts it together right here on Earth.

Read on for more on how our Moon rocket for Artemis I will come together this summer:

Get the Base

How do crews assemble a rocket and spacecraft as tall as a skyscraper? The process all starts inside the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy with the mobile launcher. Recognized as a Florida Space Coast landmark, the Vehicle Assembly Building, or VAB, houses special cranes, lifts, and equipment to move and connect the spaceflight hardware together. Orion and all five of the major parts of the Artemis I rocket are already at Kennedy in preparation for launch. Inside the VAB, teams carefully stack and connect the elements to the mobile launcher, which serves as a platform for assembly and, later, for fueling and launching the rocket.

Start with the boosters

Because they carry the entire weight of the rocket and spacecraft, the twin solid rocket boosters for our SLS rocket are the first elements to be stacked on the mobile launcher inside the VAB. Crews with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs team completed stacking the boosters in March. Each taller than the Statue of Liberty and adorned with the iconic NASA “worm” logo, the five-segment boosters flank either side of the rocket’s core stage and upper stage. At launch, each booster produces more than 3.6 million pounds of thrust in just two minutes to quickly lift the rocket and spacecraft off the pad and to space.

Bring in the core stage

In between the twin solid rocket boosters is the core stage. The stage has two huge liquid propellant tanks, computers that control the rocket’s flight, and four RS-25 engines. Weighing more than 188,000 pounds without fuel and standing 212 feet, the core stage is the largest element of the SLS rocket. To place the core stage in between the two boosters, teams will use a heavy-lift crane to raise and lower the stage into place on the mobile launcher.

On launch day, the core stage’s RS-25 engines produce more than 2 million pounds of thrust and ignite just before the boosters. Together, the boosters and engines produce 8.8 million pounds of thrust to send the SLS and Orion into orbit.

Add the Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter

Once the boosters and core stage are secured, teams add the launch vehicle stage adapter, or LVSA, to the stack. The LVSA is a cone-shaped element that connects the rocket’s core stage and Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS), or upper stage. The roughly 30-foot LVSA houses and protects the RL10 engine that powers the ICPS. Once teams bolt the LVSA into place on top of the rocket, the diameter of SLS will officially change from a wide base to a more narrow point — much like a change in the shape of a pencil from eraser to point.

Lower the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage into place

Next in the stacking line-up is the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage or ICPS. Like the LVSA, crews will lift and bolt the ICPS into place. To help power our deep space missions and goals, our SLS rocket delivers propulsion in phases. At liftoff, the core stage and solid rocket boosters will propel Artemis I off the launch pad. Once in orbit, the ICPS and its single RL10 engine will provide nearly 25,000 pounds of thrust to send our Orion spacecraft on a precise trajectory to the Moon.

Nearly there with the Orion stage adapter

When the Orion stage adapter crowns the top of the ICPS, you’ll know we’re nearly complete with stacking SLS rocket for Artemis I. The Orion Stage Adapter is more than just a connection point. At five feet in height, the Orion stage adapter may be small, but it holds and carries several small satellites called CubeSats. After Orion separates from the SLS rocket and heads to the Moon, these shoebox-sized payloads are released into space for their own missions to conduct science and technology research vital to deep space exploration. Compared to the rest of the rocket and spacecraft, the Orion stage adapter is the smallest SLS component that’s stacked for Artemis I.

Top it off

Finally, our Orion spacecraft will be placed on top of our Moon rocket inside the VAB. The final piece will be easy to spot as teams recently added the bright red NASA “worm” logotype to the outside of the spacecraft. The Orion spacecraft is much more than just a capsule built to carry crew. It has a launch abort system, which will carry the crew to safety in case of an emergency, and a service module developed by the European Space Agency that will power and propel the spacecraft during its three-week mission. On the uncrewed Artemis I mission, Orion will check out the spacecraft’s critical systems, including navigation, communications systems, and the heat shield needed to support astronauts who will fly on Artemis II and beyond.

Ready for launch!

The path to the pad requires many steps and check lists. Before Artemis I rolls to the launch pad, teams will finalize outfitting and other important assembly work inside the VAB. Once assembled, the integrated SLS rocket and Orion will undergo several final tests and checkouts in the VAB and on the launch pad before it’s readied for launch.

The Artemis I mission is the first in a series of increasingly complex missions that will pave the way for landing the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon. The Space Launch System is the only rocket that can send NASA astronauts aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft and supplies to the Moon in a single mission.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space!

One Step Closer to the Moon with the Artemis Program! 🌙

The past couple of weeks have been packed with milestones for our Artemis program — the program that will land the first woman and the next man on the Moon!

Artemis I will be an integrated, uncrewed test of the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System (SLS) rocket before we send crewed flights to the Moon.

On March 2, 2021, we completed stacking the twin SLS solid rocket boosters for the Artemis I mission. Over several weeks, workers with NASA's Exploration Ground Systems used one of five massive cranes to place 10 booster segments and nose assemblies on the mobile launcher inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida.

On March 18, 2021, we completed our Green Run hot fire test for the SLS core stage at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. The core stage includes the flight computers, four RS-25 engines, and enormous propellant tanks that hold more than 700,000 gallons of super cold propellant. The test successfully ignited the core stage and produced 1.6 million pounds of thrust. The next time the core stage lights up will be when Artemis I launches on its mission to the Moon!

In coming days, engineers will examine the data and determine if the stage is ready to be refurbished, prepared for shipment, and delivered to KSC where it will be integrated with the twin solid rocket boosters and the other rocket elements.

We are a couple steps closer to landing boots on the Moon!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Celebrating 81 Years of Ingenuity

Eighty-one years ago, our world-class research center in California’s Silicon Valley was born. Ground broke on Ames Research Center on Dec. 20, 1939. It was the second aeronautical laboratory established by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics to perform fundamental research on all things flight. From its very beginnings, Ames was a place for innovation. Tests performed in its wind tunnels transformed military aircraft during World War II and paved the way for air travel at supersonic speeds. In the 1950s and ‘60s, its researchers looked to the stars and came up with new designs and materials for spacecraft that would make human spaceflight a reality. Fast-forward to the present, and the center contributes to virtually every major agency mission through its expertise in spacecraft entry systems, robotics, aeronautics, supercomputing, and so much more! Here are things to know about Ames.

Ames Research Center is home to the world’s largest wind tunnel.

The center is also home to Pleiades, our most powerful supercomputer.

Its modeling and simulation work plays a key role in designing new vehicles for exploring space.

The center invented heat shield materials for landing rovers on Mars.

It built robots to assist astronauts living and working aboard the International Space Station.

It launched a space telescope that revealed thousands of worlds beyond our solar system.

The center has also led multiple missions to explore the Moon.

It found water on the Moon ... more than once, and in places no one would have guessed.

The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover is the latest lunar exploration mission led by Ames. Launching in 2023, the mobile robot will search for water ice inside craters and other places at the Moon's South Pole. Its survey will help pave the way for astronaut missions to the lunar surface beginning in 2024 as part of the Artemis program.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Meet the Artemis Team Returning Humans to the Moon

We. Are. Going 🌙

Today, we introduced the eighteen NASA Astronauts forming the Artemis team. Together, they'll use their diverse range of backgrounds, expertise, and experience to pave the way for humans to return to the Moon, to stay. 

Meet the heroes of the future who'll carry us back to the Moon and beyond - the Artemis generation. 

Joe Acaba 

Fun fact: Joe is a veteran of the U.S. Peace Corps! Get to know Joe personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Kayla Barron

Fun fact: Kayla got her start in public service through serving in the U.S. Navy. Get to know Kayla personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Raja Chari

Fun fact: Raja’s nickname is “Grinder,” and he comes from a test pilot background. Get to know Raja personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Jessica Watkins

Fun fact: Jessica is a rugby national champion winner and geologist. Get to know Jessica personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Matthew Dominick

Fun fact: Matthew sums himself up as a father, a husband and an explorer. Get to know Matthew personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Jasmin Moghbeli

Fun fact: Jasmin says she still wakes up every morning and it feels like a “pinch me moment” to think she’s actually an astronaut right now. Get to know Jasmin personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Victor Glover

Fun fact: Victor’s dream is to work on the surface of the Moon. Get to know Victor personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Jessica Meir

Fun fact: Jessica was five years old when she knew she wanted to be an astronaut. Get to know Jessica personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Woody Hoburg

Fun fact: Woody used to spend summers away from graduate school working search and rescue in Yosemite National Park. Get to know Woody personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Anne McClain

Fun fact: Anne is a West Point alumni who describes herself as an impractical dreamer. Get to know Anne personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Jonny Kim

Fun fact: Jonny is also a U.S. Navy SEAL with a medical degree from Harvard. Get to know Jonny personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Nicole Mann

Fun fact: Nicole is a U.S. Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corps! Get to know Nicole personally with this video –> Watch HERE. 

Kjell Lindgren

Fun fact: Kjell was a flight surgeon, a physician who takes care of astronauts, before applying to be an astronaut himself! Get to know Kjell personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Christina Koch

Fun fact: Christina set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman with a total of 328 days in space. Get to know Christina personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Frank Rubio

Fun fact: Frank was a Black Hawk helicopter pilot in the U.S. Army and family medical physician. Get to know Frank personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Stephanie Wilson

Fun fact: Stephanie was the voice in Mission Control leading our NASA Astronauts for the all-woman spacewalk last year. Get to know Stephanie personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Scott Tingle

Fun fact: Scott said he wanted to be an astronaut in a high school class and the students laughed – look at him now. Get to know Scott personally with this video –> Watch HERE.

Kate Rubins

Fun fact: Kate is actually IN space right now, so she will have to get her official portrait when she comes home! She is also the first person to sequence DNA in space. Get to know Kate personally with this video –> Watch HERE.  Stay up to date with our Artemis program and return to the Moon by following NASA Artemis on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

What Would These Astronauts Put in Their #NASAMoonKit?

