This is the most powerful rocket in the world and this year it will take to the skies for the first time!

And with that first flight – currently planned for March 2022 – the Artemis program will also start, which is aimed, among other things, at putting the first woman on the moon.

In Florida, the final preparations are currently being made for a historic launch and the start of the Artemis I mission. During this unmanned mission, NASA’s brand new rocket (the Space Launch System) and spacecraft (Orion) take to the skies together for the first time and even briefly settle into orbit around the moon before returning to Earth. “This mission will really do something that has never been done before and teach us something we don’t know yet,” said mission manager Mike Sarafin.

The ultimate test

In recent years, it has been hard Space Launch System and Orion worked. And both have been extensively tested separately from each other. For example, Orion was launched on a Delta IV Heavy rocket in 2014. And also we could see the motors of the core stage and the boosters of the Space Launch System heard the roar a few times. But never before have the Space Launch System and Orion been tested as they were intended: stacked together, taking to the skies together. But that will change this year during Artemis-I. It is the baptism of fire for a rocket and spacecraft that NASA has been working on for about 15 years and has already invested tens of billions of dollars in it.

But then you have something. With the Space Launch System NASA has designed the most powerful rocket in the world. And with Orion, NASA now has a spacecraft specifically designed to take humans further into space than ever before.

Unmanned, but exciting

No people will join the flight during the test flight. But that doesn’t detract from the excitement that comes with this mission. Because not only will we soon see the most powerful rocket ever take to the skies; we will also witness that Orion—having spent longer in space than any other astronaut-built craft without docking at a space station—will return home at a much faster rate than any other spacecraft. And of course – as with any test flight – there is always the question of whether everything will go according to plan.

The mission

The thrilling test flight begins at the Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39B in Florida. From this launch pad it propels Space Launch System Orion into space with unprecedented power. About two minutes after launch, the boosters on either side of the powerful rocket are out of fuel. They are then rejected. About eight minutes after launch, the remaining core stage of the rocket empty. This part of the rocket is then also repelled. But that is the task of the Space Launch System not on it yet. Just below Orion is the so-called Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage. And once in space, it gives Orion the push it needs to reach the moon during the Artemis I mission. And just an hour and a half after launch, Orion officially sets course for the moon. Another half an hour later, the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage break away from Orion, and then quickly release 13 cubesats – small satellites – that will do research on the moon and asteroids, among other things.

Orion, meanwhile, continues to fly and, propelled further by a service module supplied by the European Space Agency, arrives at the moon about four days later. Orion skims over the lunar surface about 100 kilometers away and uses the moon’s gravity to settle into retrograde orbit around the moon. The probe remains in that orbit for about six days before setting course for Earth – again using the moon’s own gravity. When Orion enters the Earth’s atmosphere, it has a speed of about 11 kilometers per second. The spacecraft is also exposed to temperatures that rise above 2700 degrees Celsius. With a big splash, Orion will eventually land off the California coast, after which the capsule will be loaded onto a boat and returned to NASA. A thorough investigation must then show whether the capsule came out of the mission unscathed. The researchers can of course also draw on the enormous amount of data collected during their stay in space. Because all tests on Earth are of course very valuable, but how the launcher and capsule behave in space can only be determined with certainty in one way: by going there. And that makes the test flight invaluable.

At the request of NASA, ESA is providing a service module for Orion. This service module propels Orion further away from Earth and also supplies the capsule with electricity. During later manned missions, the service module also provides the astronauts on board with water, oxygen and a pleasant ambient temperature. Image: NASA.

And after that

As the name suggests, it doesn’t stop at Artemis-I. The test flight – if successful – will pave the way for manned missions to the moon, the first of which should take place in 2024. During this Artemis II mission, the moon will be flown again – but this time with four astronauts on board. It is the prelude to Artemis III in which several astronauts – including a woman for the first time – will actually set foot on the moon. This latter flight should take place sometime in 2025. Originally, the Artemis III astronauts planned to make a stopover during their flight to the moon at the yet-to-be-built Lunar Gateway – a space station orbiting the moon – and then transfer to a lunar lander developed by SpaceX. who would take them to the moon. However, it is questionable whether the Lunar Gateway will be ready in time, so NASA is also taking into account a scenario in which the lunar lander connects directly to Orion near the moon, after which the astronauts can also transfer to the lander in the absence of the Lunar Gateway for the final leg of their journey to the lunar surface.

giant leap

Ultimately, after Artemis III, NASA hopes to transport astronauts to the Gateway very regularly with the help of SLS and Orion. They can conduct research from that space station and/or descend to the moon’s surface, where NASA – together with other space agencies – wants to create a real base camp where astronauts can stay for up to two consecutive months. The knowledge and experience gained on the moon and in the Gateway in turn serves as preparation for the next ‘giant leap‘: Manned missions to Mars.

And so NASA’s vision for the future of space travel relies heavily on SLS and Orion. And with that, it will be a squeeze during that crucial test flight in March; the start of a whole new era in space travel depends on it.