NASA’s Orion capsule orbits the moon, capturing sights that will make you dizzy

NASA’s Orion capsule circled the moon todaymarking a crucial milestone in the week-long Artemis 1 mission that paves the way for sending astronauts to the lunar surface.

As the uncrewed spacecraft maneuvered for its outbound powered flyby, it sent back a spectacular set of images which showed the moon looming larger in her metaphorical windshield, and a small blue Earth nestled below the lunar horizon.

Artemis 1 Flight Director Judd Freeling said flight controllers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center felt “dizzy” when they saw the pictures fall.

“They’re just happy that all the hard work and dedication they’ve put in over the years — many, many, many years — is really paying dividends,” he told reporters.

Mission Manager Mike Sarafin said the flight went “without a hitch” except for a few problems with its power system and its star trackers.

Today’s 2.5 minute engine fire that came five days after Launch of Artemis 1, sent Orion as close as 81 miles to the moon. During closest approach, the spacecraft zoomed over the lunar surface at speeds in excess of 5,000 miles per hour. Orion was out of contact with Earth for about 34 minutes as it flew behind the Moon.

Another maneuver planned for Friday will put the spacecraft in what is known as a far retrograde orbit, extending 40,000 miles beyond the Moon. Such an orbit would be the furthest from Earth that a human-carrying spacecraft has flown during its mission. (Some commentators have noted that Apollo 10 Lunar Ascent Modulewhich was ejected in 1969 and now orbits the sun, is further away.)

Orion was in darkness during today’s closest approach, so there was no opportunity to capture views of the Apollo landing sites as it flew by. But Sarafin promised that NASA would release more great photos — after they are retrieved from the spacecraft and cleared for distribution. NASA also created a streaming video channel to present live images from Artemis 1 when available.

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The views could be even better when Orion makes another close lunar approach on Dec. 5, during its return maneuver to Earth. This trajectory should send the spacecraft over the Apollo sites in daylight.

This uncrewed Artemis 1 mission is intended to test the equipment and procedures that will be used in 2024 or so for the Artemis 2 mission, which will send a crew of astronauts around the Moon. Artemis 2, in turn, will set the stage for a manned lunar landing, currently scheduled for late 2025. It will be the first such landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

Three dummies sit inside the Artemis 1 capsule, connected to sensors that monitor temperature, radiation exposure and other factors during flight.

The capsule is also there An Alexa-style voice assistant, codenamed Callisto, which was created by Amazon in collaboration with Lockheed Martin and Cisco. During future deep space flights, something like Callisto could provide an information channel and video conferencing — as well as a HAL-like kind of company for crews who might miss real-time contact with humans on Earth.

“We’ve had several live technology evaluations of the Callisto payload, and it’s performing very well in all areas,” said Howard Hu, who is Orion’s program manager at the Johnson Space Center. “We’re getting good visual effects and good communication, thanks to Judd’s team allocating some bandwidth. Right now, based on these sessions, things are looking very good with this payload.”

Orion is scheduled to land in the Pacific Ocean on December 11, ending the Artemis 1 mission.

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