NASA is hard at work to land the first woman and the next man on the Moon, and we want to know: what would you pack for a trip to the Moon?   

We will be soon conducting our last in a series of Green Run tests for the core stage of our Space Launch System (SLS) — the most powerful rocket ever built.

The series of tests is designed to gradually bring the rocket stage and all its systems to life for the first time — ensuring that it’s ready for missions to the Moon through the Artemis program.  

To mark this critical time in the history of American spaceflight, we’ve been asking people like you — what would you take with you on a trip to the Moon? Social media users have been regaling us with their images, videos, and illustrations with the hashtag #NASAMoonKit!

Looking for a little inspiration? We asked some of our astronauts and NASA leaders the same question:

1. NASA Astronaut Chris Cassidy

NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy recently took this photo from the International Space Station and posted it to his Twitter account with this caption:

“If I was on the next mission to the Moon, I would have to bring this tiny spaceman with me! He’s flown with me on all of my missions and was in my uniform pocket for all the SEAL missions I have been a part of. Kind of like a good luck charm.”

2. European Space Agency Astronaut Tim Peake

European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake asked his two sons what they would take with them to the Moon. This is what they decided on!

3. NASA Astronaut Scott Tingle

Based on previous missions to space, NASA astronaut Scott Tingle would put a can of LiOH, or Lithium Hydroxide, into his #NASAMoonKit. 

A LiOH can pulls carbon dioxide out of the air — very important when you're in a closed environment for a long time! Apollo 13 enthusiasts will remember that the astronauts had to turn off their environmental system to preserve power. To keep the air safe, they used LiOH cans from another part of the vehicle, but the cans were round and the fitting was square. Today we have interoperability standards for space systems, so no more square pegs in round holes!

4. NASA Astronaut Drew Morgan

NASA astronaut Drew Morgan received some feedback from his youngest daughter when she was in kindergarten about she would put into her #NASAMoonKit.

5. Head of Human Spaceflight Kathy Lueders

Although Kathy Lueders is not an astronaut, she is the head of human spaceflight at NASA! Her #NASAMoonKit includes activities to keep her entertained as well as her favorite pillow.

6. NASA Astronaut Kenneth Bowersox

NASA astronaut Kenneth Bowersox knows from his past space shuttle experience what the “perfect space food” is — peanut butter. He would also put a hooded sweatshirt in his #NASAMoonKit, for those long, cold nights on the way to the Moon.

7. NASA Astronaut Michael Collins

NASA astronaut Michael Collins has actually made a real-life #NASAMoonKit — when he flew to the Moon on the Apollo 11 mission! But for this time around, he tweeted that would like to bring coffee like he did the first time — but add on a good book.  

How to Show Us What’s In Your #NASAMoonKit:

There are four social media platforms that you can use to submit your work:

Instagram: Use the Instagram app to upload your photo or video, and in the description include #NASAMoonKit  

Twitter: Share your image on Twitter and include #NASAMoonKit in the tweet  

Facebook: Share your image on Facebook and include #NASAMoonKit in the post  

Tumblr: Share your image in Tumblr and include #NASAMoonKit in the tags

If your #NASAMoonKit catches our eye, we may share your post on our NASA social media accounts or share it on the Green Run broadcast!

Click here for #NASAMoonKit Terms and Conditions.  

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

We Just Found Water on the Moon’s Sunlit Surface

When the first Apollo astronauts returned from the Moon in 1969, the Moon’s surface was thought to be completely dry. Over the last 20 years, orbital and impactor missions confirmed water ice is present inside dark, permanently shadowed craters around the poles. But could water survive in the Moon’s sunnier regions? Using SOFIA, the world’s largest flying observatory, we found water on a sunlit lunar surface for the first time. The discovery suggests water may be distributed across the Moon’s surface, which is a whopping 14.6 million square miles. Scientists think the water could be stored inside glass beadlike structures within the soil that can be smaller than the tip of a pencil. The amount of water detected is equivalent to about a 12-ounce bottle trapped in a cubic meter volume of soil. While that amount is 100 times less than what’s found in the Sahara Desert, discovering even small amounts raises new questions about how this precious resource is created and persists on the harsh, airless lunar surface. Learn more about the discovery: 

Water was found in Clavius Crater, one of the Moon’s largest craters visible from Earth.

The water may be delivered by tiny meteorite impacts… 

…or formed by the interaction of energetic particles ejected from the Sun. 

Follow-up observations by SOFIA will look for water in additional sunlit locations on the Moon.

We are eager to learn all we can about the presence of water in advance of sending the first woman and next man to the lunar surface in 2024 under our Artemis program. What we learn on and around the Moon will help us take the next giant leap – sending astronauts to Mars.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Oddly Satisfying #NASAMoonKits 🌙

What would you take with you to the Moon? 🧳

We’re getting ready for our Green Run Hot Fire test, which will fire all four engines of the rocket that will be used for our Artemis I mission. This test will ensure the Space Launch System rocket is ready for the first and future missions beyond Earth’s orbit, putting us one step closer to landing the first woman and the next man on the Moon!

In celebration of this important milestone, we’ve been asking everyone (yeah, you there!) to dust off your suitcase, get creative, and show us what you would take if you were heading to the Moon!

Take a moment to peruse these #oddlysatisfying #NASAMoonKits submitted by people like you, and let them inspire you to lay out your own masterpiece. Post a picture of what you’d pack for the moon using the hashtag #NASAMoonKit for a chance to be shared by us! ⁣

1. @alexandra4astronaut

A stunning #NASAMoonKit in blue. 💙

2.@timmerman.jess

Looks like a little friend is hoping to catch a ride with this #NASAMoonKit. 🐶

3. @guido_aerus_lombardo

A #NASAMoonKit fit for an explorer. 🧭

4. @melli.jp

Shout out to the monochrome #NASAMoonKit enthusiasts! 🖤

5. @mycactusdress

This #NASAMoonKit is thoughtfully laid out by a true fan. 📚

6. Mar Christian V. Cruz

This geologist’s #NASAMoonKit rocks. ⛏️

7. Nelli

Beauty in simple #NASAMoonKits. ✨

8. @urbanxkoi

This #NASAMoonKit successfully fits into our Expert Mode — a volume of 5” by 8” by 2” (12.7 cm x 20.32 cm x 5.08 cm). The Expert Mode dimensions are based on the amount of space astronauts are allowed when they travel to the International Space Station!

9. PWR Aerospace

Nothing like a cozy #NASAMoonKit. 🧦

10. LEGO

This #NASAMoonKit is clearly for the builder-types! 🧸

How to Show Us What’s In Your #NASAMoonKit:    

There are four social media platforms that you can use to submit your work:

Instagram: Use the Instagram app to upload your photo or video, and in the description include #NASAMoonKit  

Twitter: Share your image on Twitter and include #NASAMoonKit in the tweet  

Facebook: Share your image on Facebook and include #NASAMoonKit in the post  

Tumblr: Share your image in Tumblr and include #NASAMoonKit in the tags

If a #NASAMoonKit post catches our eye, we may share your post on our NASA social media accounts or share it on the Green Run broadcast! 

Click here for #NASAMoonKit Terms and Conditions.  

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Our Space Launch System Rocket’s “Green Run” Engine Testing By the Numbers

We continue to make progress toward the first launch of our Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for the Artemis I mission around the Moon. Engineers at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi are preparing for the last two tests of the eight-part SLS core stage Green Run test series.

The test campaign is one of the final milestones before our SLS rocket launches America’s Orion spacecraft to the Moon with the Artemis program. The SLS Green Run test campaign is a series of eight different tests designed to bring the entire rocket stage to life for the first time.

As our engineers and technicians prepare for the wet dress rehearsal and the SLS Green Run hot fire, here are some numbers to keep in mind:

212 Feet

The SLS rocket’s core stage is the largest rocket stage we have ever produced. From top to bottom of its four RS-25 engines, the rocket stage measures 212 feet.

35 Stories

For each of the Green Run tests, the SLS core stage is installed in the historic B-2 Test Stand at Stennis. The test stand was updated to accommodate the SLS rocket stage and is 35 stories tall – or almost 350 feet!

4 RS-25 Engines

All four RS-25 engines will operate simultaneously during the final Green Run Hot Fire. Fueled by the two propellant tanks, the cluster of engines will gimbal, or pivot, and fire for up to eight minutes just as if it were an actual Artemis launch to the Moon.

18 Miles

Our brawny SLS core stage is outfitted with three flight computers and special avionics systems that act as the “brains” of the rocket. It has 18 miles of cabling and more than 500 sensors and systems to help feed fuel and direct the four RS-25 engines.

733,000 Gallons

The stage has two huge propellant tanks that collectively hold 733,000 gallons of super-cooled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. The stage weighs more than 2.3 million pounds when its fully fueled.

114 Tanker Trucks

It’ll take 114 trucks – 54 trucks carrying liquid hydrogen and 60 trucks carrying liquid oxygen – to provide fuel to the SLS core stage.

6 Propellant Barges

A series of barges will deliver the propellant from the trucks to the rocket stage installed in the test stand. Altogether, six propellant barges will send fuel through a special feed system and lines. The propellant initially will be used to chill the feed system and lines to the correct cryogenic temperature. The propellant then will flow from the barges to the B-2 Test Stand and on into the stage’s tanks.

100 Terabytes

All eight of the Green Run tests and check outs will produce more than 100 terabytes of collected data that engineers will use to certify the core stage design and help verify the stage is ready for launch.

For comparison, just one terabyte is the equivalent to 500 hours of movies, 200,000 five-minute songs, or 310,000 pictures!

