Artemis Moon Program

[TomcatViP]

Meanwhile, NASA wants to make sure you don't get cold feet with Artemis:

Just what you need for the holidays... the coziness of a crackling and roaring rocket engine! Technically, this fireplace packs the heat of the SLS rocket’s four RS-25 engines and a pair of solid rocket boosters – just enough to get you to the Moon! (And get through the holidays with your in-laws.)

View: https://youtu.be/_cgTVTwu4nw

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has a new video out about possible Artemis updates for this month:

In this video I'll take a look at what could be ahead in the final month of 2024, now that Thanksgiving week is ending. At the Kennedy Space Center, the rest of Artemis II stacking waits for a possible December decision on the Orion heatshield, and preparations are being made to stand up the Artemis II SLS Core Stage for some offline work in the meantime.

I'll also go over the two SLS elements that were stacked, an Artemis II flight crew KSC visit before Thanksgiving, and a few other news and notes.

With possible decisions before the end of the year and possible announcements around the change in administrations, there's time to take a look at watch items for Artemis II, III, and the big picture for Artemis on a relatively slow news week.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
00:40 Artemis II SLS booster aft assembly stacking recap
04:06 Artemis II flight crew visit to KSC
05:15 VAB High Bay 2 notes, preparing to host Artemis II SLS Core Stage
06:03 Other news and notes, HLS Cargo awards and an Orion heatshield delivery
08:27 Big picture outlook as 2024 ends
12:54 Thanks for watching!

Personally I hope that the decision to go ahead with the stacking of Artemis II goes ahead this month.

 

[publiusr]

View: https://youtu.be/_cgTVTwu4nw

Arty dreams roasting on an open fire...DOGE shears nipping at your nose...

Sadly, I wonder if this stacking is just a way to delay the inevitable by looking busy.

"Aw, Mom---we were about finished with the snowman."

That heartwarming hearth scene makes me want a hot toddy....with fentanyl....I keep hearing the Attestupa theme from MIDSOMMAR--tell Mike Griffin to come down from Bechtel 's LUT...oh, where was I...ah yes, SLS must be an Ari Aster production--nothing left except head trauma and the wailing.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has a video out concerning the Orion heat-shield and what NASA decides will effect when Artemis II stacking starts:

We don't know for certain when, but NASA's Orion base heatshield investigation is expected to culminate in a set of decisions by the end of 2024, and this video takes a look at what is known ahead of that announcement. The Avcoat thermal protection material ablated away in larger pieces than predicted during the Artemis I re-entry back to Earth from the Moon two years ago.

After almost two years, NASA recently said it now understands what happened, but hasn't explained that publicly or said how it is going to resolve the issue with the next two heatshields that were already built. In this video I'll recap what has been said by NASA or by watchdog groups and what decisions are anticipated in the last few weeks of the year.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
01:02 Orion heatshield design history
02:52 Artemis I lunar skip re-entry
07:00 Description of heatshield performance and issue(s) from Artemis I
11:00 History of the heatshield investigation so far
17:56 Where are we now?
21:15 How lunar re-entry trajectories could influence launch availability
24:25 Looking at upcoming heatshield decisions
26:40 Thanks for watching!

 

[Flyaway]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1864735562432659605

View: https://twitter.com/SpaceflightNow/status/1864735562432659605


That's a minimum of 3.4 years between Artemis 1 and 2 launches.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1864737687241920733

View: https://twitter.com/NASAWatch/status/1864737687241920733


NASA Identifies Cause of Artemis I Orion Heat Shield Char Loss

After extensive analysis and testing, NASA has identified the technical cause of unexpected char loss across the Artemis I Orion spacecraft’s heat shield.

Engineers determined as Orion was returning from its uncrewed mission around the Moon, gases generated inside the heat shield’s ablative outer material called Avcoat were not able to vent and dissipate as expected. This allowed pressure to build up and cracking to occur, causing some charred material to break off in several locations.

“Our early Artemis flights are a test campaign, and the Artemis I test flight gave us an opportunity to check out our systems in the deep space environment before adding crew on future missions,” said Amit Kshatriya, deputy associate administrator, Moon to Mars Program Office, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The heat shield investigation helped ensure we fully understand the cause and nature of the issue, as well as the risk we are asking our crews to take when they venture to the Moon.”

Findings

Teams took a methodical approach to understanding and identifying the root cause of the char loss issue, including detailed sampling of the Artemis I heat shield, review of imagery and data from sensors on the spacecraft, and comprehensive ground testing and analysis.

