orion spacecraft

European astronauts could walk on the Moon for the first time in the coming years, in exchange for the continent taking on a key role in an ambitious NASA space programme. The US space agency's Artemis programme aims to return humans to the Moon for the first time since the historic Apollo missions, which ended in 1972. For the first time, the European Space Agency (ESA) and European aerospace giant Airbus have been entrusted with supplying vital "service modules" (ESMs) for NASA's Orion spacecraft. In exchange,…

NASA has shared a rare view of Earth rising behind the Moon! Here is how it captured the rare peekaboo moment when Earth popped up behind our Moon. In a rare moment that is simply amazing, NASA captured the Earth and the Moon in a way that seems simply miraculous. NASA has shared an animated video that shows our Earth rising behind the Moon. No miracle this, but simply a bit of science and tech. The image was captured by NASA's Orion spacecraft of the Artemis I mission. NASA also said that the shared video is 900 times…

NASA's Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday after a record-breaking mission. NASA's Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, west of Baja California, at 9:40 a.m. PST on Sunday after a record-breaking mission, traveling more than 1.4 million miles on a path around the Moon and returning safely to Earth, completing the Artemis I flight test. Splashdown is the final milestone of the Artemis I mission that began with a successful liftoff of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on…

NASA's next-generation astronaut spacecraft returned to Earth after more than a quarter-century of orbiting the Moon. The Orion space spacecraft made a blazing re-entry into Earth's atmosphere on Monday (IST), and then splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. In subsequent stages, though, parachutes were used to delay the fall. Three huge red and orange parachutes assisted the unmanned capsule as it descended to the water. As seen on NASA TV, the unmanned capsule sped through Earth's atmosphere at a rate of 25,000…

NASA Artemis 1 Orion spacecraft to splash down on Earth TODAY: Know how to watch liveThe Orion spacecraft of the Artemis 1 project is currently spending its final day in orbit, and NASA teams aim to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near Guadalupe Island at 12:39 EST (11.09 PM IST)   On November 16, the NASA Orion capsule was safely launched by the Artemis 1 mission into outer space. Now, nearly a month later, it is time for the spacecraft to return to Earth.    Artemis I: Or, To the Moon and Back Again. Live…

NASA's Orion capsule and its test dummies swooped one last time around the moon Monday, flying over a couple Apollo landing sites before heading home. Orion will aim for a Pacific splashdown Sunday off San Diego, setting the stage for astronauts on the next flight in a couple years. The capsule passed within 80 miles (130 kilometers) of the far side of the moon, using the lunar gravity as a slingshot for the 237,000-mile (380,000-kilometer) ride back to Earth. It spent a week in a wide, sweeping lunar orbit. Once…

NASA's Orion spacecraft was placed in lunar orbit Friday, officials said, as the much-delayed Moon mission proceeded successfully. NASA's Orion spacecraft was placed in lunar orbit Friday, officials said, as the much-delayed Moon mission proceeded successfully. A little over a week after the spacecraft blasted off from Florida bound for the Moon, flight controllers "successfully performed a burn to insert Orion into a distant retrograde orbit," the US space agency said on its web site. The spacecraft is to take…

NASA’s new Orion crew capsule came within 81 miles of the lunar surface Monday. NASA's new Orion crew capsule came within 81 miles of the lunar surface Monday. Its path also took the spacecraft over the Apollo 11 landing site, Tranquility Base, where astronauts first landed on the moon in 1969.The flyby occurred after Orion ignited its main engine for 2 1/2 minutes, a critical maneuver that put the vehicle on course to enter the moon's orbit later this week.  The lunar approach is part of NASA's Artemis I mission,…

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NASA's Artemis I moon rocket launch — the US space agency's second attempt to send its lunar rocket to the moon — was halted for the second time on Saturday, after a fuel leak was detected. According to NASA, the launch will not take place on the next planned date of September 6, which means the next launch window could be between September 19 and October 4, or in the second half of October. Artemis I, the agency's first step towards putting humans back on the Moon, will test the journey to Earth's only natural satellite…