32,500 holes

The B-2 Test Stand has a flame deflector that will direct the fire produced from the rocket’s engines away from the stage. Nearly 33,000 tiny, handmade holes dot the flame deflector. Why? All those minuscule holes play a huge role by directing constant streams of pressurized water to cool the hot engine exhaust.

One Epic First

When NASA conducts the SLS Green Run Hot Fire test at Stennis, it’ll be the first time that the SLS core stage operates just as it would on the launch pad. This test is just a preview of what’s to come for Artemis I!

The Space Launch System is the only rocket that can send NASA astronauts aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft and supplies to the Moon in a single mission. The SLS core stage is a key part of the rocket that will send the first woman and the next man to the Moon through NASA’s Artemis program.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

What Would NASA Imagery Experts Pack for the Moon?

We are one step closer to landing the first woman and the next man on the Moon, and we want to know: What would you take with you to the Moon? 🌙

We are getting ready for our Green Run Hot Fire test, which will fire all four engines of the rocket that will be used for the Artemis I mission. This test will ensure the Space Launch System — the most powerful rocket ever built — is ready for the first and future missions beyond Earth’s orbit to the Moon.  

In celebration of this important milestone, we’ve been asking you — yes, you! — to tell us what you would pack for the Moon with the hashtag #NASAMoonKit!

To provide a little inspiration, here are some examples of what NASA imagery experts would put in their Moon kits:

“The first thing that went into my #NASAMoonKit was my camera. Some of the most iconic photographs ever taken were captured on the surface of the Moon by NASA astronauts. The camera has to go. The hat and sunscreen will be a must to protect me from the unfiltered sunlight. Warm socks? Of course, my feet are always cold. A little “Moon Music” and a photo of Holly, the best dog in the world, will pass the time during breaks.  Lastly, I need to eat. Water and gummy peach rings will go in a small corner of my pack.”

— Marv Smith, Lead Photographer, NASA Glenn Research Center 

“I may not always pack light, but I tried to only pack the essentials — with a couple of goodies. I get cold fairly easily hence the blanket, extra NASA shirt, hat and gloves. No trip is complete without my favorite snack of almonds, water, sunglasses, lip balm, phone, and my headphones to listen to some music. I figured I could bring my yoga mat, because who wouldn’t want to do yoga on the Moon? The most important part of this kit is my camera! I brought a couple of different lenses for a variety of options, along with a sports action camera, notebook and computer for editing. The Van Gogh doll was just for fun!”

— Jordan Salkin, Scientific Imaging, NASA Glenn Research Center

“The first thing I thought of for my #NASAMoonKit was the first book I ever read when I was learning to read. It is about going on a journey to the Moon. I really liked that book and read it many times, looking at the illustrations and wondering about if I would ever actually go to the Moon. Of the many belongings that I have lost through the years from moving, that book has stayed with me and so it would, of course, go to the Moon with me. A family photo was second to get packed since we always had photos taken and volumes of old family photos in the house. Photography has played an important role in my life so my camera gear is third to get packed. As a kid I spent a lot of time and money building rockets and flying them. I bet my rocket would go very high on the Moon. I also like a little candy wherever I go.”  

— Quentin Schwinn, Scientific Imaging, NASA Glenn Research Center

“I couldn’t go to the moon without my two mirrorless digital SLR cameras, lenses, my 120 6x4.5 film camera, several rolls of 120 film, my singing bowl (for meditation), my wireless printer, my son’s astronaut toy, several pictures of both my sons and wife, my oldest son’s first shoes (they are good luck), cell phone (for music and extra photos), tablet and pen (for editing and books), my laptop, and my water bottle (I take it everywhere).”

— Jef Janis, Photographer, NASA Glenn Research Center  

“I’m taking my NASA coffee mug because let’s be honest; nothing is getting done on the moon until I’ve had my morning coffee out of my favorite mug. I’m taking two cameras: the 360-degree camera and the vintage range finder camera my father bought during the Korean War when he was a Captain and Base Doctor in the Air Force. I’m also taking my awesome camera socks so I can be a fashion embarrassment to my family in space as well as on Earth. The lucky rabbit is named Dez — for years I have carried her all over the world in my pocket whenever I needed a little good luck on a photo shoot. She’s come along to photograph hurricanes, presidents, and sports championships. Being from New Orleans, I would love to be the first to carry out a Mardi Gras tradition on the moon, flinging doubloons and beads to my fellow astronauts (especially if we are up there during Carnival season). I also want to take a picture of this picture on the moon so my wife and son know they are with me no matter where I go. Lastly, it’s a well-known fact that space travelers should always bring a towel on their journey.”

— Michael DeMocker, photographer, videographer & UAS, Michoud Assembly Facility

“I couldn’t go to the Moon without my camera, a 45-rpm vinyl record (My husband’s band — I really want to know how a record sounds in space. Gravity is what makes the needle lay on the record so will the change in gravity make it sound different?), a book to read, a photograph of my daughter, my phone or rather my communication and photo editing device, a snack, and I definitely couldn’t go to the Moon without my moon boots!”

— Bridget Caswell, Photographer, NASA Glenn Research Center  

What You Need to Know About Our Space Launch System (SLS) Rocket’s Green Run Test

The comprehensive test series called Green Run for our Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is underway at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. 

During Green Run, the rocket’s massive, 212-foot-tall core stage — the same flight hardware that will help launch Artemis I to the Moon – will operate together for the first time. 

Here’s what you need to know about this top-to-bottom test series of our megarocket’s huge core:

The Meaning Behind the Name 

Why is it called Green Run? “Green” refers to the new, untested hardware (AKA the core stage), and “run” represents the succession of tests the core stage paces through. One by one, this series will bring together several “firsts” for the rocket stage as the flight hardware undergoes eight different tests. Each test is designed to gradually bring our rocket’s core stage and all its systems to life for the first time. 

So far, engineers have completed three of the series: the modal test, the avionics power-on, and the safety systems checkout. The safety systems are designed to end the test and shutdown systems automatically under undesirable conditions.

You can follow the progress of Green Run with this Green Run checklist infographic. Our team will be updating in real time as each Green Run test is completed.

Setting the Stage

The world’s tallest rocket stage is tested in an equally giant test stand.  We upgraded the B-2 Test Stand used for the Saturn V rocket stages during the Apollo Program and, later, for the Space Shuttle Program. Now, the B-2 Test Stand is customized for testing our SLS core stage. When all four core stage engines fire up, they can generate some serious heat. So, the B-2 Test Stand will use roughly 100,000 gallons of water every 18 seconds to protect the stand and the hardware.

Hot fire in 3, 2, 1…

Speaking of engines firing up, the core stage will really show what it is capable of during the grand finale of Green Run. The goal is for the entire core stage to operate as one for up to 8.5 minutes — and that includes an impressive firing of all four RS-25 engines simultaneously. Just like at launch, more than 733,000 gallons of liquid propellant will flow from the two propellant tanks through the fuel lines to feed the RS-25 engines.  When operating at sea level on the test stand, the cluster of four RS-25 engines will produce just over 1.6 million pounds of thrust – the same amount it will produce during the early phase of launch. During ascent, the core stage will produce a maximum thrust of over 2 million pounds.

Data, data, data

All the Green Run tests, check outs and the 100 terabytes of collected data certify the core stage design and help verify the stage is ready for launch. To put the sheer amount of data collected during Green Run into perspective, just one terabyte is the equivalent of roughly 500 hours of movies. Even the Library of Congress’s collection only amounts to a total of 15 terabytes!

Next stop: Kennedy

The next time our SLS rocket’s core stage fires up will be on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center for the debut of the Artemis program. This inaugural SLS flight will be just the beginning of increasingly complex missions that will enable human exploration to the Moon and, ultimately, Mars.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Help us put the ART in Artemis! Our step-by-step draw Artemis guide will help you learn how to draw the space suit that will keep our astronauts safe during their trip to the Moon.  Have fun, get creative and share your drawings using the hashtag #drawArtemis! 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Do illustrations suit you? Then enjoy NASA at Home fun while learning to draw Orion’s Space Suit that will keep Astronauts safe during Artemis missions to the Moon! Visit https://go.nasa.gov/2SRacx2 for instructions and be sure to share your tailor-made suits to #drawARTEMIS

Stop. Drop. And Apply to #BeAnAstronaut!

Feel like your place is in the stars? Are you an adventure seeker, an explorer, a person passionate about science and space? We need you!!

Applications are OPEN for our newest class of #Artemis astronauts. Once chosen, you could be the next person to step foot on the Moon and eventually embark on missions to Mars!

Do you have a friend who should apply? Tag them. Do you know someone who's still in school? Encourage them to follow their dreams and aim high.

To give you a sneak peak of what life will be like if you decide to #BeAnAstronaut, we’re taking you behind-the-scenes of astronaut life over the course of March. 

APPLY NOW AND GET MORE INFORMATION HERE! 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Want to Become an Astronaut? You Might Be More Qualified Than You Think

Have you ever wondered if you have what it takes to become a NASA Astronaut? We’re accepting applications starting March 2, and we’re encouraging all eligible Americans to apply by March 31! 

It’s an incredible time in human spaceflight to be an astronaut. With Artemis, our sights are set on the Moon – to stay – by utilizing sustainable lunar missions, and you could be one of the humans on the surface! During their careers, this next class of astronauts may also fly on any of four different U.S. spacecraft: the International Space Station, Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon and our Orion deep-space exploration vehicle; They will be at the cutting edge of a new era in human exploration. 

So, still interesting in joining our ranks as an Artemis generation astronaut? Here are a few things to note.

Myths about becoming an astronaut:

MYTH: All astronauts have piloting experience.

FACT: You don’t need to be a pilot to be an astronaut. Flying experience is not a requirement, but could be beneficial to have.

MYTH: All astronauts have perfect vision.

