NASA has announced that the Orion spacecraft has entered lunar orbit

NASA has announced that the Orion spacecraft has entered lunar orbit
This image, provided by NASA, shows images of the Orion spacecraft's ninth day of flight as it looks at Earth through a camera mounted on one of its solar panels.

NASA announced Friday, Nov. 25, that the Orion spacecraft was placed into distant lunar orbit on the tenth day of the Artemis-1 mission. In BlogThe US space agency said:

“During this lunar orbit, flight controllers will monitor critical systems [d’Orion] and perform experiments related to the deep space environment. »

read more: Mission Artemis-1: The Dream of Space Victory and Its Cost

This is New capsuleIt is slated to carry astronauts to the moon in the coming years – the last to set foot on its surface since the Apollo mission in 1972 – and currently travels more than 64,000 kilometers from the moon.

Without crew on board

At this distance, it would take no less than six days to complete half a lunar orbit before beginning the return journey to Earth.

This first test flight of the Orion spacecraft, without a crew on board, was to be used to ensure the vehicle was safe. A landing in the Pacific Ocean was scheduled for December 11, twenty-five days later.

The success of this mission depends on the future of Artemis-2, which will take astronauts around the moon without landing, and then Artemis-3, which will mark the return of humans to the lunar surface. These works are scheduled to take place in 2024 and 2025 respectively.

The world with AFP

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