6 takeaways from NASA's Artemis II mission to the Moon
What's the story
NASA has successfully completed its Artemis II mission, a groundbreaking 10-day journey that took four astronauts on a record-breaking lunar flyby. The Orion spacecraft, carrying NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency's Jeremy Hansen, splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off California's coast yesterday. This historic mission was the first crewed flight to the Moon in over half a century and the first-ever to circle it. Here are some takeaways from the mission.
Living
The good, the bad, and the ugly
The Artemis II mission offered a unique insight into life inside the campervan-sized Orion capsule for 10 days. The astronauts shared live views of their workouts, meals, and even candid thoughts on what they would take next time. These included warmer sleeping bags and a spare computer due to one malfunctioning unit. The crew also had certain light-hearted moments such as naming a lunar crater after Wiseman's late wife, Carroll.
Test flight
Toilet troubles on Artemis II
The Artemis II mission was a test flight, with everything done being an experiment for future missions. However, it wasn't without its challenges. The crew faced issues with the Orion spacecraft's toilet system, which sometimes left it unusable when the storage tank filled up. NASA plans to fix this issue before the next Orion flight. There were also some false alarms from faulty sensors on Orion during the mission but they weren't seen as major concerns by mission controllers.
System leak
Orion had a propulsion leak
The service module of the Orion spacecraft, which provides oxygen, power supplies and propulsion during flight, also had a leak in its propulsion system. This affected the pressurization of propellant tanks. While NASA was aware of possible leaks before Artemis II's launch, mission controllers were confident it wouldn't affect the mission. However, Amit Kshatriya from NASA said this issue will need to be addressed for future flights as it worsened during the main engine burn on Day 2 of the flight.
Space curiosity
The internet loved Reid Wiseman's 'shower' moment
The Artemis II mission also sparked public interest in life aboard the Orion capsule. This was thanks to an array of 32 cameras and devices, 15 of which were mounted on the capsule itself, and 17 operated by the crew. The astronauts shared their experiences onboard, including Glover's viral moment when he took his shirt off to "shower" with wipes after an exercise session. Despite technical issues with their personal computing devices (PCD), they managed to keep things light-hearted during the mission.
Space constraints
Life inside the Orion capsule
The Orion spacecraft, dubbed "Integrity" by the crew, was 60% bigger than the Apollo Command Module. It provided space and amenities like a toilet and exercise machine. But it was still a bit cramped and messy, forcing the crew to bump into each other often. They had to strap into sleeping bags hanging from walls every night due to absence of up or down in space.
Entertainment
How did the crew stay entertained?
Despite not having a fridge, the Artemis II astronauts were provided with a delicious variety of shelf-stable meals by space food experts. This included 189 rehydrated menu items. The crew was also woken up each day by a different song from their pre-selected list. Among these were Sleepyhead by Young & Sick, Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie, and Free by Zac Brown Band which was followed by a recorded message from the musicians themselves.