FACT: It’s okay if you don’t have 20/20 vision. As of September 2007, corrective surgical procedures of the eye (PRK and LASIK), are now allowed, providing at least 1 year has passed since the date of the procedure with no permanent adverse after effects.

MYTH: All astronauts have advanced degrees like, a PhD.

FACT: While a Master’s degree from an accredited university is necessary, the requirement can also be met with the completion (or current enrollment that will result in completion by June 2021) of a nationally recognized test pilot school program.

MYTH: Astronauts are required to have military experience in order to be selected.

FACT: Military experience is not required to become an astronaut.

MYTH: You have to be a certain age in order to be an astronaut.

FACT: There are no age restrictions. Astronaut candidates selected in the past have ranged between the ages of 26 and 46, with the average age being 34.

Okay, but what are the requirements?

The basic requirements to apply include United States citizenship and a master’s degree in a STEM field, including engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science, or mathematics, from an accredited institution. The requirement for the master’s degree can also be met by:

Two years (36 semester hours or 54 quarter hours) of work toward a Ph.D. program in a related science, technology, engineering or math field;

A completed doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathic medicine degree;

Completion (or current enrollment that will result in completion by June 2021) of a nationally recognized test pilot school program.

Candidates also must have at least two years of related, progressively responsible professional experience, or at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in jet aircraft. Astronaut candidates must pass the NASA long-duration spaceflight physical.

Applications for our next Artemis astronaut class open on March 2! Shoot for the stars and visit: https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com 

Need some space? We’ve got the job! 👨‍🚀👩‍🚀⁣

We’re accepting applications March 2-31 for the next class of #Artemis Generation astronauts who will embark on missions to the Moon and Mars. Join our class of star sailors and find out if you have what it takes to #BeAnAstronaut! 

The basic requirements to apply include United States citizenship and a master’s degree in a STEM field, including engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science, or mathematics, from an accredited institution. The requirement for the master’s degree can also be met by:

Two years (36 semester hours or 54 quarter hours) of work toward a Ph.D. program in a related science, technology, engineering or math field;

A completed doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathic medicine degree;

Completion (or current enrollment that will result in completion by June 2021) of a nationally recognized test pilot school program.

Candidates also must have at least two years of related, progressively responsible professional experience, or at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in jet aircraft. Astronaut candidates must pass the NASA long-duration spaceflight physical.

More information here. 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

What kind of things are you looking forward to as NASA gets closer to the Artemis and Gateway missions? Do you plan to be a part of them?

The Rover Doctor is in: The Anatomy of a NASA Human Exploration Rover Challenge Rover

Exploration and inspiration collide head-on in our Human Exploration Rover Challenge held near Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, each April. The annual competition challenges student teams from around the world to design, build and drive a human-powered rover over a punishing half-mile course with tasks and obstacles similar to what our astronauts will likely have on missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

The anatomy of the rover is crucial to success. Take a look at a few of the vital systems your rover will need to survive the challenge!

The Chassis

A rover’s chassis is its skeleton and serves as the framework that all of the other rover systems attach to. The design of that skeleton incorporates many factors: How will your steering and braking work? Will your drivers sit beside each other, front-to-back or will they be offset? How high should they sit? How many wheels will your rover have? All of those decisions dictate the design of your rover’s chassis.

Wheels

Speaking of wheels, what will yours look like? The Rover Challenge course features slick surfaces, soft dunes, rocky craters and steep hills – meaning your custom-designed wheels must be capable of handling diverse landscapes, just as they would on the Moon and Mars. Carefully cut wood and cardboard, hammer-formed metal and even 3-D printed polymers have all traversed the course in past competitions.

Drivetrain

You’ve got your chassis design. Your wheels are good to go. Now you have to have a system to transfer the energy from your drivers to the wheels – the drivetrain. A good drivetrain will help ensure your rover crosses the finish line under the 8-minute time limit. Teams are encouraged to innovate and think outside the traditional bike chain-based systems that are often used and often fail. Exploration of the Moon and Mars will require new, robust designs to explore their surfaces. New ratchet systems and geared drivetrains explored the Rover Challenge course in 2019.

Colors and Gear

Every good rover needs a cool look. Whether you paint it your school colors, fly your country’s flag or decorate it to support those fighting cancer (Lima High School, above, was inspired by those fighting cancer), your rover and your uniform help tell your story to all those watching and cheering you on. Have fun with it!

Are you ready to conquer the Rover Challenge course? Join us in Huntsville this spring! Rover Challenge registration is open until January 16, 2020 for teams based in the United States.

If building rovers isn’t your space jam, we have other Artemis Challenges that allow you to be a part of the NASA team – check them out here.

Want to learn about our Artemis program that will land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024? Go here to read about how NASA, academia and industry and international partners will use innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before. Through collaborations with our commercial, international and academic partners, we will establish sustainable lunar exploration by 2028, using what we learn to take astronauts to Mars. 

The students competing in our Human Exploration Rover Challenge are paramount to that exploration and will play a vital role in helping NASA and all of humanity explore space like we’ve never done before!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Astronaut Training: 5 Things You Need to Know

NASA honored the first class of astronaut candidates to graduate under the Artemis program on Friday, Jan. 10, at our Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Out of a record 18,000 applicants, the 11 new astronauts, alongside two from the Canadian Space Agency, have completed two years of training and are now eligible for spaceflight. One day they could embark on missions to the International Space Station, the Moon and even Mars.

Here are five of the training criteria they had to check off to graduate from astronaut candidate to astronaut:

1. Piloting T-38 Jets

Astronauts have been training in T-38 jets since 1957 because the sleek, white jets require crew members to think quickly in dynamic situations and to make decisions that have real consequences. This type of mental experience is critical to preparing for the rigors of spaceflight. It also familiarizes astronaut candidates with checklists and procedures. To check off this training criteria, candidates must be able to safely operate in the T-38 as either a pilot or back seater. 

2. Knowing International Space Station Systems

We are currently flying astronauts to the International Space Station every few months. Astronauts aboard the space station are conducting experiments benefiting humanity on Earth and teaching us how to live longer in space. Astronaut candidates learn to operate and maintain the complex systems aboard the space station as part of their basic training.

3. Conducting Spacewalks

Spacewalks are the hardest thing, physically and mentally, that astronauts do. Astronaut candidates must demonstrate the skills to complete complex spacewalks in our Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (giant pool used to simulate weightlessness). In order to do so, they will train on the life support systems within the spacesuit, how to handle emergency situations that can arise and how to work effectively as a team to repair the many critical systems aboard the International Space Station to keep it functioning as our science laboratory in space.  

4. Operating Robotics

Astronaut candidates learn the coordinate systems, terminology and how to operate the space station’s two robotic arms called Canadarm2 and Dextre. They train in Canada for a two-week session where they develop more complex robotics skills including capturing visiting cargo vehicles with the arm. The arm, built by the Canadian Space Agency, is capable of handling large cargo and hardware and it helped build the entire space station. It has latches on either end, allowing it to be moved by both flight controllers on the ground and astronauts in space to various parts of the station.

5. Learning Russian Language

The official languages of the International Space Station are English and Russian. All crew members – regardless of what country they come from – are required to know both. NASA astronauts train with their Russian crew mates so it makes sense that they should be able to speak Russian. Astronaut candidates start learning the language at the beginning of their training and train every week, as their schedule allows. 

Now, they are ready for their astronaut pin!

After completing this general training, the new astronauts could be assigned to missions performing research on the International Space Station, launching from American soil on spacecraft built by commercial companies, and launching on deep space missions on our new Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket. 

Watch the Astronaut Candidate Graduation Ceremony

Watch a recording of the astronaut candidate graduation ceremony on our YouTube channel. 

So You Want to Be an Astronaut?

This spring, we’ll once again be accepting applications for the next class of astronauts! Stay tuned to www.nasa.gov/newastronauts for upcoming information on how you can explore places like the Moon and Mars.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Chart-Topping Space Images From 2019 You Won’t Want to Miss

From the first-ever image of a black hole, to astronaut Christina Koch breaking the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman – 2019 was full of awe-inspiring events! 

As we look forward to a new decade, we’ve taken ten of our top Instagram posts and put them here for your viewing pleasure. With eight out of ten being carousels, be sure to click on each title to navigate to the full post. 

1. First-Ever Black Hole Image Makes History 

In a historic feat by the Event horizon Telescope and National Science Foundation, an image of a black hole and its shadow was captured for the first time. At a whopping 3.4 million likes, this image takes home the gold as our most loved photo of 2019. Several of our missions were part of a large effort to observe this black hole using different wavelengths of light and collect data to understand its environment. Here’s a look at our Chandra X-Ray Observatory’s close-up of the core of the M87 galaxy with the imaged black hole at its center.  

2. Hubble Celebrates 29 Years of Dazzling Discoveries

When you wish upon a star… Hubble captures it from afar ✨On April 18, 2019 our Hubble Space Telescope celebrated 29 years of dazzling discoveries, serving as a window to the wonders of worlds light-years away. ⁣

Hubble continues to observe the universe in near-ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared light. Over the past 29 years, it has captured the farthest views ever taken of the evolving universe, found planet-forming disks around nearby stars and identified the first supermassive black hole in the heart of a neighboring galaxy. ⁣Want more? Enjoy the full 10 photo Instagram carousel here. 

3. Stars and Stripes in Space for Flag Day 

Patriotism was in the air June 14 for Flag Day, and coming in at number three in our most liked Instagram line up is a carousel of our stars and stripes in space! One of the most iconic images from the Apollo 11 missions is of Buzz Aldrin saluting the American flag on the surface of the Moon. But did you know that over the years, five more flags joined the one left by Apollo 11 – and that many other flags have flown onboard our spacecraft? Scroll through the full carousel for flag day here. 