During Artemis I, engineers used the skip guidance entry technique to return Orion to Earth. This technique provides more flexibility by extending the range Orion can fly after the point of reentry to a landing spot in the Pacific Ocean. Using this maneuver, Orion dipped into the upper part of Earth’s atmosphere and used atmospheric drag to slow down. Orion then used the aerodynamic lift of the capsule to skip back out of the atmosphere, then reenter for final descent under parachutes to splashdown.

Using Avcoat material response data from Artemis I, the investigation team was able to replicate the Artemis I entry trajectory environment — a key part of understanding the cause of the issue — inside the arc jet facilities at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California. They observed that during the period between dips into the atmosphere, heating rates decreased, and thermal energy accumulated inside the heat shield’s Avcoat material. This led to the accumulation of gases that are part of the expected ablation process. Because the Avcoat did not have “permeability,” internal pressure built up, and led to cracking and uneven shedding of the outer layer.

Teams performed extensive ground testing to replicate the skip phenomenon before Artemis I. However, they tested at much higher heating rates than the spacecraft experienced in flight. The high heating rates tested on the ground allowed the permeable char to form and ablate as expected, releasing the gas pressure. The less severe heating seen during the actual Artemis I reentry slowed down the process of char formation, while still creating gases in the char layer. Gas pressure built up to the point of cracking the Avcoat and releasing parts of the charred layer. Recent enhancements to the arc jet facility have enabled a more accurate reproduction of the Artemis I measured flight environments, so that this cracking behavior could be demonstrated in ground testing.

While Artemis I was uncrewed, flight data showed that had crew been aboard, they would have been safe. The temperature data from the crew module systems inside the cabin were also well within limits and holding steady in the mid-70s Fahrenheit. Thermal performance of the heat shield exceeded expectations.

Engineers understand both the material phenomenon and the environment the materials interact with during entry. By changing the material or the environment, they can predict how the spacecraft will respond. NASA teams unanimously agreed the agency can develop acceptable flight rationale that will keep crew safe using the current Artemis II heat shield with operational changes to entry.

NASA’s Investigation Process

Soon after NASA engineers discovered the condition on the Artemis I heat shield, the agency began an extensive investigation process, which included a multi-disciplinary team of experts in thermal protection systems, aerothermodynamics, thermal testing and analysis, stress analysis, material test and analysis, and many other related technical areas. NASA’s Engineering and Safety Center was also engaged to provide technical expertise including nondestructive evaluation, thermal and structural analysis, fault tree analysis, and other testing support.

“We took our heat shield investigation process extremely seriously with crew safety as the driving force behind the investigation,” said Howard Hu, manager, Orion Program, NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “The process was extensive. We gave the team the time needed to investigate every possible cause, and they worked tirelessly to ensure we understood the phenomenon and the necessary steps to mitigate this issue for future missions.”

The Artemis I heat shield was heavily instrumented for flight with pressure sensors, strain gauges, and thermocouples at varying ablative material depths. Data from these instruments augmented analysis of physical samples, allowing the team to validate computer models, create environmental reconstructions, provide internal temperature profiles, and give insight into the timing of the char loss.

Approximately 200 Avcoat samples were removed from the Artemis I heat shield at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama for analysis and inspection. The team performed non-destructive evaluation to “see” inside the heat shield.

One of the most important findings from examining these samples was that local areas of permeable Avcoat, which had been identified prior to the flight, did not experience cracking or char loss. Since these areas were permeable at the start of the entry, the gases produced by ablation were able to adequately vent, eliminating the pressure build up, cracking, and char loss.

Engineers performed eight separate post-flight thermal test campaigns to support the root cause analysis, completing 121 individual tests. These tests took place in facilities with unique capabilities across the country, including the Aerodynamic Heating Facility at the Arc-Jet Complex at Ames to test convective heating profiles with various test gases; the Laser Hardened Materials Evaluation Laboratory at Wright‐Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio to test radiative heating profiles and provide real-time radiography; as well as the Interaction Heating Facility at Ames to test combined convective and radiative heating profiles in the air at full-block scale.

Aerothermal experts also completed two hypersonic wind tunnel test campaigns at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia and CUBRC aerodynamic test facilities in Buffalo, New York, to test a variety of char loss configurations and enhance and validate analytical models. Permeability testing was also performed at Kratos in Alabama, the University of Kentucky, and Ames to help further characterize the Avcoat’s elemental volume and porosity. The Advanced Light Source test facility, a U.S. Department of Energy scientific user facility at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, was also used by engineers to examine the heating behavior of the Avcoat at a microstructure level.

