NASA's Artemis 1 Mission Prepares to Head to the Moon, Will Test New Space Launch System (SLS) Rocket

NASA's Artemis 1 Moon mission is launching this month with the main goal of testing the brand new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the Orion spacecraft and the ground systems at Kennedy Space Center, Space.com reported. The American space agency hopes these technologies will help bring humans back to the lunar surface in a few years.

As Artemis 1 is headed for the Moon, it will be carrying 10 secondary payloads, two of which were designed to search for water on the Moon. These CubeSats are the Lunar IceCube and Lunar Polar Hydrogen Mapper (LunaH-Map). Finding water on the Moon is crucial for long-term missions, so explorers could hopefully harvest breathable air and rocket fuel from ice.

When Is Artemis 1 Launching?

Pete Paceley, the principal director of Draper responsible for Artemis 1's guidance software, told Interestesting Engineering last month in an interview that the mission will likely launch in August.

On July 20, NASA announced that Aug. 29 would be the provisional date for Artemis 1. That means it will be weeks away from seeing the SLS and Orion spacecraft take flight. The decision came after the success of the much-delayed wet dress rehearsal in June when SLS was filled with fuel and performed a simulated countdown.

But as Interesting Engineering reported, nothing is guaranteed when it comes to rocket launches as preparations may go smoothly and then suddenly the weather refuses to cooperate. SLS and Orion spacecraft will start to roll out to the launchpad on Aug. 18.

NASA's Water-Scouting CubeSat Will Hitch a Ride on Artemis 1 Mission

According to NASA, one of the payloads the Artemis 1 mission carries to the Moon is a water-scouting CubeSat called Lunar IceCube, which is not much bigger than a shoe box that will have an outsized impact on lunar science.

The CubeSat is integrated into the SLS rocket and ready to go to the orbit of the Moon as part of the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission. It will orbit the Moon and use its spectrometer to investigate lunar ice and gain further knowledge about its dynamics.

Previous missions have revealed its presence on the lunar surface and scientists have been interested in the absorption and release of water from the Moon's rocky and dusty surface called regolith. The Lunar IceCube will investigate this process so NASA can map the changes on the lunar surface as they happen.

(Photo : EVA MARIE UZCATEGUI/AFP via Getty Images)
NASAs Artemis I Moon rocket sits at Launch Pad Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 15, 2022.

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Moreover, the CubeSat will study the exosphere or the thin atmosphere-like cover surrounding the Moon. Scientists noted that understanding the dynamics of lunar water and other substances on the Moon will help predict seasonal changes that could impact the use of resources in the future.

These will all be the mission of the 31-pound Lunar IceCube. There are more payloads catching a ride to the Moon aboard the Artemis 1 and these small satellites will hopefully increase what science currently know of the lunar surface.

Final Test of SLS Rocket for Artemis I Mission

NASA engineers are testing a system designed to destroy the massive SLS rocket in case of problems preventing its launch this month.

The space agency said in an update that they have been working to certify the critical flight termination system (FTS) on the SLS that marks the final test before the rocket is rolled out to the pad on Aug. 16 at the Launch Complex 39B on Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Space Launch Delta 45 of the US Space Force unit that operates the Eastern Range requires testing the FTS.

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Check out more news and information on Artemis Program in Science Times.