4. Spitzer Celebrates its Super Sweet 16! 

Since 2003, our Spitzer Space Telescope has been lifting the veil on the wonders of the cosmos, from our own solar system to faraway galaxies, using infrared light! Thanks to Spitzer, we've confirm the presence of seven rocky, Earth-size planets, received weather maps of hot, gaseous exoplanets and discovered a hidden ring around Saturn. In honor of Spitzer's Sweet 16 in space, enjoy 16 jaw-dropping images from its mission here. 

5. Earth as Seen Through Our Astronauts’ Eyes Show  Perspective Changing Views

“That's here. That's home. That's us.” – Carl Sagan

Seeing Earth from space can alter an astronauts’ cosmic perspective, a mental shift known as the “Overview Effect.” First coined by space writer Frank White in 1987, the Overview Effect is described as a feeling of awe for our home planet and a sense of responsibility for taking care of it. See Earth from the vantage point of our astronauts in a carousel of perspective-changing views here.

6. Astronaut Christina Koch Breaks Record for Longest Single Spaceflight by Woman 

Astronaut Christina Koch (@Astro_Christina) set a record Dec. 28, 2019 for the longest single spaceflight by a woman, eclipsing the former record of 288 days set by Peggy Whitson. Her long-duration mission is helping us learn how to keep astronauts healthy for deep space exploration to the Moon and Mars. Congrats to Christina on reaching new heights! Join in the celebration and view few photos she captured from her vantage point aboard the Space Station here. 

7. Our Beautiful Planet – The Only Place We Know to Harbor Life – From Space

Earth is special. It’s the only place in the universe that we know contains life. 

On July 7, 2019, two million people joined us in celebrating its beauty with a jaw dropping carousel of our home planet, as captured by crew members aboard the International Space Station. Bright blue oceans, glowing city lights and ice-capped mountain peaks come to life in a collection of breathtaking images, found here. 

8. A Moon Even Sinatra Couldn’t Help But Sing About

Every 29 days our Moon turns over a new leaf, and on May, 18 we saw a very special one of its faces. Appearing opposite the Sun at 5:11 p.m. EDT, the world looked up to find a Blue Moon! Though the Moon didn’t actually look blue, the site of one is kind of rare. They occur on average about every two-and-a-half years when a season ends up having four full moons instead of three. Click through a carousel of high-definition lunar phases here. 

9. The Majesty of Hubble Imagery ... From Your Backyard

On December 23, a new gallery of Hubble Space Telescope images highlighting celestial objects visible to amateur and professional astronomers alike was released. All of the objects are from a collection known as the Caldwell catalog, which includes 109 interesting objects visible in amateur-sized telescopes in both the northern and southern skies. Flip through the jaw-dropping carousel here, and learn more about how you can study the night sky with Hubble here. 

10. The Moon Gets Sassy

Nobody:

The Moon: “Y'all on the way yet?” 👀

We're working on it, Moon. Under the Artemis program, we're sending the first woman and the next man to walk on your surface by 2024. Find out how we’re doing it here. 

For more pictures like these, follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nasa/

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

10 Ways the 2010s Pushed Communication and Navigation into the Future!

We transmit vast amounts of data from space, letting all of our satellites “phone home.” Imagery from far off regions of our solar system, beautiful visions of other galaxies and insights into planet Earth flow through our communications networks. 

Our Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program is dedicated to making sure we precisely track, command and control our spacecraft. All the while, they develop bold new technologies and capabilities for Artemis – our sustainable lunar exploration program that will place the first woman and the next man on the Moon in 2024. 

As we prepare to say goodbye to the 2010s, let’s take a look at 10 of the biggest milestones in space communications and navigation of the past decade. 

1. Continuous global communications? TDRS has you covered.

From 2013 to 2017, we launched three Tracking and Data Relay Satellites, or TDRS for short. These new satellites replenished a fleet that has been around since the early 1980s, allowing us to provide continuous global communications coverage into the next decade. Missions like the International Space Station depend on TDRS for 24/7 coverage, allowing our astronauts to call home day or night.

2. Binge watching on the Moon? Laser communications will make it possible.

Imagine living at the Moon. With the Artemis program, we’re making it happen! However, we can’t live there without decent internet, right? In 2013, we conducted the Lunar Laser Communication Demonstration (LLCD). This was the first high-speed laser communications demonstration from the Moon, transmitting data at a whopping 622 megabits per second, which is comparable to many high-speed fiber-optic connections enjoyed at home on Earth! Our LLCD sent back high-definition video with no buffering. 

3. Record Breaking GPS navigation, at your service.

Space communications is just one piece of the SCaN puzzle. We do navigation too! We even break records for it. In 2016, our Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission broke the world record for highest altitude GPS fix at 43,500 miles above Earth. In 2017, they broke it again at 93,200 miles. Earlier this year, they broke it a third time at 116,200 miles from Earth — about halfway to the Moon!

Thanks to MMS, our navigation engineers believe that GPS and similar navigation constellations could play a significant role in the navigation architecture of our planned Gateway spaceship in lunar orbit!

4. Crashing planes as part of the game – of research!  

Then there was that one summer we crashed three planes in the name of research! In 2015, our Search and Rescue office tested crash scenarios at Langley Research Center’s Landing and Impact Research Facility to improve the reliability of emergency beacons installed in planes. After the study, we made recommendations on how pilots should install these life-saving beacons, increasing their chances of survival in the event of a crash. The Federal Aviation Administration adopted these recommendations this year!

5. The Deep Space Atomic Clock takes flight. 

Missions venturing into deep space want the autonomy to make decisions without waiting for a commands from Earth. That’s why we launched the Deep Space Atomic Clock this past year. This itty-bitty technology demonstration is a small, ultra-stable timekeeping device that could enable autonomous navigation!

6. 50 never looked so good – for our Deep Space Network. 

In 2013, our Deep Space Network celebrated its 50th birthday! This is the network that transmitted Neil Armstrong’s famous words, "That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind." Some of its more recent accomplishments? Gathering the last bits of data before Cassini dove into Saturn’s upper atmosphere, pulling down the “heart” of Pluto and talking to the Voyager probes as they journeyed into interstellar space!

7. SCaN Testbed becomes an official Hall of Famer. 

In 2012, we installed the SCaN Testbed, which looks like a blue box in the above picture, on the space station! We built the testbed out of Software Defined Radios, which can change their functionality and employ artificial intelligence. These radios will help us adapt to the increasingly crowded communications landscape and improve the efficiency of radio technology. The Testbed was so ground-breaking that it was inducted into the Space Technology Hall of Fame in 2019.

8. Moon mission communications system, secured! 

Just a few weeks ago, we held a ribbon-cutting for the Near Earth Network’s Launch Communications Segment, which will support Artemis missions as they rocket toward the Moon! During initial, dynamic phases of launch, the segment’s three stations will provide communications between astronauts and mission controllers, giving them the data necessary to ensure crew safety. 

9. Deep Space Station antenna introduces “beam waveguide” technology. 

On October 1, 2014, in Canberra, Australia, the Deep Space Network’s Deep Space Station 35 (DSS-35) antenna went operational. It was the first of a number of new antennas built to support the growing number of deep space missions! The antenna is different from other antennas that were built before it. Older antennas had a lot of their equipment stored high up on the antenna above the dish. DSS-35 uses “beam waveguide” technology that stores that equipment underground. This makes the weight sitting on the dish much lighter, cuts down on interference and makes the antenna much easier to operate and maintain.

10. Hello, Alaska! 

Last — but certainly not least — we expanded our presence in the 49th state, Alaska! While this picture might look like antennas rising from the forests of  Endor, the one in the foreground is actually an antenna we installed in 2014 in partnership with the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Because of its proximity to the polar north, this 11-meter beauty is uniquely situated to pull down valuable Earth science data from our polar-orbiting spacecraft, contributing to scientists’ understanding of our changing planet!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Spaceships Don’t Go to the Moon Until They’ve Gone Through Ohio

From the South, to the Midwest, to infinity and beyond. The Orion spacecraft for Artemis I has several stops to make before heading out into the expanse, and it can’t go to the Moon until it stops in Ohio. It landed at the Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport on Nov. 24, and then it was transferred to Plum Brook Station where it will undergo a series of environmental tests over the next four months to make sure it’s ready for space. Here are the highlights of its journey so far.

It’s a bird? It’s a whale? It’s the Super Guppy!

The 40-degree-and-extremely-windy weather couldn’t stop the massive crowd at Mansfield from waiting hours to see the Super Guppy land. Families huddled together as they waited, some decked out in NASA gear, including one astronaut costume complete with a helmet. Despite the delays, about 1,500 people held out to watch the bulbous airplane touch down.

Buckle up. It’s time for an extremely safe ride.

After Orion safely made it to Ohio, the next step was transporting it 41 miles to Plum Brook Station. It was loaded onto a massive truck to make the trip, and the drive lasted several hours as it slowly maneuvered the rural route to the facility. The 130-foot, 38-wheel truck hit a peak speed of about 20 miles per hour. It was the largest load ever driven through the state, and more than 700 utility lines were raised or moved in preparation to let the vehicle pass.

Calling us clean freaks would be an understatement.

Any person who even thinks about breathing near Orion has to be suited up. We’re talking “bunny” suit, shoe covers, beard covers, hoods, latex gloves – the works. One of our top priorities is keeping Orion clean during testing to prevent contaminants from sticking to the vehicle’s surface. These substances could cause issues for the capsule during testing and, more importantly, later during its flight around the Moon.

And liftoff of Orion… via crane.

On the ceiling of the Space Environments Complex at Plum Brook Station is a colossal crane used to move large pieces of space hardware into position for testing. It’s an important tool during pretest work, as it is used to lift Orion from the “verticator”—the name we use for the massive contraption used to rotate the vehicle from its laying down position into an upright testing orientation. After liftoff from the verticator, technicians then used the crane to install the spacecraft inside the Heat Flux System for testing.