In the spring of 2024, NASA stood up an independent review team to conduct an extensive review of the agency’s investigation process, findings, and results. The independent review was led by Paul Hill, a former NASA leader who served as the lead space shuttle flight director for Return to Flight after the Columbia accident, led NASA’s Mission Operations Directorate, and is a current member of the agency’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel. The review occurred over a three-month period to assess the heat shield’s post-flight condition, entry environment data, ablator thermal response, and NASA’s investigation progress. The review team agreed with NASA’s findings on the technical cause of the physical behavior of the heat shield.

Heat Shield Advancements

Knowing that permeability of Avcoat is a key parameter to avoid or minimize char loss, NASA has the right information to assure crew safety and improve performance of future Artemis heat shields. Throughout its history, NASA has learned from each of its flights and incorporated improvements into hardware and operations. The data gathered throughout the Artemis I test flight has provided engineers with invaluable information to inform future designs and refinements. Lunar return flight performance data and a robust ground test qualification program improved after the Artemis I flight experience are supporting production enhancements for Orion’s heat shield. Future heat shields for Orion’s return from Artemis lunar landing missions are being produced to achieve uniformity and consistent permeability. The qualification program is currently being completed along with the production of more permeable Avcoat blocks at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans.

 

[publiusr]

If there are massive cuts to NASA, Mr. NASAWATCH will be just as guilty as Trump--all he has ever done is undermine NASA to the point where massive cuts look to be inevitable.

But he hates MSFC more than Elon...on his head be it.

If NASA is gutted... don't get mad at Elon, Jared, or the Donald. "If someone behaved predictably and you get angry, who's crazy?"

No, if this all goes south, it will on Keith Cowing's head who invited all this schism to begin with all his negativity.

Maybe someone can explain it to him.

Years ago, Jim Hillhouse at AMERICA SPACE tried to warn everyone that OldSpace and NewSpace needed to praise each other.

He was right.

 

[NMaude]

If the Artemis II mission is going to be flown with an unmodified heat-shield but with a modified reentry profile then why the six-month delay, this does not make sense and it plays into the hands of the programme's critics.

 

[alberchico]

If Trump wants to put boots on the Moon by the end of his term then he'll have no choice but to stick with SLS and go full speed ahead with the plans currently in place. Also many politicians who support Trump will push back if their own interests are threatened. I would argue that with all the jobs that the SLS program creates across many districts, it is politically cancel proof. The only thing that could cause the SLS to be scrapped would be a catastrophic failure attributed to some kind of design flaw.

 

[publiusr]

It looks that way—we’ve been flooded with images of Orions TPS that folks forget about Starship’s own tile issues.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has uploaded a video about the informal nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA and how it may effect the SLS and Artemis programmes:

NASA's Orion heatshield investigation concluded on December 5th, and the space agency announced in a press conference that they accepted the recommendation to fly the Artemis II Orion heatshield as-is. The launch was pushed back to April 2026 for other reasons and Artemis III was delayed until mid-2027; however, President Trump nominated Jared Isaacman to be the next NASA Administrator, which continues the narrative that an Artemis shake-up could be coming in January.

There were a lot of details in the press conference about the status of Artemis II preparations and planning for the next milestones stacking the SLS vehicle for that, but not so much on Artemis III, which depends on not just Orion and SLS, but also Starship HLS and Axiom Space lunar surface spacesuits. The commercial providers are developing private products with proprietary technology, so NASA leadership can't speak for them. The outlook for the public and private programs participating in Artemis III will remain a storyline for future videos.

That is, if the plans for Artemis II and III are continued next year. There are a few takeaways in this video from the early nomination, and the obvious implication of orphaning Orion if SLS is cancelled by Isaacman and Elon Musk next year. Orion is still a unique, crew-rated spacecraft, so sticking it on top of another launch vehicle won't be as easy or as inexpensive as it is to do virtually or hypothetically. In this video, I'll take a first look at the cost and schedule questions and implications of a theoretical Orion launch vehicle move.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
00:34 Overview of findings from the completed Orion base heatshield investigation
03:03 Initial thoughts, takeaways from the December 5 Artemis press conference
13:38 Jared Isaacman is the new NASA Administrator nominee
15:03 The devil is in the details about a new launch vehicle for Orion
19:51 A post-heatshield decision look at the big picture
23:26 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

New update on the status of Artemis-II and considerations for new Orion LV:

There's more to cover from last week's NASA press conference about Artemis II decisions and plans. The space agency decided to fly Orion's heatshield as-is and continue launch preparations, while also announcing that extra Orion processing work pushed the target date out to April 2026.

