Space and Physics
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Shortly, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, his deputy Pam Melroy, and several other members of the leadership team will sit down with the media at the agency’s headquarters in Washington to update people about the Artemis lunar program.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.The press conference will take place at 1 pm EST (6 pm GMT) and can be followed on NASA+, and will also feature NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, the commander of the Artemis II mission. Artemis II was postponed from 2024 to next September and will see Wiseman with Victor Glover, record-breaking Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen flying around the Moon. Koch and Glover will also be the first woman and person of color, respectively, to ever travel to deep space.
There is speculation about what is being announced today. It could be the confirmation of a launch window for Artemis II. However, it might also be a postponement, or it might not be exclusively about Artemis II. There are a lot of concerns regarding Artemis III, the mission that is expected to place humans on the Moon after over 50 years.
The lunar descent module will be provided by SpaceX with one of their Starships. Unfortunately, the space vehicle has failed to demonstrate safe vertical landing on the ground, or relaunch capabilities. These are key for the Moon landing. Ahead of Artemis III, Starship is also expected to demonstrate refueling in space in 2025, but no further updates have been provided by NASA or SpaceX.
“The large-scale, Starship-to-Starship, cryogenic propellant transfer is a critical capability necessary for the Starship human landing system mission for Artemis III and Artemis IV,” a NASA spokesperson told IFLScience.
“The propellant transfer test is part of a series of tests, along with detailed design reviews, that will provide NASA data and evidence to certify the lander. Following the propellant transfer demonstration, NASA will review the test results and certify lander systems prior to the crewed demonstration missions to ensure astronaut safety and mission success.”
Delays in Starship testing might delay Artemis III from its current date of September 2026. This is not all. An analysis published this year by the Government Accountability Office suggests that the mission might be delayed until 2028.
