Four astronauts will make a trip around the moon in 2024 or so. It’s the first trip to the moon by humans in half a century, and NASA wants to make sure its rocket is ready.
The agency’s space launch system (SLS) The rocket assigned to the historic launch has already been launched once. sent succesfully Artemis 1an unmanned spacecraft with three mannequins on board the moon In 2022. Now she has the more delicate task of confirming all four Artemis 2 The astronauts remain safe on board during the stresses of launch.
“The most obvious (difference) is having the crew on board. This changes the mindset of the entire workforce, from a safety standpoint and our work environments,” Cliff Lanham, senior director of vehicle operations, told Space.com. Lanham is responsible for the operational activities required to obtain… Orion spacecraft The SLS is ready.
Artemis 2 is scheduled to send four astronauts to the moon: NASA Leader Reid WisemanNASA pilot Victor Glover (The first person of color leaves Land Orbiter), NASA’s mission specialist Christina Koch (the first woman to do so) and the Canadian Space Agency Jeremy Hansen (First non-American).
Related: Four for the moon! NASA appoints Artemis 2 astronauts for the first lunar mission since Apollo
To prepare the missile, additional tests are underway with new systems on board the SLS and its mobile launcher, including an emergency escape system for the crew if necessary. He assured Lahnam that the crew is also heavily involved, including planned on-site testing with the quartet of astronauts wearing their space suits.
The team also won’t be starting from scratch in terms of preparation, since they’re relying on months of testing and years of development that occurred before the uncrewed Artemis 1 launch, Jeremy Graeber, assistant launch director, said in the same interview. around the moon in 2022.
NASA says the “foundation” laid by Artemis 1 will facilitate preparations for the subsequent mission. This is a big hope for mission planners, since Artemis 1 took extra months to lift off from Earth after snags in a simulated launch countdown with fuel on board, known as a “wet dress rehearsal.”
Related: NASA announces the success of the Artemis 1 moon rocket test, and begins preparations for launch
“We’ve addressed many of these challenges from a procedural perspective and from a training perspective,” Graeber said of Artemis 2’s differences from Artemis 1. “Now we’re working to strengthen that foundation and add crew-related content.”
The interview was conducted shortly after the portable launcher for Artemis 2 went on the platform in late August for testing for the next six months. Sometime in September or so, for example, the crew will simulate launch day alongside the ground crew: They will wake up at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, suit up and launch into the tower. While there is no rocket waiting for them as they ascend the elevator, Graeber said training will be key in ironing out any kinks on launch day next year.
There are also two planned emergency escapes with the crew: one during the day and one at night, both scheduled for late in the year. While wearing spacesuits, astronauts will exit the tower via baskets under a zipline. They will slide to safety at a nearby staging area, where a waiting vehicle will return them to the safety of NASA’s building.
In early 2024, the launch pad will then return to NASA’s massive Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) for a major accomplishment: stacking and assembling the Space Launch System rocket for tests in the building. Next comes preparation for testing the tank, when the launch pad and rocket together head to the pad in the fall of 2024. Then finally, the group will return to VAB to finish preparations on the Orion spacecraft before heading to launch. A pillow for the big day in late 2024.
Graeber stressed that preparations for Artemis 2 will be cautious through every step; In other words, crew safety will always come before any predetermined launch schedule.
Related: How are the Artemis 2 astronauts training for their 2024 lunar mission?
“We’ll be doing roughly the same number of launch countdown simulations leading up to Artemis 2, because now we have this additional responsibility to our flight crew. And that’s our number one priority in everything related to Artemis 2: the safety of our crew. Our flight crew and our ground crews. That’s going to be Focus on everything we do.
Constant practice is part of the process, said Jesse Berdis, deputy project manager for Mobile Launcher 1 (the launcher is used for Artemis 2). He likened it to intense preparation to get ready for a live sports tournament. “It’s kind of muscle memory, making sure we know what we’re doing and that we’ve trained the football for the Super Bowl long before that,” he said.
Some of the key changes to look out for in Artemis 2 include:
Disc fueling. Wetsuit training attempts prior to Artemis 2 included unexpected leaks, a brief grass fire, and a tornado, all of which “gave us an opportunity to learn a lot,” Graeber said. He added that the team now has data to adjust pressures, temperatures and fuel flow rates to avoid leaks. SLS designers also look at the “interfaces,” or the points where the fuel lines enter the tanks, to do their best to avoid leaks. Tank testing will help ensure that these interfaces are intact prior to launch.
Small design changes for the mobile operator. Despite the launch pad missing the elevator doors (Seen in a drama video) During Artemis 1’s liftoff, very few errors occurred; Its performance was 99 percent perfect by NASA standards. NASA and its contractors are working to reinforce any damaged areas on Artemis 1, such as pipes or blast shields around the flame vent. The Flame Reflector will also see changes to the design of the main boards. However, experts tell Perdis that the pressures of the launch could raise problems in another unexpected place; “It’s just part of it space industry.”
Upgrade “Rainbird”. NASA moderated the power of Artemis 1’s liftoff by using five large water nozzles, also known as “rainbirds.” Engineers are now using this data to distribute water throughout the system more evenly ahead of Artemis 2.
“We made some modifications to the rainbirds’ heads to direct water in specific locations,” Perdis said. “When they flow, they have performance coverage across the deck to make sure they protect the mobile launch pad from the rocket explosion.”
Smaller but crucial changes to the campaign include removing the electromagnetic interference test on the SLS (as Artemis 2 uses a similar stack as Artemis 1); Added testing of crew communications systems; And adding new payloads to Orion for the mission.
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