Artemis I shares Earth views after launch

• The Orion spacecraft’s first sights of Earth were captured 9 hours into the mission.
• The historic Artemis I mission launched early Wednesday.
• The event launched an un-crewed spacecraft around the moon.

The historic Artemis I mission launched early Wednesday. The event launched an un-crewed spacecraft around the moon, clearing the stage for NASA to return astronauts to the lunar surface after 50 years.

The Orion spacecraft’s first sights of Earth were captured 9 hours into the mission, 57,000 miles from our planet en route to the moon.

Since the final Apollo mission in 1972, a human-made spacecraft hasn’t seen Earth.

The 322-foot-tall SLS rocket fired up at 1:47 a.m. ET. It emitted 9 million pounds (4.1 million kg) of thrust to launch from Florida and into the night sky.

Orion, a gumdrop-shaped capsule, separated from the rocket in space. Orion is meant to carry humans, but its test passengers are mannequins collecting data for future crews.

The SLS rocket burned millions of pounds of fuel before breaking apart, leaving Orion with just one engine. This engine then performed two massive burns to put the spacecraft on the moon’s path. Two hours after launch, the rocket engine fell away, leaving Orion to free-fly.

Eight hours after launch, Orion performed its outbound trajectory correction burn. The burn prepares Orion for its lunar flyby on November 21 and closest approach on November 25.

Next week, Orion will travel within 96 km of the moon’s surface.

16 cameras inside and outside the spacecraft film its passage around the moon. Commander Moonikin Campos, one of the Artemis mannequins, was pictured in survival gear on Wednesday.

NASA said Orion will travel 1.3 million miles, beyond any prior human ship. Orion will orbit the moon and return in 25.5 days. The capsule will splash down on December 11 off the coast of San Diego, where recovery crews will be waiting.

NASA will monitor the spacecraft’s functioning during the trip. The team will evaluate Orion’s readiness for its first crewed flight to lunar orbit in 2024.

This mission marks the inaugural launch of the SLS rocket, the most powerful ever to reach Earth’s orbit, with 15% more thrust than the Saturn V rocket that powered NASA’s 20th-century moon landings.

This is the first in a series of progressively demanding Artemis missions as NASA seeks to create a lunar base. Artemis II will follow Artemis I’s journey, but with astronauts. Later this decade, Artemis III will land a woman and a person of color on the moon.

The long journey to launch

The mission team faced technical challenges with the giant moon rocket and two hurricanes at the launch site before Wednesday’s launch.

Fueling the SLS rocket with super chilled liquid hydrogen caused NASA to cancel past launch attempts, but on Tuesday, the tanks were full despite leak difficulties that delayed fueling hours before launch.

Artemis I’s impressive figures

NASA deployed a “red crew” to make repairs on a loaded rocket. Fuel leaks were stopped by tightening nuts and bolts.

It’s alarming that the rocket is living, groaning, and venting. My heart was racing. We showed up despite my nerves. The steps. After the launch, Trent Annis said on NASA TV, “We were ready to go.”

NASA staff in the firing room, where agency officials make important decisions before launch, celebrated a success.

Artemis was speechless. I launch the first-ever female director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson.

Blackwell-Thompson told the firing chamber engineers to “appreciate the moment.” “Our crew worked hard. You’ve worked hard as a team. “Now’s your chance.”

Blackwell-Thompson called for tie-cutting, a NASA ritual in which launch operators cut their ties. Mike Leinbach cut Blackwell-shift, Thompson’s, and she vowed to remain all night if necessary. “I’ll gladly sever relations.”

NASA administrator Bill Nelson witnessed the launch from a rooftop with other astronauts.

Nelson: “Many wanted to be aboard that rocket.”

As @NASA_Orion begins the #Artemis I mission to the Moon, the spacecraft captured these stunning views of our home planet. pic.twitter.com/Pzk3PDt7sd

— NASA Artemis (@NASAArtemis) November 16, 2022

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