In this video, I'll go over how NASA plans to fly the existing heatshield on Artemis II, given the char loss/spalling issues seen with the same design on Artemis I. I'll also cover that extra processing work and what a new re-entry trajectory means for Artemis II launch windows.

In the meantime, the SLS Core Stage for Artemis II was moved into a new processing cell in the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center, and I'll go over that process and what work is planned in parallel with the resumption of Solid Rocket Booster stacking in another cell in the VAB.

There's also a little more to say about the devil in the details of moving Orion to another launch vehicle, if the new administration terminates SLS.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
00:37 Artemis II-related takeaways from last week's heatshield decision press conference
06:11 Second round of Orion vacuum testing complete, modified batteries reinstalled
07:37 The modified Orion re-entry trajectory plan for Artemis II
15:27 SLS hardware activity picks up in the Vehicle Assembly Building
18:15 EGS launch team continues countdown simulation training
18:37 The Artemis II big picture
19:45 More IRL considerations for Orion launch vehicle match-making from the last time NASA considered it.
26:16 Thanks for watching!

Edited to add: Many of the pad-tests could've been expedited if the SLS/Artemis programme planners had planned for and funded its equivalent of the Apollo programme's SA-500F Facilities Integration Vehicle.

 

[Flyaway]

Introducing Endurance: An Enduring Long-distance Robotic Lunar Rover

www.leonarddavid.com

Meet Endurance, a pioneering NASA moon rover designed to survive the frigid lunar night

"Endurance is a mission that pushes the envelope."

www.space.com

 

[Flyaway]

Artemis II Core Stage Moves to High Bay 2

Dec 19, 2024
The 212-foot-tall SLS (Space Launch System) core stage for NASA Artemis II is seen being moved from a horizontal position to a vertical position in High Bay 2 at the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With the move to High Bay 2, NASA and Boeing technicians now have 360-degree access to the core stage both internally and externally.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFUXFRgwkBQ

 

[Flyaway]

Philip Sloss:

NASA provided a late-year Artemis update at a Kennedy Space Center media event this past week and in this video, I'll review what we saw and heard. The space agency recently made the decision to fly Artemis II with the existing base heatshield on the Orion spacecraft, while delaying the launch date until April 2026.

That decision to continue was made only a couple of weeks ago, and so NASA still has some work to do to figure out the roadmap from the end of this year until Artemis II is ready to fly. Orion is the critical path for the launch date and with plans in flux, there wasn't much news to share about that yet.

Coupled with few updates or events throughout 2024, the timing and remaining uncertainty gave the event a weird vibe.

There wasn't much news and with the Artemis II Orion and SLS being actively worked on, we saw more Artemis III and IV Orion hardware than anything else. Most of the uncertainty about the future of Artemis remains heading into 2025, with the possibility that Elon Musk and the incoming Trump administration have big changes planned when they take over in a month. That's why it felt a little like the media event was more about that uncertainty about the political future.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNcMK1wNddY

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has an end of the year report for the Artemis programme:

NASA provided a late-year Artemis update at a Kennedy Space Center media event this past week and in this video, I'll review what we saw and heard. The space agency recently made the decision to fly Artemis II with the existing base heatshield on the Orion spacecraft, while delaying the launch date until April 2026.

That decision to continue was made only a couple of weeks ago, and so NASA still has some work to do to figure out the roadmap from the end of this year until Artemis II is ready to fly. Orion is the critical path for the launch date and with plans in flux, there wasn't much news to share about that yet.

Coupled with few updates or events throughout 2024, the timing and remaining uncertainty gave the event a weird vibe. There wasn't much news and with the Artemis II Orion and SLS being actively worked on, we saw more Artemis III and IV Orion hardware than anything else. Most of the uncertainty about the future of Artemis remains heading into 2025, with the possibility that Elon Musk and the incoming Trump administration have big changes planned when they take over in a month. That's why it felt a little like the media event was more about that uncertainty about the political future.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
00:55 Overview of the media event
03:33 NASA views April 2026 as a no later than date for Artemis II
04:22 Orion status from the media event
13:25 SLS and EGS integrated operations status from the media event
25:21 A short update on the Cell N foam spray facility at Michoud in New Orleans
25:47 The weird vibe(s) for this media event...why now?
28:30 Other news and notes
31:19 Thanks for watching!

 

[publiusr]

If Starship were to land in the center of a crater---might that allow it to use solar thermal power?

Reflectors can be put on the crater floor to reflect light towards a collector.

