NASA is completing the final preparations for the Artemis 2 mission. It must bring four astronauts around the Moon, for a journey of a few days as close as possible to our satellite. This historic mission, the first of its kind since the early 1970s requires months and months of preparation.
Among the hundreds of people who worked on this mission, a team of researchers took care of the safety of the Orion spacecraft. It is he who will serve as a home for the four astronauts during the flight, they. therefore been tested from every angle for 11 months.
One of the final tests carried out by the ship's security team was to simulate an “emergency evacuation”. In the event of a problem during takeoff, the ship must be able to separate itself from the rest of the rocket using explosive charges. Then, he deploys his parachutes and lands on the ocean, floating thanks to immense balloons.
For Robert Overy, head of the Orion ETA project, this last test was the one with the “maximum stress”. He nevertheless assures that it was a great “success” for NASA and Orion seems to have met all the expectations of the American space agency.
10 years of preparation
In addition to the 11 months of various and varied tests undergone by the Orion spacecraft, NASA has been working on this particular emergency evacuation mission for years. In 2011, it built the Reverberant Acoustic Test Facility, an acoustic charm specifically designed for this mission.
For Michael See, director of vehicles within the Orion program, this investment is far from being in vain because it makes it possible, for the first time in the history of space exploration, to test spacecraft from the ground. in extreme conditions.
Because the idea of these different tests was not to reproduce “classic” or even expected flight conditions, but rather to explore the limits of the vessel. By knowing Orion's capabilities, and not just whether or not it can meet this or that mission, NASA will be able, in an emergency, to revise its flight plan without plunging into the unknown. Vital preparation for the four astronauts on board during the Artemis 2 mission.
A calendar still unclear
Although all the tests were carried out on NASA's side, this does not mean that the spacecraft is ready for use. The Artemis mission schedule is not just up to Orion and is constantly evolving. Initially planned for the summer of 2025, this second mission should finally take place in the spring of 2066, at the earliest.
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