The Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on June 14, 2022.
Credit: KSC/NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is one step closer to getting astronauts back on the moon after the Artemis-1 mission launch today, November 16th, 2022. Artemis-1 is the first mission in the three-ply plan to establish a better understanding of the moon en route to landing on Mars. The un-crewed Orion spacecraft will be launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on the Space Launch System rocket, NASA’s newest and most powerful rocket. The mission has been delayed due to Hurricane Ian and tropical storm Nicole.

The program is named after Artemis, the goddess of hunting and the moon in Greek mythology. Artemis was the twin of Apollo, the god of light. The Apollo program was NASA’s first mission to land on the moon. The Orion spacecraft is named after Orion, a handsome and energetic hunter in Greek mythology. He was a giant who could walk through the sea and on its surface. In one myth, Artemis set Orion in the sky as a constellation after his death. Orion the Hunter, is a brilliant constellation that includes two of the brightest stars in the sky.

The mission is set to send Orion beyond the moon, launching it into orbit around the moon, before returning to Earth. Orion will travel 1.3 million miles (2.1 million kilometers) over the course of 42 days while orbiting the moon. Orion’s return to Earth will be the fastest and hottest planned spacecraft return in history. It is expected to land in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego, California, on Oct. 10. The Orion spacecraft is planned to carry astronauts to the International Space Station and, eventually, to the moon and Mars. The craft is designed to sustain astronauts during a long mission into deep space and return them safely to Earth.

NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft roll out to the Launch Complex on Aug. 16, 2022, ahead of the scheduled launch of the Artemis 1 mission on Aug. 29, 2022.

Although on this trip, Orion is heading into space without passengers. the Orion spacecraft has many advanced features to support an astronaut crew on an extended mission into space. These features include unique systems for propulsion and flight control. Astronauts will be carried in Orion’s Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV). The CEV is equipped with advanced heat shields to withstand the temperatures generated by the high velocities required to launch the craft into deep space and to reenter Earth’s atmosphere upon return. Orion cannot make it to space on its own, it requires a push from a heavy-lift rocket. That is where the Space Launch System (SLS) helps out. The SLS uses solid-fuel rocket boosters to carry heavy loads into space. The SLS is the most powerful rocket ever built for launching a space exploration vehicle. 

The first successful unpiloted test flight of the Orion spacecraft took place in 2014. The Orion CEV was launched on an older model Delta IV heavy rocket and orbited Earth twice before it splashed down and was recovered in the Pacific Ocean. A second test flight, in 2018, also used the Delta IV heavy rocket because of delays in the development of the SLS. Future unpiloted test flights are planned to test various components of the Orion spacecraft. Orion missions with astronauts are expected to take place later, in the 2020’s. The last manned mission to the moon was in 1972 when the Apollo 17 mission completed the longest lunar landing.

Nicole Aunapu Mann became the first Indigenous American woman in space in October 2022 aboard NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.
Credit: NASA

Nicole Aunapu Mann is an American astronaut and Marine Corps test pilot. Today, October 5, 2022, Mann became the first Indigenous (native) American woman in space. Mann and three other astronauts launched on National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). While aboard the ISS, Mann will serve as a flight engineer. Mann is a member of the Wailacki people of the Round Valley Indian Tribes. The Round Valley Indian Tribes is a confederation of tribes designated to the Round Valley Indian Reservation in Mendocino County, California.

In 2013, the NASA chose Mann to be an astronaut. Mann completed astronaut training in July 2015. She led the development of the Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) launch facility, the Orion crewed spacecraft, and Space Launch System (SLS), built to carry the Orion craft into space. NASA selected Mann to serve as mission commander on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission on the Crew Dragon capsule en route to the International Space Station. SpaceX is a private company that owns and operates the rocket and spacecraft used in the mission. A Falcon 9 rocket was scheduled to launch the mission’s Crew Dragon capsule.

Mann joined the United States Marine Corps in 1999 as a second lieutenant. She reported to the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida, for flight training in 2001. Mann became a Navy pilot in 2003 and began her operational flying career in 2004.  Mann deployed twice to Afghanistan and Iraq, completing 47 combat missions. After her deployments, she completed Navy Test Pilot School and served as a test pilot for many types of naval aircraft.

Nicole Victoria Aunapu was born in Petaluma, California, on June 27, 1977. She enrolled in the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1995. Mann earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1999. She completed a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from California’s Stanford University in 2001. In 2009, she married Navy pilot Travis Mann.

