Four astronauts are scheduled to make a trip around the moon around 2024. It will be the first time humans have traveled to the moon in half a century, and NASA wants to make sure its rocket is ready.
The agency’s space launch system (SLS) The rocket entrusted with the historic launch has already flown once.Sent successfully artemis 1an unmanned spacecraft with three mannequins, moon In 2022. Now, it has a more delicate mission: ensuring the safety of the four. artemis 2 Astronauts remain safe on board despite the stresses of launch.
“The most obvious (difference) is the crew onboard. The whole workforce mindset changes from a safety and work environment standpoint,” Cliff Lanham, senior manager of vehicle operations, told Space.com. Lanham orion spaceship SLS is ready.
Artemis 2 will send four astronauts to the moon. NASA Commander reed weissmanNASA pilot victor glover (first person of color to leave) earth orbit), NASA Mission Specialist Christina Koch (the first woman to do so) and of the Canadian Space Agency Jeremy Hansen (first non-American).
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Additional testing of new systems aboard the SLS and its mobile launcher is underway to prepare the rocket for readiness, including an emergency evacuation system for the crew if necessary. Larnum emphasized that the crew is also very involved, including planning on-site tests with four astronauts in spacesuits.
The team is also starting from scratch in terms of preparation, as the team is building on the months of testing and years of development that preceded the unmanned Artemis 1 launch, said Jeremy Graeber, assistant launch director. “I have no intention of doing so,” he said in the same interview. Around the month of 2022.
NASA says the “foundation” laid by Artemis 1 will ease preparations for its successor mission. That’s a high expectation from mission planners, given that Artemis 1 suffered a glitch during a simulated fuel launch countdown known as a “wet dress rehearsal” and took several months to lift off.
Related: NASA declares successful Artemis 1 lunar rocket test, launch preparations begin
“We have solved many of these challenges from a procedural and training perspective, and now we are strengthening that foundation and adding crew-related content,” Graeber said of Artemis 2 and Artemis 1. talked about the difference.
This interview took place shortly after the Artemis 2 mobile launcher was deployed to the pad in late August for testing over the next six months. Sometime in September or so, for example, the crew will be simulating launch day alongside ground crews. They wake up at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, suit up and head to the tower. While there won’t be a rocket waiting for you as you ascend the elevator, Graeber said the practice will be key to resolving issues on launch day next year.
Two emergency evacuation drills are also planned for the crew, one during the day and one at night, each scheduled to take place later this year. The astronauts don spacesuits and depart from the tower in baskets below the zipline. They will glide to safety in a nearby holding area, where a waiting vehicle will take them back to the safety of the NASA building.
In early 2024, the launch vehicle will then roll back to NASA’s massive Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to achieve a major milestone: stacking and assembling the Space Launch System rocket for testing inside the building. . Next, preparations will be made for tank-borne tests, and in the fall of 2024, the launcher and rocket will depart together to the airfield. Stack then returns to his VAB for the final time to complete preparations on the Orion spacecraft before heading to launch. Get ready for the big day later in 2024.
Graeber emphasized that preparations for Artemis 2 will be careful at each stage. In other words, crew safety always takes precedence over a predetermined launch schedule.
Related: How Artemis 2 astronauts are training for the 2024 moon mission
“We will be doing about the same number of launch countdown simulations for Artemis 2, because we have an additional responsibility to our flight crews, and that will help us through everything related to Artemis 2. ‘s top priority is our safety.” Air and ground crew. That will be the focus of everything we do. ”
Continuous practice is part of that process, says Jesse Berdis, deputy project manager for Mobile Launcher 1 (the launcher used in Artemis 2). He likened it to intensive preparation for a live sports championship. “It’s kind of like muscle memory, making sure we know what we’re doing and that we’ve been training for Super Bowl football a long time ago. he said.
Key changes to note in Artemis 2 include:
fuel adjustment. The wet dress rehearsal attempt ahead of Artemis 2 included an unexpected rain leak, a short-lived grass fire, and a hurricane, all of which “presented a lot of learning opportunities for us. “It became,” Graeber said. He said the team now has data to adjust fuel pressure, temperature and flow to avoid leaks. SLS designers also focus on the “interface”, or the point where the fuel line enters the tank, to do their best to avoid leaks. Tanking tests will help confirm that these interfaces are OK before launch.
The design of the mobile launcher has been slightly changed. Even though the launcher lost the elevator door (seen in a dramatic video) There were very few real problems during Artemis 1’s launch. He worked 99% perfectly according to NASA standards. NASA and its contractors are reinforcing areas damaged by Artemis 1, including piping and blast shields around the flame hole. The design of the flame deflector main plate is also changed. That said, experts told Verdis that stress during launch could cause problems elsewhere and unexpectedly. “That’s just part of the space industry. “
“Rainbird” has been upgraded. NASA reduced Artemis 1’s launch force with five large water nozzles, also known as “rainbirds.” Engineers are now using that data to distribute water more evenly throughout the system ahead of Artemis 2.
“We made some modifications to the rainbird’s head to direct water to specific locations,” Verdis said. “When they flow, they provide performance coverage across the deck to ensure the protection of mobile launchers from rocket explosions.”
Small but important changes in the campaign include the removal of electromagnetic interference tests in SLS (as Artemis 2 uses a similar stack as Artemis 1). Added crew communication system tests. and add new payloads to Orion for the mission.