It’s really not tin foil.

Although it looks like tin foil, the metallic material wrapped around Orion and the Heat Flux System—the bird cage-looking hardware encapsulating the spacecraft—is a material called Mylar. It’s used as a thermal barrier to help control which areas of the spacecraft get heated or cooled during testing. This helps our team avoid wasting energy heating and cooling spots unnecessarily.

Bake at 300° for 63 days.

It took a little over a week to prep Orion for its thermal test in the vacuum chamber. Now begins the 63-day process of heating and cooling (ranging from -250° to 300° Fahrenheit) the capsule to ensure it’s ready to withstand the journey around the Moon and back. 

View more images of Orion’s transportation and preparation here.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

The Artemis Story: Where We Are Now and Where We’re Going

Using a sustainable architecture and sophisticated hardware unlike any other, the first woman and the next man will set foot on the surface of the Moon by 2024. Artemis I, the first mission of our powerful Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft, is an important step in reaching that goal.

As we close out 2019 and look forward to 2020, here’s where we stand in the Artemis story — and what to expect in 2020. 

Cranking Up The Heat on Orion

The Artemis I Orion spacecraft arrived at our Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio, on Tuesday, Nov. 26 for in-space environmental testing in preparation for Artemis I.

This four-month test campaign will subject the spacecraft, consisting of its crew module and European-built service module, to the vacuum, extreme temperatures (ranging from -250° to 300° F) and electromagnetic environment it will experience during the three-week journey around the Moon and back. The goal of testing is to confirm the spacecraft’s components and systems work properly under in-space conditions, while gathering data to ensure the spacecraft is fit for all subsequent Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. This is the final critical step before the spacecraft is ready to be joined with the Space Launch System rocket for this first test flight in 2020!

Bringing Everyone Together

On Dec. 9, we welcomed members of the public to our Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans for #Artemis Day and to get an up-close look at the hardware that will help power our Artemis missions. The 43-acre facility has more than enough room for guests and the Artemis I, II, and III rocket hardware! NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine formally unveiled the fully assembled core stage of our SLS rocket for the first Artemis mission to the Moon, then guests toured of the facility to see flight hardware for Artemis II and III. The full-day event — complete with two panel discussions and an exhibit hall — marked a milestone moment as we prepare for an exciting next phase in 2020.

Rolling On and Moving Out

Once engineers and technicians at Michoud complete functional testing on the Artemis I core stage, it will be rolled out of the Michoud factory and loaded onto our Pegasus barge for a very special delivery indeed. About this time last year, our Pegasus barge crew was delivering a test version of the liquid hydrogen tank from Michoud to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville for structural testing. This season, the Pegasus team will be transporting a much larger piece of hardware — the entire core stage — on a slightly shorter journey to the agency’s nearby Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

Special Delivery

Why Stennis, you ask? The giant core stage will be locked and loaded into the B2 Test Stand there for the landmark Green Run test series. During the test series, the entire stage, including its extensive avionics and flight software systems, will be tested in full. The series will culminate with a hot fire of all four RS-25 engines and will certify the complex stage “go for launch.” The next time the core stage and its four engines fire as one will be on the launchpad at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Already Working on Artemis II

As Orion and SLS make progress toward the pad for Artemis I, employees at NASA centers and large and small companies across America are hard at work assembling and manufacturing flight hardware for Artemis II and beyond.  The second mission of SLS and Orion will be a test flight with astronauts aboard that will go around the Moon before returning home. Our work today will pave the way for a new generation of moonwalkers and Artemis explorers.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Small Businesses with Big Plans for the Moon and Mars

Today is Small Business Saturday, which the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) recognizes as a day to celebrate and support small businesses and all they do for their communities.

Source: Techshot

We are proud to partner with small businesses across the country through NASA’s Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, which have funded the research, development and demonstration of innovative space technologies since 1982. This year, we’ve awarded 571 SBIR/STTR contracts totaling nearly $180 million to companies who will support our future exploration:

Techshot, Inc. was selected to bioprint micro-organs in a zero-gravity environment for research and testing of organs-on-chip devices, which simulate the physiological functions of body organs at a miniature scale for health research without the need for expensive tests or live subjects.

CertainTech, Inc., with the George Washington University, will demonstrate an improved water recovery system for restoring nontoxic water from wastewater using nanotechnology.

Electrochem, Inc. was contracted to create a compact and lightweight regenerative fuel cell system that can store energy from an electrolyzer during the lunar day to be used for operations during the lunar night.

Source: Electrochem

Small businesses are also developing technologies for the Artemis missions to the Moon and for human and robotic exploration of Mars. As we prepare to land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024, these are just a few of the small businesses working with us to make it happen.

Commercial Lunar Payload Delivery Services

Masten Space Systems, Astrobotic and Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems are three NASA SBIR/STTR alumni now eligible to bid on NASA delivery services to the lunar surface through Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contracts. Other small businesses selected as CLPS providers include Ceres Robotics, Deep Space Systems, Intuitive Machines, Moon Express, and Orbit Beyond. Under the Artemis program, these companies could land robotic missions on the Moon to perform science experiments, test technologies and demonstrate capabilities to help the human exploration that will follow. The first delivery could be as early as July 2021.

A Pathfinder CubeSat

One cornerstone of our return to the Moon is a small spaceship called Gateway that will orbit our nearest neighbor to provide more access to the lunar surface. SBIR/STTR alum Advanced Space Systems will develop a CubeSat that will test out the lunar orbit planned for Gateway, demonstrating how to enter into and operate in the unique orbit. The Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) could launch as early as December 2020.

Tipping Point for Moon to Mars

We selected 14 companies as part of our Tipping Point solicitation, which fosters the development of critical, industry-led space capabilities for our future missions. These small businesses all proposed unique technologies that could benefit the Artemis program.

Many of these small businesses are also NASA SBIR/STTR alumni whose Tipping Point awards are related to their SBIR or STTR awards. For example, Infinity Fuel Cell and Hydrogen, Inc. (Infinity Fuel) will develop a power and energy product that could be used for lunar rovers, surface equipment, and habitats. This technology stems from a new type of fuel cell that Infinity Fuel developed with the help of NASA SBIR/STTR awards.

CU Aerospace and Astrobotic are also small businesses whose Tipping Point award can be traced back to technology developed through the NASA SBIR/STTR program. CU Aerospace will build a CubeSat with two different propulsion systems, which will offer high performance at a low cost, and Astrobotic will develop small rover “scouts” that can host payloads and interface with landers on the lunar surface.

Small Businesses, Big Impact

This is just a handful of the small businesses supporting our journey back to the Moon and on to Mars, and just a taste of how they impact the economy and American innovation. We are grateful for the contributions that small businesses make—though they be but “small,” they are fierce.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com 

Apollo 12: The Next Step after the Giant Leap

Launched less than four months after Apollo 11 put the first astronauts on the Moon, Apollo 12 was more than a simple encore. After being struck by lightning on launch -- to no lasting damage, fortunately -- Apollo 12 headed for a rendezvous with a spacecraft that was already on the Moon. The mission would expand the techniques used to explore the Moon and show the coordination between robotic and human exploration, both of which continue today as we get return to return astronauts to the Moon by 2024. 

Launch Day

Apollo 12 lifted off at 11:22 a.m. EST, Nov. 14, 1969, from our Kennedy Space Center. Aboard the Apollo 12 spacecraft were astronauts Charles Conrad Jr., commander; Richard F. Gordon Jr., command module pilot; and Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot.

Barely 40 seconds after liftoff, lightning struck the spacecraft. Conrad alerted Houston that the crew had lost telemetry and other data from the mission computers. As the Saturn V engines continued to push the capsule to orbit, ground controllers worked out a solution, restarting some electrical systems, and Apollo 12 headed toward the Moon.

Cameras at the Kennedy Space Center captured this image of the same lightning bolt that struck Apollo 12 striking the mobile platform used for the launch.

On the Moon

Apollo 12 landed on the Moon on Nov. 19, and on the second moonwalk Conrad and Bean walked approximately 200 yards to the Surveyor 3 spacecraft. One of seven Surveyor spacecraft sent to land on the Moon and to gather data on the best way to land humans there, Surveyor 3 had been on the Moon for more than two years, exposed to cosmic radiation and the vacuum of space. Scientists on the ground wanted to recover parts of the spacecraft to see what effects the environment had had on it.

Apollo 12 commander Pete Conrad examines the Surveyor 3 spacecraft before removing its camera and other pieces for return to Earth. In the background is the lunar module that landed Conrad and lunar module pilot Alan Bean on the Moon.

Splashdown

Apollo 12 splashed down on Nov. 24. When Artemis returns astronauts to the Moon in 2024, it will be building on Apollo 12 as much as any of the other missions. Just as Apollo 12 had to maneuver off the standard “free return” trajectory to reach its landing site near Surveyor, Artemis missions will take advantage of the Gateway to visit a variety of lunar locations. The complementary work of Surveyor and Apollo -- a robotic mission preparing the way for a crewed mission; that crewed mission going back to the robotic mission to learn more from it -- prefigures how Artemis will take advantage of commercial lunar landers and other programs to make lunar exploration sustainable over the long term.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

SPACE: A Global Frontier

Space is a global frontier. That’s why we partner with nations all around the world to further the advancement of science and to push the boundaries of human exploration. With international collaboration, we have sent space telescopes to observe distant galaxies, established a sustainable, orbiting laboratory 254 miles above our planet’s surface and more! As we look forward to the next giant leaps in space exploration with our Artemis lunar exploration program, we will continue to go forth with international partnerships!