On visibility

https://phys.org/news/2024-12-nasa-parker-solar-probe-survives.html

 

[Flyaway]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1871218395670249889

View: https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1871218395670249889

Although the details remain in flux, the transition team reviewing NASA and its activities has begun to draft potential executive orders for changes to space policy under the Trump Administration.

How might NASA change under Trump? Here’s what is being discussed

“Elon get those rocket ships going because we want to reach Mars before the end of my term.”…

arstechnica.com

Ideas under consideration

The transition team has been discussing possible elements of an executive order or other policy directives. They include:

+ Establishing the goal of sending humans to the Moon and Mars, by 2028
+ Canceling the costly Space Launch System rocket and possibly the Orion spacecraft
+ Consolidating Goddard Space Flight Center and Ames Research Center at Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama
+ Retaining a small administration presence in Washington, DC, but otherwise moving headquarters to a field center
+ Rapidly redesigning the Artemis lunar program to make it more efficient

"Is any of this written in stone? No," a source told Ars.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has another quarterly update report concerning Artemis II, III and IV:

The last quarter of 2024 ends with the year as a whole, and this video looks at the ongoing developments and question marks for NASA's Artemis programs. The space agency is still pressing ahead with plans to fly Artemis II, III, and IV by the end of the decade, with the first half of the decade coming to an end.

Very few people seem to want to mix politics and space policy, or even think about that, but politics could soon become impossible to ignore for Artemis. President Trump was re-elected in November and when his team takes office in a few weeks, Artemis could change permanently.

That overshadows almost all the engineering and programmatic events of the quarter, but there are details to the Artemis programs that we can go through in this video. The politics are coming, very likely and very soon, but for now there's only a few rumors and mostly just that big shadow to point out.

The Orion heatshield investigation concluded and NASA finally made decisions at the beginning of the month; I'll review that and how that impacts plans and schedules for Artemis II as stacking of that hardware now resumes. The investigation and decisions also affect Artemis III, which are also covered here.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
01:20 High-level takeaways looking back at the quarter
02:46 Quick recap of events (October, November, December)
09:49 Artemis II status
16:44 Artemis II forward outlook
20:36 Artemis III status
27:53 Artemis III forward outlook
30:05 Artemis IV status
35:35 Artemis IV forward outlook
36:36 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Short NASA video about anticipated findings from Artemis Moon lander retro-reflector package:

A science instrument flying aboard the next delivery for NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative is expected to significantly expand our knowledge of the Moon. Next Generation Lunar Retroreflector, or NGLR-1, is one of 10 payloads set to be carried to the Moon by the Blue Ghost 1 lunar lander in 2025. Developed by the University of Maryland in College Park, NGLR-1 is designed to reflect very short laser pulses from Earth-based lunar laser ranging observatories using a retroreflector, or a mirror designed to reflect the incoming light back in the same incoming direction. Investigations and demonstrations, such as NGLR-1, launched on CLPS flights will help NASA study Earth’s nearest neighbor under Artemis and pave the way for future crewed missions on the Moon. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the development for seven of the 10 CLPS payloads that will be carried on Firefly’s Blue Ghost lunar lander.

For more information about CLPS, visit https://www.nasa.gov/clps

 

[Forest Green]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWbftRZX_7g

 

[BlackBat242]

Nice "test of the Lidar obstacle avoidance system"... take off, wander over to the side WELL above the bumps and dips... then return to starting point and land.

Absolutely no test of obstacle-avoidance, just a demonstration of being able to record its flight out then repeat it in reverse order.

 

[NMaude]

A video review of what has been done and not done with Artemis in 2024, from Phillip Sloss:

At the beginning of 2024, Artemis II and the Starship prop transfer demo were scheduled to be completed by now, but those schedules were undetailed and uncertain. A year later, the progress made was in some cases spectacular, but also inconclusive. As 2025 begins, those two big test flights still seem as far away as they did a year ago.

That uncertainty and lack of clarity in public was the biggest theme of Artemis in 2024, and in this video I'll go over a few of the mysteries that lasted through the year and ones that came up during the year and still remain unresolved.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
01:19 The biggest theme of Artemis in 2024 was what was not said
04:36 2024 Artemis mysteries that remain unresolved as 2025 begins, starting with Artemis III alternatives
07:15 The mystery of the SLS commercial contract
08:51 The mystery of the Gateway target launch date
11:32 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has uploaded his first 2025 video including news of Artemis II's stacking:

It's back to work after New Year's and in this video I'll go over how NASA's Artemis programs have resumed development and preparations for Artemis II, III, and IV. SpaceX is ready to launch the seventh Starship flight test as soon as January 13 and they provided some details about the major, block upgrade to the ship. Bechtel reached the "rig and set" milestone for construction of Mobile Launcher-2, with the first umbilical tower module now stacked on the launch platform.

