NASA fixes heat shield issue ahead of Artemis 2 launch
Technology
NASA is getting ready to launch Artemis 2 and has tackled the heat shield issue that popped up during Artemis 1's reentry in 2022, when some protective material came off.
After looking into it, they found the problem was with gas not venting properly in the Avcoat material—and they implemented mitigation measures intended to reduce the likelihood of a recurrence.
Tests and tweaks for safe return
With launch set for early March, NASA worked with Lockheed Martin and experts to run over 100 tests as part of post-flight analysis and testing of Avcoat block materials.
They've also tweaked the flight path by increasing the entry angle and dropping a risky maneuver, all to keep the four astronauts safe on their big lunar trip.