Teamwork makes the dream work. Here are a few of our notable collaborations:

Artemis Program

Our Artemis lunar exploration program will send the first woman and the next man to the Moon by 2024. Using innovative technologies and international partnerships, we will explore more of the lunar surface than ever before and establish sustainable missions by 2028.

During these missions, the Orion spacecraft will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort capability and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The European Service Module, provided by the European Space Agency, will serve as the spacecraft’s powerhouse and supply it with electricity, propulsion, thermal control, air and water in space.

The Gateway, a small spaceship that will orbit the Moon, will be a home base for astronauts to maintain frequent and sustainable crewed missions to the lunar surface. With the help of a coalition of nations, this new spaceship will be assembled in space and built within the next decade.

Gateway already has far-reaching international support, with 14 space agencies agreeing on its importance in expanding humanity's presence on the Moon, Mars and deeper into the solar system.

International Space Station

The International Space Station (ISS) is one of the most ambitious international collaborations ever attempted. Launched in 1998 and involving the U.S., Russia, Canada, Japan and the participating countries of the European Space Agency — the ISS has been the epitome of global cooperation for the benefit of humankind. The largest space station ever constructed, the orbital laboratory continues to bring together international flight crews, globally distributed launches, operations, training, engineering and the world’s scientific research community.

Hubble Space Telescope 

The Hubble Space Telescope, one of our greatest windows into worlds light-years away, was built with contributions from the European Space Agency (ESA).

ESA provided the original Faint Object Camera and solar panels, and continues to provide science operations support for the telescope. 

Deep Space Network

The Deep Space Network (DSN) is an international array of giant radio antennas that span the world, with stations in the United States, Australia and Spain. The three facilities are equidistant approximately one-third of the way around the world from one another – to permit constant communication with spacecraft as our planet rotates. The network supports interplanetary spacecraft missions and a few that orbit Earth. It also provides radar and radio astronomy observations that improve our understanding of the solar system and the larger universe!

Mars Missions 

Information gathered today by robots on Mars will help get humans to the Red Planet in the not-too-distant future. Many of our Martian rovers – both past, present and future – are the products of a coalition of science teams distributed around the globe. Here are a few notable ones:

Curiosity Mars Rover 

France: ChemCam, the rover’s laser instrument that can analyze rocks from more than 20 feet away

Russia: DAN, which looks for subsurface water and water locked in minerals

Spain: REMS, the rover’s weather station

InSight Mars Lander

France with contributions from Switzerland: SEIS, the first seismometer on the surface of another planet

Germany: HP3, the heatflow probe that will help us understand the interior structure of Mars

Spain: APSS, the lander’s weather station

Mars 2020 Rover

Norway: RIMFAX, a ground-penetrating radar

France: SuperCam, the laser instrument for remote science

Spain: MEDA, the rover’s weather station

Space-Analog Astronaut Training

We partner with space agencies around the globe on space-analog missions. Analog missions are field tests in locations that have physical similarities to the extreme space environments. They take astronauts to space-like environments to prepare as international teams for near-term and future exploration to asteroids, Mars and the Moon.

The European Space Agency hosts the Cooperative Adventure for Valuing and Exercising human behavior and performance Skills (CAVES) mission. The two week training prepares multicultural teams of astronauts to work safely and effectively in an environment where safety is critical. The mission is designed to foster skills such as communication, problem solving, decision-making and team dynamics.

We host our own analog mission, underwater! The NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) project sends international teams of astronauts, engineers and scientists to live in the world’s only undersea research station, Aquarius, for up to three weeks. Here, “aquanauts” as we call them, simulate living on a spacecraft and test spacewalk techniques for future space missions in hostile environments.

International Astronautical Congress 

So, whether we’re collaborating as a science team around the globe, or shoulder-to-shoulder on a spacewalk, we are committed to working together with international partners for the benefit of all humanity! 

If you’re interested in learning more about how the global space industry works together, check out our coverage of the 70th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) happening this week in Washington, D.C. IAC is a yearly gathering in which all space players meet to talk about the advancements and progress in exploration.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

To the Moon and Beyond: Why Our SLS Rocket Is Designed for Deep Space

It will take incredible power to send the first woman and the next man to the Moon’s South Pole by 2024.  That’s where America’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket comes in to play.

Providing more payload mass, volume capability and energy to speed missions through deep space than any other rocket, our SLS rocket, along with our lunar Gateway and Orion spacecraft, creates the backbone for our deep space exploration and Artemis lunar mission goals.

Here’s why our SLS rocket is a deep space rocket like no other:

It’s a heavy lifter

The Artemis missions will send humans 280,000 miles away from Earth. That’s 1,000 times farther into space than the International Space Station. To accomplish that mega feat, you need a rocket that’s designed to lift — and lift heavy. With help from a dynamic core stage — the largest stage we have ever built — the 5.75-million-pound SLS rocket can propel itself off the Earth. This includes the 57,000 pounds of cargo that will go to the Moon. To accomplish this, SLS will produce 15% more thrust at launch and during ascent than the Saturn V did for the Apollo Program.

We have the power 

Where do our rocket’s lift and thrust capabilities come from? If you take a peek under our powerful rocket’s hood, so to speak, you’ll find a core stage with four RS-25 engines that produce more than 2 million pounds of thrust alongside two solid rocket boosters that each provide another 3.6 million pounds of thrust power. It’s a bold design. Together, they provide an incredible 8.8 million pounds of thrust to power the Artemis missions off the Earth. The engines and boosters are modified heritage hardware from the Space Shuttle Program, ensuring high performance and reliability to drive our deep space missions.

A rocket with style

While our rocket’s core stage design will remain basically the same for each of the Artemis missions, the SLS rocket’s upper stage evolves to open new possibilities for payloads and even robotic scientific missions to worlds farther away than the Moon like Mars, Saturn and Jupiter. For the first three Artemis missions, our SLS rocket uses an interim cryogenic propulsion stage with one RL10 engine to send Orion to the lunar south pole. For Artemis missions following the initial 2024 Moon landing, our SLS rocket will have an exploration upper stage with bigger fuel tanks and four RL10 engines so that Orion, up to four astronauts and larger cargoes can be sent to the Moon, too. Additional core stages and upper stages will support either crewed Artemis missions, science missions or cargo missions for a sustained presence in deep space.

It’s just the beginning

Crews at our Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans are in the final phases of assembling the core stage for Artemis I— and are already working on assembly for Artemis II.

Through the Artemis program, we aim not just to return humans to the Moon, but to create a sustainable presence there as well. While there, astronauts will learn to use the Moon’s natural resources and harness our newfound knowledge to prepare for the horizon goal: humans on Mars.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Women in Exploration: From Human Computers to All-Woman Spacewalks

Since the 19th century, women have been making strides in areas like coding, computing, programming and space travel, despite the challenges they have faced. Sally Ride joined NASA in 1983 and five years later she became the first female American astronaut. Ride's accomplishments paved the way for the dozens of other women who became astronauts, and the hundreds of thousands more who pursued careers in science and technology. Just last week, we celebrated our very first #AllWomanSpacewalk with astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir.

Here are just a couple of examples of pioneers who brought us to where we are today:

The Conquest of the Sound Barrier

Pearl Young was hired in 1922 by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), NASA’s predecessor organization, to work at its Langley site in support in instrumentation, as one of the first women hired by the new agency. Women were also involved with the NACA at the Muroc site in California (now Armstrong Flight Research Center) to support flight research on advanced, high-speed aircraft. These women worked on the X-1 project, which became the first airplane to fly faster than the speed of sound. 

Young was the first woman hired as a technical employee and the second female physicist working for the federal government.

The Human Computers of Langley

The NACA hired five women in 1935 to form its first “computer pool”, because they were hardworking, “meticulous” and inexpensive. After the United States entered World War II, the NACA began actively recruiting similar types to meet the workload. These women did all the mathematical calculations – by hand – that desktop and mainframe computers do today.

Computers played a role in major projects ranging from World War II aircraft testing to transonic and supersonic flight research and the early space program. Women working as computers at Langley found that the job offered both challenges and opportunities. With limited options for promotion, computers had to prove that women could successfully do the work and then seek out their own opportunities for advancement.

Revolutionizing X-ray Astronomy

Marjorie Townsend was blazing trails from a very young age. She started college at age 15 and became the first woman to earn an engineering degree from the George Washington University when she graduated in 1951. At NASA, she became the first female spacecraft project manager, overseeing the development and 1970 launch of the UHURU satellite. The first satellite dedicated to x-ray astronomy, UHURU detected, surveyed and mapped celestial X-ray sources and gamma-ray emissions.

Women of Apollo

NASA’s mission to land a human on the Moon for the very first time took hundreds of thousands workers. These are some of the stories of the women who made our recent #Apollo50th anniversary possible:

• Margaret Hamilton led a NASA team of software engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and helped develop the flight software for NASA’s Apollo missions. She also coined the term “software engineering.” Her team’s groundbreaking work was perfect; there were no software glitches or bugs during the crewed Apollo missions. 

• JoAnn Morgan was the only woman working in Mission Control when the Apollo 11 mission launched. She later accomplished many NASA “firsts” for women:  NASA winner of a Sloan Fellowship, division chief, senior executive at the Kennedy Space Center and director of Safety and Mission Assurance at the agency.

• Judy Sullivan, was the first female engineer in the agency’s Spacecraft Operations organization, was the lead engineer for health and safety for Apollo 11, and the only woman helping Neil Armstrong suit up for flight.

Hidden Figures

Author Margot Lee Shetterly’s book – and subsequent movie – Hidden Figures, highlighted African-American women who provided instrumental support to the Apollo program, all behind the scenes.

• An alumna of the Langley computing pool, Mary Jackson was hired as the agency’s first African-American female engineer in 1958. She specialized in boundary layer effects on aerospace vehicles at supersonic speeds. 