Activity has resumed inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center, and there's more to cover in the VAB Transfer Aisle and High Bays 3 and 2. Exploration Ground Systems added the fourth of ten SLS solid rocket motor segments to the Artemis II stack and is looking to add the next few soon. I'll go over that and dig into some details from Boeing about their new SLS Core Stage final assembly facility in High Bay 2, called the Core Stage Vertical Integration Center.

Looking ahead, President Trump is about to start his second term and so we may finally start to hear what Elon Musk's DOGE review has in mind for Artemis in the next few weeks.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

00:00 Intro
01:08 Starship flight test 7 currently scheduled for January 13th
03:05 A few details about Starship HLS Earth orbit refueling plans for Artemis III and IV
04:43 Mobile Launcher-2 umbilical tower assembly begins with the "rig and set" milestone
06:59 More detail about Boeing's new Core Stage Vertical Integration Center in VAB High Bay 2
15:36 Other news and notes, beginning with an Artemis II booster stacking update
17:50 Axiom EMU 2024 year-end slide show
18:29 Recently released images of EUS Green Run preparations in October at Stennis Space Center
19:17 October pictures of Core Stage-3 LOX tank cleaning preparations
19:49 Orion test article, formerly the Artemis I crew module, returns to KSC after Ohio testing
20:38 Artemis politics: Trump/Musk transition only a week away, Artemis impacts remain to be seen
21:50 Forward outlook for Artemis II and III at the beginning of the year
24:24 Thanks for watching!

 

[Grey Havoc]

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost Mission 1 begins transit to the Moon

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 15, 2025 - Firefly Aerospace announced the successful launch of its Blue Ghost lunar lander on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, marking the beginning of its 60-day mission. Following a 45-day transit to the Moon, the

www.spacedaily.com

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss uploaded a video a week ago concerning how politics may be effecting the current status of the Artemis programme:

President Trump is back in office and the new administration immediately broke with the automatic line of succession for NASA Administrator by designating Kennedy Space Center director Janet Petro to be the Acting Administrator over Associate Administrator Jim Free. The move was made without further comment from the administration and any comment from NASA, but in this week's video, I'll take a look at what happened and how it could be another sign of things to come.

NASA put out a press release about future business contracts for Artemis lunar surface logistics, but those studies might not turn into hardware for years and won't be utilized until well into the next decade. And besides that, the space agency was quiet about the present, where the future of the current Artemis plan could hang in the balance.

While we wait to hear back from NASA public affairs again, I'll also review the couple of Artemis news shorts that were the long and short of the feed for the week.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.News articles cited:
https://spacenews.com/second-trump-ad...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...sion-on-acting-nasa-leadership/&v=P2cAyM4ccd0

00:00 Intro
00:49 Trump designates Janet Petro to be acting NASA administrator
05:17 NASA still releasing information about "the" future, but not talking about the jeopardy of the immediate future for Artemis
06:12 Other notes for another week light on Artemis news from NASA, still waiting for more Starship flight test post-mortems
07:09 A brief Artemis II stacking update
07:40 Gateway HALO module getting ready for transportation
08:52 A stealth update on the launch date for the initial Gateway elements
09:46 Video of three-month old EUS Umbilical testing released
10:34 Thanks for watching!

​

 

[NMaude]

Another Artemis/SLS update from Phillip Sloss:

NASA and its Artemis contractors provided a little more color about the Artemis II schedule this past week, which helped contextualize the ongoing SLS solid rocket booster stacking in the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center. Imagery was provided by NASA public affairs of the seventh of the ten segments being lifted into place on the Mobile Launcher in the last week of January, and now we're hearing that Orion may be ready for launch processing in April.

I review the latest solid rocket motor segment to be stacked and the schedule hints in this video, along with updates I got from Boeing about upcoming milestones for the SLS stages they are building for Artemis III and IV. There were also few other Artemis news items from the same trade show panels where the Artemis II news came from, a rare Dragon XL note and a couple of details about the Starship HLS uncrewed lunar ascent demonstration.

And on top of that NASA and ISS took a turn in the political news cycle this week, which wasn't directly connected to Artemis...but we're wondering how much longer it will be before the circus comes for Artemis.

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

News articles cited:
https://spacenews.com/trump-tells-mus...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...acex-already-planned-to-return/&v=aVNtUN57hPU

00:00 Intro
00:59 Artemis II stacking update and schedule hints
06:20 SLS Stages production updates from Boeing
15:15 Other news and notes
16:16 Dragon XL and Starship lunar ascent demo notes
18:02 Belated notice that RS-25 restart completed design certification
18:52 Thanks for watching!

