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| Above, an Orion spacecraft trainer. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
During our visit to Space Center Houston, we took a tour to the Astronaut Training Facility.
Inside were mock-ups of various spacecraft including the International Space Station, Orion, Soyuz and future space station facilities.
Here's some photos I took during the tour:
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| Above, Artemis I approaches the moon in December. NASA photo. |
According to NPR:
The crew of NASA's Artemis II will make its closest approach to the moon Monday afternoon after launching from Kennedy Space Center last week.
It marks a critical milestone of the agency's Orion space capsule, sending humans on a mission to the moon for the first time in more than 50 years. As the capsule loops around the moon, the astronauts will reach farther into space than humans have ever ventured.
The Orion spacecraft is now in the lunar sphere of influence, meaning the moon's gravity has more pull on the vehicle than the Earth. At 1:46 p.m. ET, the crew will surpass the record for the farthest distance traveled from Earth by humans, which was set by the Apollo 13 mission at 248,655 statute miles from Earth. At 2:45 p.m., the crew will begin making observations of the surface of the moon during the flyby.
To read more, go here.
Thanks to RV Travel, I was alerted to the following YouTube video featuring NASA's live feed from Artemis II's trip to the moon,
Summary:
As bandwidth allows, this stream will feature live views from the Orion spacecraft, without commentary, as it makes its journey around the Moon. Viewers will see a blue screen if there is a loss of signal, or if the bandwidth is needed for mission activities. Viewers may see what appears to be a black screen when the vehicle is in darkness.
This stream started as Artemis II began its ascent into space and will conclude shortly before Orion splashes down into the Pacific Ocean.
24/7 streaming coverage of Artemis II operations and mission updates will be available on our YouTube channel. We're also streaming Artemis II events on NASA+, Amazon, X, Facebook, and Twitch. See the full schedule: https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-sets-coverage-for-first-artemis-crewed-mission-around-moon/
It was an emotional moment of pride for many that we're finally sending astronauts to the moon.
The launch of Artemis II yesterday was spectacular. It would have been more spectacular had the camera work of the launch were better. (Compare the launch video below with the one of Apollo 17 I posted yesterday. The camera tracked Apollo 17's Saturn V rocket much better.)
Still, it is great to see the launch. I noticed that political pundits like Glenn Beck and Benny Johnson were covering the launch.
Here's a video of yesterday's launch:
If everything goes as planned today, the flight of Artemis II will mark the first time in 50 years since man traveled to the vicinity of the moon.
The last time was in December 1972 when Apollo 17 was sent to the moon. It was the last moon mission of the Apollo program. I remember the flight as I was at the "ripe old age" of 18 at the time.
Here's the launch of Apollo 11.
Summary:
On this edition we remember the anniversary of the flight of Apollo 17 astronauts Gene Cernan, Harrison Jack Schmitt & Ronald Evans.
In the early morning hours of December 7, 1972 the Apollo 17 crew lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center aboard a Saturn V rocket becoming the last astronauts to attempt a lunar landing and bringing a close to the the Apollo program. Cernan & Schmitt took their Lunar Module called Challenger to a landing in the Taurus-Littrow region of the Moon. The Apollo 17 crew returned to Earth from the Moon on December 19, 1972.
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| Above, Artemis II on launch pad. By NASA Headquarters / NASA/Joel Kowsky |
We'll have something to watch this afternoon!
Artemis II is scheduled to launch four astronauts to the moon from Cape Canaveral. This will be the first crewed mission for the new spacecraft.
According to NASA:
As the Artemis II countdown moves steadily toward liftoff no earlier than 6:24 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, April 1, launch teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida continue completing a sequence of highly choreographed steps to ready the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft for the crew’s journey around the Moon.
The weather forecast for launch day shows an 80% chance of favorable weather conditions with primary concerns being cumulus clouds, ground winds, and solar weather. NASA and weather officers with the U.S. Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 45 will continue to monitor the weather leading up to liftoff.
