Artemis II Fires Main Engine As Astronauts Leave Earth Orbit For Historic Moon Flyby

Just a little over a day after NASA’s Artemis II lifted off from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, the spacecraft has left Earth orbit for a flight around the Moon – a first for any crewed spacecraft since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The space agency confirmed that Orion’s main engine was fired early Friday morning and completed the key six-minute-long burn required for translunar injection. The four astronauts — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen — are now on a precise trajectory toward the Moon aboard the spacecraft Orion, which the crew has named ‘Integrity’.

“Today, for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972, humans have departed Earth orbit. Orion is operating with a crew for the first time in space,

and we are gathering critical data and learning from each step,” said Dr Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

The lunar flyby is planned for April 6. The astronauts are trained to take high-resolution photographs and provide their own observations of the lunar surface, including areas of the far side of the Moon never seen directly by humans.

Although the lunar far side will only be partially lit during the flyby, the conditions should create shadows that stretch across the surface, enhancing relief and revealing depth, ridges, slopes, and crater rims that are often difficult to detect under full illumination, the space agency said.

All Well, Says NASA As 10-Day Journey Begins

Soon after its lift-off from Florida at 4:05 am IST on April 2, the Orion spacecraft deployed its four solar array wings to enable it to receive energy from the Sun. About 49 minutes into the test flight, the SLS’s upper stage fired to put Orion into an elliptical orbit around Earth.

A second planned burn by the stage propelled Orion into a high Earth orbit about 74,000 km above Earth for about 24 hours of system checks.

After the burn, Orion separated from the stage, flying free on its own. The crew manually controlled Orion to test how it can be docked. After the test, Orion automatically fired its engines to move away safely.

The rocket stage then completed its final burn, re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and fell over a remote region of the Pacific Ocean. Before that, it also released four small satellites (CubeSats) into space.

According to the space agency, the crew spent the first 24 hours in space getting accustomed to the new environment, resting for a bit, performing the first flywheel exercise, and restoring the toilet to normal operations after an issue occurred soon after lift-off. The spacecraft also successfully connected to the Deep Space Network for communications.

The astronauts will return to Earth after completing the lunar flyby and splash down in the Pacific Ocean after ten days.