 

[NMaude]

NASA has just uploaded this Artemis II PR video on YT:

The Artemis II mission, slated to launch early 2026, will fly four astronauts around the Moon. This mission will last for about 10 days and will be the first crewed test flight of the Space Launch System rocket, the Orion spacecraft, and the Exploration Ground Systems at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Florida needed to support them.

Not only will this mission be the first time in over 50 years that human beings have seen the Moon close-up, Artemis II will also prepare us for future human landings on the Moon starting with the Artemis III mission and help prepare for future missions to Mars.

To learn more about the Artemis II mission, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...ww.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/&v=Ke6XX8FHOHM

Credit: NASA

 

[Flyaway]

New Space Subcommittee Chair Backs Moon First, Then Mars:

New Space Subcommittee Chair Backs Moon First, Then Mars

Posted: February 12, 2025 11:46 pm ET | Last Updated: February 13, 2025 8:50 am ET | Rep. Mike Haridopolos (R-FL), the new chair of the space subcommittee of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, supports sending astronauts to the Moon before Mars. President Trump's embrace of the...

spacepolicyonline.com

[Acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro said:] “I will say up front that Artemis is not just limited to SLS and Orion. It is a big tent … and our eventual goal is going to Mars. … We have a lot of support and industry partners helping us get back there” with the two HLS systems from SpaceX and Blue Origin and the CLPS robotic landers. “There’s a mutual benefit to both of us working together. We learn a lot from our commercial partners like the speed of business and the sense of urgency.” For its part NASA brings “60 years of experience of exploring space” and the result is “mutually beneficial.” NASA will continue to do the “really hard things that maybe have never been done before” where there’s no business case, and when there is a business case and industry is willing to step up, “that’s going to get us further, faster.”

Speaking to reporters afterward, Petro said NASA right now is focused on implementing Trump’s Executive Orders and executing the agency’s Programs of Record, including Artemis II and Artemis III. Any changes will wait until the new NASA Administrator is confirmed.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1889903293658439850

View: https://twitter.com/SpcPlcyOnline/status/1889903293658439850

 

[indicisivedivide]

Phillip Sloss uploaded a video a week ago concerning how politics may be effecting the current status of the Artemis programme:

Even if Musks wants to cancel SLS, I doubt Trump will cancel two missions that are already further ahead. Artemis IV might be cancelled and that's okay.

 

[Archibald]

A drawdown rather than a brutal cancellation... would make some sense. Some kind of face-saving for Congress "lunar missions started with SLS Orion, up to Artemis III; before shifting to a different CONOPS. "

By the way Starship-HLS is so large, it makes Orion & Gateway look utterly ridiculous. Starship alone has many times the habitable volume of Gateway.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVLK0tgLHro&t=66s

 

[TomcatViP]

Make me wonder if adding Northrop solid boosters to Starship couldn't help cut the corner b/w the two programs.

 

[Flyaway]

Congress seeks NASA authorization, commercial space bills:

Congress seeks NASA authorization, commercial space bills

The chairs of the congressional committees that oversee civil and commercial spaceflight outlined their priorities for the new Congress.

spacenews.com

[quote author=the article]Babin said a NASA authorization bill is also a priority for his committee, suggesting it would ensure that the agency remains focused on a return to the moon amid speculation that the Trump administration might shift its emphasis to Mars.

“My top priority is ensuring that U.S. astronauts return to the lunar surface and that we do so before the CCP,” or Chinese Communist Party, he said. “We will use the moon as a proving ground, allowing us to develop and test technologies needed for future deep space missions, including our ultimate goal of landing humans on Mars.”[/quote]

 

[publiusr]

Make me wonder if adding Northrop solid boosters to Starship couldn't help cut the corner b/w the two programs.

That would be something to see. SRBs on a beefed up SuperHeavy--SLS tooling to make a lightweight depot, etc.
Musk won't go for it.