Jessica Watkins
Credit: NASA

American astronaut and geologist Jessica Watkins is making history this month. She is the first Black woman selected for an extended mission in space. Watkins and three other astronauts launched aboard a new SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft named Freedom atop a Falcon 9 rocket on April 27, 2022. Once the crew arrives, they will work and live aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS is a large, inhabited Earth satellite that more than 15 nations are operating in space. Watkins is set to work aboard the station for six months. On the ISS, she will work at the microgravity laboratory and serve as the team’s mission specialist.

Jessica Andrea Watkins was born in Gaithersburg, Maryland, on May 14, 1988. Her family later moved to Lafayette, Colorado. She enrolled at Stanford University in California, in 2006.  Watkins led Stanford’s rugby team to win the 2008 national championship. Watkins was a member of the United States Women’s Eagles Sevens Rugby team, competing in the 2009 Women’s Sevens Rugby World Cup in Dubai. Watkins earned her bachelor’s degree in geological and environmental sciences from Stanford University in 2010.

Watkins studied and worked extremely hard to reach her new career in space. Watkins earned a doctorate degree in geology at the University of California, Los Angeles, in 2015. Watkins conducted post-doctoral research at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). At UCLA, she studied landslides on Mars. At Caltech, she helped plan missions for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Curiosity rover.

As an undergraduate, Watkins participated in an internship for NASA at the Ames Research Center outside of San Jose, California. She compared simulated Martian soils with data gathered by the Phoenix Mars Lander.  In 2009, Watkins served as the chief geologist for a simulated mission at the Mars Desert Research Station outside of Hanksville, Utah. As a graduate student, she interned for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. In 2017, Watkins was selected for astronaut training. In 2019, Watkins participated as an aquanaut in a simulated space mission at the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) Aquarius habitat, on the ocean floor off the coast of Key Largo, Florida. NASA has also selected Watkins as a crew member for the Artemis mission to the moon’s surface.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule sits atop a Falcon 9 rocket, in preparation for launch on May 27, 2020.
Credit: © SpaceX

A new era of human spaceflight began Saturday, May 30, as Space Exploration Technologies (commonly called SpaceX) launched its Crew Dragon capsule into space. (The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday, May 27, when it was delayed due to bad weather.) The Dragon became the first private spacecraft ever to take astronauts into orbit. The mission, called the Demo-2 mission, transported National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to the International Space Station (ISS).

Astronauts Bob Behnken (left) and Doug Hurley (right) prepare for the first crewed launch of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule.
Credit: © SpaceX

Millions of people watched from home as SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched the Dragon from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station into space. In orbit, the crew tested the spacecraft’s control systems to make sure the capsule was performing as intended before its arrival at the ISS. The Dragon features various modern technologies in its engineering and construction. Unlike previous spacecraft, it has a touchscreen control interface that looks similar to those used in the popular science fiction television series Star Trek.

The International Space Station (ISS)
Credit: NASA

An important part of the mission was docking the Dragon to the ISS. The capsule reached the ISS on Sunday, May 31, about 24 hours after launch. Aboard the space station, Behnken and Hurley will perform research and other tasks with the rest of the ISS crew. They will remain on the ISS for one to four months before undocking the Dragon and re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. The capsule will land in the Atlantic Ocean, where the crew will be retrieved and returned to Cape Canaveral, completing the mission.

If the Demo-2 mission is successful, NASA will certify the Crew Dragon to regularly transport astronauts to the ISS. Since NASA’s space shuttle program ended in 2011, the administration has relied on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft to transport astronauts to and from the ISS. The Soyuz can transport up to three astronauts at a time, and NASA pays about US $86 million per seat. The Dragon is able to transport up to seven astronauts at once, and the cost per crew member is expected to be around $55 million.

October 23, 2019

Last week, on Friday, October 18, the United States astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir made history by performing the first spacewalk in which all the participants were women. Before then, all spacewalks had involved at least one man. That includes the first spacewalk by a woman, which was performed in July 1984 by the Soviet cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya, who was accompanied by Vladimir Dzhanibekov. In October 1984, Kathryn D. Sullivan became the first U.S. woman astronaut to conduct a spacewalk (with the mission specialist David Leestma).

NASA astronaut Christina Koch. Credit: NASA

The National Space and Aeronautics Administration (NASA) did not intentionally plan the first all-woman spacewalk. Rather, it was the natural result of an increasing number of women astronauts in the space program. Last Friday, Koch and Meir worked outside the International Space Station (ISS) for more than seven hours, replacing a crucial battery charger. The batteries power the ISS during the night portions of its orbits, which occur about every 45 minutes.