Engineers began the day by finishing critical health checks on the rocket’s four RS‑25 engines, confirming that sensors, connections, and diagnostics were all performing as expected. Their readiness marks an important milestone as cryogenic operations approach.
To read more, go here.
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| Above, Sean Connery and Kim Basinger. Orion/Warner Bros. |
It hadn't struck me before, but I got curious as to the age differences between Connery and co-star Kim Basinger at time time of the movie's production.
At the time of production, Connery was 52 (he was three years younger than Bond successor Roger Moore) and Basinger was 29. She's only a couple of months older than me.
At the time, or since, I don't remember if Connery's and Basinger's age differences ever became an "issue". It would be considered as a May-December romance these days.
For those who aren't aware, Never Say Never Again is a remake of Thunderball (1965).
According to Wikipedia:
Never Say Never Again is a 1983 spy film directed by Irvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961 James Bond novel Thunderball by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Fleming. The novel had been previously adapted as the 1965 film of the same name. Never Say Never Again is the second and most recent James Bond film not to be produced by Eon Productions, the usual producer of the Bond series, but by Jack Schwartzman's Taliafilm, and was distributed by Warner Bros. instead of United Artists. The film was executive produced by Kevin McClory, one of the original writers of the Thunderball storyline. McClory had retained the filming rights of the novel following a long legal battle dating from the 1960s.
Never Say Never Again had its origins in the early 1960s, following the controversy over the 1961 Thunderball novel. Fleming had worked with independent producer Kevin McClory and scriptwriter Jack Whittingham on a script for a potential Bond film, to be called Longitude 78 West, which was subsequently abandoned because of the costs involved. Fleming, "always reluctant to let a good idea lie idle", turned this into the novel Thunderball, for which he did not credit either McClory or Whittingham; McClory then took Fleming to the High Court in London for breach of copyright, and the matter was settled in 1963. After Eon Productions started producing the Bond films, it subsequently made a deal with McClory, who would produce Thunderball, and then not make any further version of the novel for a period of ten years, following the release of the Eon-produced version in 1965.
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| Above, Artemis I on the launch pad (39B) this morning. |
The U.S. Space Program is the only worthwhile government program we have. This has been my contention for years.
Am I a fan of the Space Program? You bet, ever since Project Mercury.
If all goes well, the first test flight of Artemus I will take place today. It is unmanned. Right now, there is an unplanned hold due to some rocket engine issues.
From Fox 35 Orlando:
For the first time in nearly 50 years, NASA is preparing for a historic first, launching a new powerful moon rocket, the Space Launch System, on its maiden voyage.
The last time the space agency conducted a test flight of a moon rocket was the mighty Saturn V in 1967. Two years later, a Saturn V rocket would launch the Apollo 11 mission, sending astronauts to the moon. Now, NASA is preparing to launch the SLS and Orion spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center in Florida under the Artemis program, named for Apollo's twin sister in Greek mythology.
NASA is targeting Aug. 29 for liftoff sending the Orion spacecraft on the Artemis-1 test flight, a 42-journey orbiting the moon and back. No astronauts will be on board the test flight. However, if it goes well, four astronauts will launch on Artemis-2, orbiting the moon before the Artemis-3 moon landing in 2025.
To see how the SLS compares to the Saturn 5, go here.
UPDATE: Today's launch has been scrubbed due to a faulty hydrogen bleed test that didn't get it to the right temperature. The next availability to launch is September 2.
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| Above, Orion on the launch pad early this morning. |
After disruptive conditions and outside factors prompted NASA to delay the launch of the Orion space shuttle Thursday morning, the next chance for the unmanned aircraft to begin its orbit is set for 7:05 a.m. EST Friday, Dec. 5, and weather could interfere with the launch.The launch will be carried live on NASA Television via UStream. To watch the launch, go here.
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| Above, the Orion spacecraft on the pad this morning at the John F. Kennedy Space Center. |
