2024-01-10 03:23:13
“We are adjusting our schedule, to target Artemis 2 in September 2025, and September 2026 for Artemis 3,” declared NASA boss Bill Nelson during a press conference. Artémis 2 was previously planned for the end of 2024, and Artémis 3 for the end of 2025.
“Safety is our first priority,” Bill Nelson said, indicating that the space agency and private partner companies needed more time. Despite these postponements, “I really don’t believe that China will land (on the Moon) before us,” said Bill Nelson.
The Artemis program aims to establish a lasting presence on the Moon, in order to prepare the journey of a first crew to Mars. This program was inaugurated in 2022 with the Artemis 1 mission, which successfully flew the Orion spacecraft around the Moon, in order to test it without a crew.
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Artemis 2 postponed for security reasons
The Artemis 2 mission is expected to last around 10 days and send four astronauts on a trip around the Moon, without landing there. They are three Americans – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch – and a Canadian, Jeremy Hansen, all already in full training.
This mission is postponed for security reasons because several problems must be resolved before takeoff, explained Amit Kshatriya, senior official at NASA. The first concerns the heat shield protecting the Orion capsule during its return to the Earth’s atmosphere. During Artemis 1, calcined matter was released, which was not expected. An investigation into this subject is due to conclude in the spring.
NASA also wants more time to look into the batteries of the Orion capsule’s ejection system, which must work in the event of a problem during takeoff.
Technical developments underway for Artémis 3
Artemis 3 will then be the first mission to deposit astronauts on the lunar surface in more than 50 years and the end of Apollo. But two essential elements are not yet ready: firstly a lander, ordered from the space company SpaceX, and spacesuits adapted to the lunar environment, the development of which has been entrusted to Axiom Space.
The new date of 2026 makes it possible to take into account “the development challenges encountered by our industrial partners,” said Amit Kshatriya.
The lander will be a modified version of the Starship spacecraft, currently under development by billionaire Elon Musk’s company. However, the first two flights of Starship, mounted on its Super Heavy thruster, ended in explosions in 2023. A new test flight should take place in February, SpaceX manager Jessica Jensen said on Tuesday.
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To reach the Moon, Starship will also have to be refueled in flight – a risky and untested operation. About “ten” Starships filled with fuel will have to take off to supply the copy of the vessel that will make the trip to the Moon, said Jessica Jensen. An uncrewed Starship moon landing must also be carried out before Artemis 3.
Artemis 4 is still planned for September 2028. This will be the first mission to the new Gateaway space station. The launch of the first two elements of this station in orbit around the Moon was to take place in 2025 but this schedule will also be revised, NASA said.
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