• An extraordinarily gifted student, Katherine Johnson skipped several grades and attended high school at age 13 on the campus of a historically black college. Johnson calculated trajectories, launch windows and emergency backup return paths for many flights, including Apollo 11.

• Christine Darden served as a “computress” for eight years until she approached her supervisor to ask why men, with the same educational background as her (a master of science in applied mathematics), were being hired as engineers. Impressed by her skills, her supervisor transferred her to the engineering section, where she was one of few female aerospace engineers at NASA Langley during that time.

Lovelace’s Woman in Space Program

Geraldyn “Jerrie” Cobb was the among dozens of women recruited in 1960 by Dr. William Randolph "Randy" Lovelace II to undergo the same physical testing regimen used to help select NASA’s first astronauts as part of his privately funded Woman in Space Program.

Ultimately, thirteen women passed the same physical examinations that the Lovelace Foundation had developed for NASA’s astronaut selection process. They were: Jerrie Cobb, Myrtle "K" Cagle, Jan Dietrich, Marion Dietrich, Wally Funk, Jean Hixson, Irene Leverton, Sarah Gorelick, Jane B. Hart, Rhea Hurrle, Jerri Sloan, Gene Nora Stumbough, and Bernice Trimble Steadman. Though they were never officially affiliated with NASA, the media gave these women the unofficial nicknames “Fellow Lady Astronaut Trainees” and the “Mercury Thirteen.”

The First Woman on the Moon

The early space program inspired a generation of scientists and engineers. Now, as we embark on our Artemis program to return humanity to the lunar surface by 2024, we have the opportunity to inspire a whole new generation. The prospect of sending the first woman to the Moon is an opportunity to influence the next age of women explorers and achievers.

This material was adapted from a paper written by Shanessa Jackson (Stellar Solutions, Inc.), Dr. Patricia Knezek (NASA), Mrs. Denise Silimon-Hill (Stellar Solutions), and Ms. Alexandra Cross (Stellar Solutions) and submitted to the 2019 International Astronautical Congress (IAC). For more information about IAC and how you can get involved, click here.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

What future missions are you looking forward to the most?

Top 5 Technologies Needed for a Spacecraft to Survive Deep Space

When a spacecraft built for humans ventures into deep space, it requires an array of features to keep it and a crew inside safe. Both distance and duration demand that spacecraft must have systems that can reliably operate far from home, be capable of keeping astronauts alive in case of emergencies and still be light enough that a rocket can launch it.

Missions near the Moon will start when the Orion spacecraft leaves Earth atop the world’s most powerful rocket, the Space Launch System. After launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Orion will travel beyond the Moon to a distance more than 1,000 times farther than where the International Space Station flies in low-Earth orbit, and farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever ventured. To accomplish this feat, Orion has built-in technologies that enable the crew and spacecraft to explore far into the solar system. Let’s check out the top five: 

Systems to Live and Breathe

As humans travel farther from Earth for longer missions, the systems that keep them alive must be highly reliable while taking up minimal mass and volume. Orion will be equipped with advanced environmental control and life support systems designed for the demands of a deep space mission. A high-tech system already being tested aboard the space station will remove carbon dioxide (CO2) and humidity from inside Orion. The efficient system replaces many chemical canisters that would consume up to 10 percent of crew livable area. To save additional space, Orion will also have a new compact toilet, smaller than the one on the space station.

Highly reliable systems are critically important when distant crew will not have the benefit of frequent resupply shipments to bring spare parts from Earth. Even small systems have to function reliably to support life in space, from a working toilet to an automated fire suppression system or exercise equipment that helps astronauts stay in shape to counteract the zero-gravity environment. Distance from home also demands that Orion have spacesuits capable of keeping astronaut alive for six days in the event of cabin depressurization to support a long trip home.

Proper Propulsion

The farther into space a vehicle ventures, the more capable its propulsion systems need to be in order to maintain its course on the journey with precision and ensure its crew can get home.

Orion’s highly capable service module serves as the powerhouse for the spacecraft and provides propulsion capabilities that enable it to go around the Moon and back on exploration missions. The service module has 33 engines of various sizes. The main engine will provide major in-space maneuvering capabilities throughout the mission such as inserting Orion into lunar orbit and firing powerfully enough to exit orbit for a return trip to Earth. The other 32 engines are used to steer and control Orion on orbit.

In part due to its propulsion capabilities, including tanks that can hold nearly 2,000 gallons of propellant and a back up for the main engine in the event of a failure, Orion’s service module is equipped to handle the rigors of travel for missions that are both far and long. It has the ability to bring the crew home in a variety of emergency situations.

The Ability to Hold Off the Heat

Going to the Moon is no easy task, and it’s only half the journey. The farther a spacecraft travels in space, the more heat it will generate as it returns to Earth. Getting back safely requires technologies that can help a spacecraft endure speeds 30 times the speed of sound and heat twice as hot as molten lava or half as hot as the sun.

When Orion returns from the Moon it will be traveling nearly 25,000 mph, a speed that could cover the distance from Los Angeles to New York City in six minutes. Its advanced heat shield, made with a material called AVCOAT, is designed to wear away as it heats up. Orion’s heat shield is the largest of its kind ever built and will help the spacecraft withstand temperatures around 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit during reentry though Earth’s atmosphere.

Before reentry, Orion also will endure a 700-degree temperature range from about minus 150 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit. Orion’s highly capable thermal protection system, paired with thermal controls, will protect it during periods of direct sunlight and pitch black darkness while its crews comfortably enjoy a safe and stable interior temperature of about 77 degrees Fahrenheit.

Radiation Protection

As a spacecraft travels on missions beyond the protection of Earth’s magnetic field, it will be exposed to a harsher radiation environment than in low-Earth orbit with greater amounts of radiation from charged particles and solar storms. This kind of radiation can cause disruptions to critical computers, avionics and other equipment. Humans exposed to large amounts of radiation can experience both acute and chronic health problems ranging from near-term radiation sickness to the potential of developing cancer in the long-term.

Orion was designed from the start with built in system-level features to ensure reliability of essential elements of the spacecraft during potential radiation events. For example, Orion is equipped with four identical computers that each are self-checking, plus an entirely different backup computer, to ensure it can still send commands in the event of a disruption. Engineers have tested parts and systems to a high standard to ensure that all critical systems remain operable even under extreme circumstances.

Orion also has a makeshift storm shelter below the main deck of the crew module. In the event of a solar radiation event, we developed plans for crew on board to create a temporary shelter inside using materials on board. A variety of radiation sensors will also be on the spacecraft to help scientists better understand the radiation environment far away from Earth. One investigation, called AstroRad, will fly on Exploration Mission-1 and test an experimental vest that has the potential to help shield vital organs and decrease exposure from solar particle events.

Constant Communication and Navigation

Spacecraft venturing far from home go beyond the Global Positioning System (GPS) in space and above communication satellites in Earth orbit. To talk with mission control in Houston, Orion’s communication and navigation systems will switch from our Tracking and Data Relay Satellites (TDRS) system used by the International Space Station, and communicate through the Deep Space Network.

Orion is equipped with backup communication and navigation systems to help the spacecraft stay in contact with the ground and orient itself if its primary systems fail. The backup navigation system, a relatively new technology called optical navigation, uses a camera to take pictures of the Earth, Moon and stars and autonomously triangulate Orion’s position from the photos. Its backup emergency communications system doesn’t use the primary system or antennae for high-rate data transfer.

Keep up with all the latest news on our newest, state-of-the art spacecraft by following NASA Orion on Facebook and Twitter. 

More on our Moon to Mars plans, here. 

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

We’re Turning up the Heat on the Artemis I Spacecraft 🔥

The Orion spacecraft for Artemis I is headed to Ohio, where a team of engineers and technicians at our Plum Brook Station stand ready to test it under extreme simulated in-space conditions, like temperatures up to 300°F, at the world’s premier space environments test facility.

Why so much heat? What’s the point of the test? We’ve got answers to all your burning questions.

Here, in the midst of a quiet, rural landscape in Sandusky, Ohio, is our Space Environments Complex, home of the world’s most powerful space simulation facilities. The complex houses a massive thermal vacuum chamber (100-foot diameter and 122-foot tall), which allows us to “test like we fly” and accurately simulate space flight conditions while still on the ground.

Orion’s upcoming tests here are important because they will confirm the spacecraft’s systems perform as designed, while ensuring safe operation for the crew during future Artemis missions.

Tests will be completed in two phases, beginning with a thermal vacuum test, lasting approximately 60 days, inside the vacuum chamber to stress-test and check spacecraft systems while powered on.

During this phase, the spacecraft will be subjected to extreme temperatures, ranging from -250°F to 300 °F, to replicate flying in-and-out of sunlight and shadow in space.

To simulate the extreme temperatures of space, a specially-designed system, called the Heat Flux, will surround Orion like a cage and heat specific parts of the spacecraft during the test. This image shows the Heat Flux installed inside the vacuum chamber. The spacecraft will also be surrounded on all sides by a cryogenic-shroud, which provides the cold background temperatures of space.

We’ll also perform electromagnetic interference tests. Sounds complicated, but, think of it this way. Every electronic component gives off some type of electromagnetic field, which can affect the performance of other electronics nearby—this is why you’re asked to turn off your cellphone on an airplane. This testing will ensure the spacecraft’s electronics work properly when operated at the same time and won’t be affected by outside sources.

What’s next? After the testing, we’ll send Orion back to our Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it will be installed atop the powerful Space Launch System rocket in preparation for their first integrated test flight, called Artemis I, which is targeted for 2020.

To learn more about the Artemis program, why we’re going to the Moon and our progress to send the first woman and the next man to the lunar surface by 2024, visit: nasa.gov/moon2mars.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com