NASA Astronaut Jessica Meir. Credit: NASA

NASA had planned for Koch and another U.S. woman astronaut, Anne McClain, to conduct a spacewalk in March. But NASA did not have two appropriately sized spacesuits, and McClain was replaced by a male astronaut who “fit the suit.” In the following months, NASA delivered more varied spacesuit pieces to the ISS to reduce the likelihood of future sizing conflicts.

Koch and Meir’s spacewalk represents an important move toward gender parity in the U.S. space program. In privately-funded tests conducted in the early 1960’s, several women passed the same rigorous physical examinations that the male Mercury astronauts had passed. But NASA had no interest in selecting female astronauts at the time. No women were selected for the Mercury, Gemini, or Apollo missions. It was not until 1983 that the first woman U.S. astronaut, Sally Ride, reached space.

NASA has made strides to correct the gender imbalance in recent years. The 2013 astronaut class that produced Koch and Meir was the first class to have as many women as men (four each). The space agency is working towards returning astronauts to the moon in 2024 through the new Artemis program. NASA stated that at least one woman will walk on the moon.

Koch and Meir have stellar resumes that compelled NASA to select them for the astronaut training program. Both had done scientific work in Antarctica. Koch is an electrical engineer and helped develop a scientific instrument on the Juno mission to Jupiter. Meir has a Ph.D. in marine biology and has studied how penguins and other animals conserve oxygen in extreme environments. She raised a group of bar-headed geese from hatchlings so they would be comfortable with her during experiments. Even the two women’s hobbies prepared them for the spacewalk. Koch is an avid rock climber, having developed the climbing and tether safety skills similar to those needed for working outside a spacecraft. Meir enjoys underwater diving, where conditions are somewhat similar to those experienced during a spacewalk.

March 3, 2016

U.S. Astronaut Scott Kelly, who returned to Earth this week, is seen on July 2015 inside the cupola, a special module within the International Space Station that provides a wide range of views of Earth and the space station.

On March 1, United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut Scott Kelly returned to Earth after a very long stay at the International Space Station (ISS). In fact, Kelly, along with his Russian counterpart cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko, set a record for the longest-ever stay at the ISS, at 340 days. Kelly also set a record for longest time in space for a NASA astronaut.

An astronaut is a person who pilots a spacecraft or works in space, particularly in the space program of the United States. In Russia and the other former republics of the Soviet Union, such men and women are called cosmonauts. Astronauts and cosmonauts operate spacecraft and space stations, launch and recapture artificial satellites, and conduct scientific experiments.

Astronaut Kelly and cosmonaut Kornienko left for the ISS on March 27, 2015. They spent the better part of a year at the space station, performing scientific experiments and maintenance. There was another important component to Kelly’s mission. Over the course of the year, scientists studied how living in space affected his heart, the distribution of fluids in his body, his behavior and decision-making skills, and even his microbiome (the microbes that live in and on a plant or animal). His results were compared with those from his identical twin brother, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, the husband of former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

Mark Kelly’s stay on Earth during his brother’s mission will help researchers to more precisely understand what happens to the human body when it spends long periods of time in microgravity (very low gravity). For example, the Kelly Twins were the same height when Scott Kelly left one year ago. Upon his return, Scott is 2 inches (5 centimeters) taller than Mark. This effect is temporary, but it illustrates how a body may be affected by time in space. Studies on the Kelly Twins will help identify some of the health problems that astronauts traveling to Mars or living at a permanent moon base might experience. It will hopefully lead to prevention and treatment programs.

Scott Kelly now holds the records for most consecutive days (340) and most total days (522) in space by an American astronaut. Records are made to be broken, however. Astronaut Jeffrey Williams, who is scheduled to arrive at the ISS later this month, has spent a total of 362 days in space and should set the new record at 534 days by the time his mission is over. For his part, Kelly is hoping his records are broken by future astronauts going to Mars and beyond. In part due to his mission, those astronauts should know how to stay as healthy as possible while spending months in space.

Other articles from Behind the headlines

• A Long Stay in Space (March 30, 2015)
• Tim Peake Becomes First Official British Astronaut Aboard the ISS

December 18, 2015

On Tuesday, the United Kingdom sent its first publicly funded astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS). Tim Peake, an astronaut of the European Space Agency (ESA), arrived at the station six hours after launch aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. During his six-month stay at the ISS, he will help conduct scientific experiments and perform public outreach. Peake joins American astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Volkov and Mikhail Korniyenko aboard the station. He flew up together with Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and American astronaut Timothy Kopra. Together, the six men make up the 46^th expedition to the ISS.

