artemis

NASA's Artemis 1 mission is on track for its December 11 splashdown after the uncrewed Orion spacecraft completed a second powered flyby of the Moon today that brought it within 79 miles (127 km) of the lunar surface at 11:42 am EST.

NASA's Artemis 1 Moon mission has left lunar orbit and is returning to Earth. At 4:53 pm EST, the uncrewed Orion spacecraft fired its main engine for one minute and 45 seconds, placing it on a lunar flyby trajectory that will ultimately send it home.

NASA's Artemis 1 mission notched up a new record today, when the uncrewed Orion spacecraft reached the farthest distance from Earth achieved by a human-rated spacecraft, breaking the previous record set by Apollo 13 on April 15, 1970.

NASA has confirmed that the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission has achieved lunar orbit. After an orbital maneuvering engine burn lasting 88 seconds, the Orion spacecraft will travel at an altitude of around 40,000 miles (64,374 km) above the lunar surface.

After a lift-off from the Kennedy Space Center last Wednesday and a close fly-by of the Moon earlier this week, it had been pretty smooth sailing for NASA’s Artemis I mission so far. Mission control has now experienced a small hiccup, however.

NASA's Artemis 1 deep-space mission reached a major goal today as the uncrewed spacecraft successfully completed its powered flyby of the Moon that brought it within 81 miles (130 km) of the lunar surface.

The most powerful rocket in the world, NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) successfully lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center at 1:47am EST this Wednesday. It proceeded to carry the uncrewed Orion spacecraft into orbit, as part of the Artemis I mission.

NASA is pressing ahead with a launch attempt for Artemis I this week, with the Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule in need of only minor repairs after being exposed to the forces of Hurricane Nicole out on the pad.

NASA is pressing ahead with its Artemis I mission, putting recent setbacks behind it to schedule another launch attempt. According to the agency, the rocket and spacecraft will be returned to the pad in early November ahead of lift-off later that month.

As Florida braces for a strengthening Hurricane Ian, which is expected to bring powerful storms and flooding rainfall to the state, NASA is taking no chances with its massive Moon rocket and Orion capsule.

It's another return to the drawing board for NASA scientists and engineers working on the Artemis I mission, which was due to lift off on Saturday until a hydrogen leak led to a last-minute scrubbing.

NASA has dusted itself off from the cancelled launch of Artemis I earlier this week and set a new date for a second attempt. The announcement comes after a review of data from Monday's efforts, and sets the stage for lift-off this coming Saturday.