 

[NMaude]

Phillip Sloss has just uploaded his Artemis week in review video, as he pointed out there's been a dearth of Artemis and SLS news recently since Trump has reoccupied the Oval Office:

In this week's review of Artemis news, the main themes continue. NASA Exploration Ground Systems continues to stack the Artemis II SLS vehicle alongside rumors that the government-run rocket is in jeopardy of cancellation. Last week, Boeing, one of the SLS prime contractors, warned its workforce that significant percentage could lose their jobs, which seemed to prompt more questions about the possibility that President Trump and Elon Musk are getting ready to terminate the whole program.​

Members of Congressional oversight and appropriations publicly responded to those questions for seemingly the first-time, since most of them are in the same political party as Trump and Musk and want to keep any disagreements quiet. It remains to be seen whether any objections will be sustained and what happens when either side doesn't get its way.​

The politics continues to overshadow the work, but then updates about work progress remain limited mostly to pictures without much accompanying details. I reviewed pictures of the last of ten SLS solid rocket motor segments being stacked for Artemis II, fully emptying the storage facility in the process. With the exception of the SLS second stage and Orion connector, the other pieces of the Artemis II rocket are standing by in the VAB for their turn to be stacked in the coming weeks and months.​

Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.

Links to social media posts:
https://x.com/jackiewattles/status/18...
https://bsky.app/profile/lorengrush.b...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev....bsky.social/post/3lhytnfnacp2m&v=mxZf1faFvpw

Links to stories referenced:
https://spacenews.com/boeing-warns-sl...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...employees-of-potential-layoffs/&v=mxZf1faFvpw
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsle...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...-rocket-won-t-be-easy-to-cancel&v=mxZf1faFvpw
https://www.reuters.com/technology/sp...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...s-republican-states-2025-02-12/&v=mxZf1faFvpw

00:00 Intro
00:58 Artemis II stacking continues, with the SLS Boosters almost complete
01:52 Right-hand forward segment is the last of ten to be stacked, RPSF now empty
03:37 The forward assemblies will top out the left and right boosters
04:47 NASA releases new mission animation for Artemis II
05:33 Washington political drama continues
06:22 Boeing reduces the number of possible SLS lay offs
11:04 Trump/Musk planning "large-scale" reduction in force, which could include NASA
11:36 Other news and notes: Gateway HALO module nearing shipment to the U.S.
12:58 Thanks for watching!

 

[publiusr]

One sneaky way to kill things off is by the super-majority (already done) and by having things “sunset” so as to constrain any attempt to bring a program back:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/republican-us-senator-rick-scott-drops-plan-cut-social-security-medicare-2023-02-17/

SLS may have a second life as more than just a Moonrocket…I could see bipartisan measures where support for SLS/Artemis is a bargaining chip (I’ll vote for your SLS if you stand with me on X.”

ALS/NLS, MAGNUM/BMDO launcher, CaLV, Longfellow, DIRECT, Ares V...this thing has reinvented itself more times than Madonna.

These days, SD-HLLVs drinks Fresca -with TAB gone --and listens to the Gorillaz .

SLS is the one bit of leverage to unite individuals who would normally oppose each other’s ideas.

SLS--symbol of the anti-Musk resistance!


Stay tuned.

 

[TomcatViP]

Relevant to this thread.

Paralympic athlete from UK in latest intake of ESA astronauts

John McFall, 41, becomes first astronaut with physical disability to be recruited by European space agency

www.theguardian.com

And he has just been cleared for the ISS, making him, potentially, the first disabled astronaut:

ESA astronaut with physical disability medically cleared for ISS missions

In a first, a European astronaut with a physical disability has been medically cleared for missions to the International Space Station.

spacenews.com

 

[FighterJock]

Well done, it is about time that we had someone from the disability community represented in the ESA astronaut corp and on the ISS.

 

[Dilandu]

Well done, it is about time that we had someone from the disability community represented in the ESA astronaut corp and on the ISS.

Representation is not as important as medical data. In long-range expeditions - like Martian flight - a possibility of traumas and even amputations must be taken into consideration. So a medical data about how peoples with disabilities handle microgravity would be quite useful.

 

[FighterJock]

Thanks Dilandu, I had wondered why that was the case.

 

[Flyaway]

NASA nominee previews his vision for the agency: Mars, hard work, inspiration:

NASA nominee previews his vision for the agency: Mars, hard work, inspiration

Jared Isaacman says NASA should invest a “reasonable amount of resources” in Mars.

arstechnica.com

Although Isaacman's remarks this weekend were general in nature, we can draw some information from them. First of all, Isaacman does not appear to be foreclosing on the idea of a lunar component for NASA's deep space exploration program. He mentions "Moon to Mars" in his comments. However it is likely that NASA's lunar program will become more focused, with the goal of learning what we can on the Moon to support human missions to Mars.

As for Mars itself, it seems clear the Isaacman's spaceflight goals align with those of Trump—who, despite creating the Artemis lunar program during his first term, has always been more interested in sending humans to Mars—and Musk, who founded SpaceX with the express purpose of putting humans on Mars.