Tim Peake became the first publicly funded British astronaut aboard the International Space Station on Dec. 15, 2015. Credit: Victor Zelentsov, NASA/ESA Credit: Victor Zelentsov, NASA/ESA

An astronaut is a person who pilots a spacecraft or works in space. Astronauts operate spacecraft and space stations, launch and recapture satellites, and conduct scientific experiments. The word astronaut comes from Greek words meaning sailor among the stars. Cosmonaut is a Russian word that means sailor of the universe.

Peake is not the first British citizen to be launched into space. In 1991, chemist Helen Sharman visited the Russian space station Mir as part of a project funded partly by British companies. Several other astronauts with dual British and United States citizenship have worked in space as members of the United States’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

In the past, the British government was reluctant to participate in manned spaceflight. It formally rejected training astronauts in 1986. But over time, decreasing costs and safety concerns, combined with the chance to bolster national pride and public interest in the sciences, caused the government to change course. In 2008, the British National Space Centre released a new space strategy document in which it expressed an openness to manned missions. After many years of difficult training, Tim Peake blasted off wearing the Union Jack flag patch on his spacesuit. The United Kingdom, known for its daring exploration of remote parts of the world in centuries past, has now begun manned exploration of space.

Additional World Book articles:

• Space exploration (1994) – A Back in Time article
  
• Space exploration (2000) – A Back in Time article
• Space exploration (2003) – A Back in Time article
• Space exploration (2008) – A Back in Time article

March 30, 2015

Two astronauts arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) over the weekend who plan to be there for a long time. The United States astronaut Scott Kelly and the Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko are scheduled for a yearlong stay aboard the ISS.

United States astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko take a break from training at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to pose for a portrait. Credit: Bill Stafford, NASA

An astronaut is a person who pilots a spacecraft or works in space, particularly in the space program of the United States. In Russia and the other former republics of the Soviet Union, such men and women are called cosmonauts, and in China, taikonauts. These workers operate spacecraft and space stations, launch and recapture satellites, and conduct scientific experiments.

Although cosmonauts routinely stayed aboard the space station Mir for periods longer than one year during the 1980′s and 1990′s, Kelly and Kornienko’s tour will be the longest in the history of the ISS. Scientists are planning to study the long-term effects of weightlessness on the two men in order to develop ways to reduce or prevent harm. For example, some astronauts have vision problems after spending long periods in space. Muscles and bones grow weaker when people spend long periods in microgravity, the very low gravity experienced on the ISS and other spacecraft. NASA’s research may help to keep astronauts healthy on long future missions, such as a trip to Mars. It may also help people on Earth with similar problems.

Other World Book articles:

• 2001: A Space Reality (a Special report)
• Space exploration

January 14, 2015

It’s been a week of ups and downs for astronauts and cosmonauts on the International Space Station (ISS). NASA identified signs of a possible ammonia leak in the U.S. module. (Ammonia is used for the heating and cooling systems on the craft.) An alarm was sounded and the crew put on face masks, hurried to the Russian segment of the craft, and closed the hatch behind them. NASA says it may have been a false alarm.  All six astronauts onboard are safe.

On the up side, on January 12, a 2.5-ton (2.25 metric ton) shipment of supplies—including groceries, spare parts, children’s science experiments, and Christmas presents (a little late)—was delivered to the station by a Dragon supply ship, two days after it lifted off.

The International Space Station functions as an observatory, laboratory, and workshop. Astronauts and cosmonauts live and work in cylindrical modules. (NASA)

The space station had been getting low on supplies, as a delivery ship scheduled to arrive in October 2014 exploded during its launch. A Russian Progress ship delivered some supplies to the ISS later in October, but the launch date of the Dragon ship, originally meant for December, had been pushed back three times before its mid-January launch. The Dragon ship is owned by Space X, a space transport company owned by South African entrepreneur Elon Musk.

Other World Book articles and links: 

• International Space Station (NASA site)
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

May 13, 2013

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts Chris Cassidy and Thomas Marshburn took a five-hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) on May 11 to repair a leak to the station’s cooling system. Numerous astronauts have taken similar spacewalks to repair or maintain the station.

Astronaut Chris Cassidy on a spacewalk outside the International Space Station on May 11, 2013. (NASA)

The ISS uses ammonia in its cooling systems. On May 9, astronauts noticed ammonia “snowflakes” floating in space just outside the space station. After a day of planning, astronauts left the safety of the space station to replace the faulty pump.

The International Space Station is an artificial Earth satellite operated by more than 15 nations—including the United States and Russia.  The first part of the station was launched in 1998, and the first full-time crew—one American astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts—occupied the station in 2000. The ISS is the world’s longest continuously operated spacecraft.

Other World Book articles:

• Astronaut
• Space exploration