Artemis 1 going to the Moon (launched Nov 16)

[Tom.G]

With a 2 hour launch window, Artemis launch currently set for Wednesday, Nov. 16,
0604 GMT
1:04 am EST
10:04 pm PST, Tue. Nov. 15

https://www.space.com/news/live/nasa-artemis-1-moon-mission-updates
Shows next launch windows on Nov. 16 and Nov. 25.

 

[mfb]

A bit of insulation was stripped from the upper part, specifically the connection between Orion and its fairing. No chance to repair it on the pad, so they have to determine if it's okay to fly like this.

The launch countdown has started, 41 hours to go. So far it's mainly powering up things, the more critical phase of the countdown begins ~10 hours before the planned launch. The core stage will be fueled with hydrogen slower and earlier this time.

 

[dlgoff]

A bit of insulation was stripped from the upper part

Beautiful photos. Thanks.

 

[mfb]

The insulation damage is acceptable, the launch countdown continues. 18:30 to go.

 

[mfb]

Fueling is ongoing, hydrogen has reached the fast-fill phase (oxygen as well, but that's the easy part). Ramping up to that fast-fill method has caused the problems in the past, so this step has been fixed. 6:27 to go.

Edit: Core stage is fully fueled!

 

[mfb]

No launch attempt would be complete without a hydrogen leak!
This time it's small and in the top-up procedure, where liquid hydrogen flows at a lower rate to counter boil-off. A "red team" has been sent to the rocket in order to fix it.

https://spaceflightnow.com/2022/11/15/artemis-1-launch-mission-status-center/

2:30

Edit: Leak fixed, now there is an issue with the range (safety), possibly moving the launch a bit within its two hour window.

0:50 assuming no delay

 

[mfb]

The exact launch time is currently unclear. The next event will be the launch director polling all stations if they are ready for launch. Once every system is "go" they can start the final 10 minute countdown. That means the beginning of the poll will be ~15 minutes before the launch, but there is no fixed requirement when it has to start. Could be at any time in the next 2 hours.

NASA livestream, 320k watching
NASAspaceflight, 57k watching
Everyday Astronaut, 42k watching

Edit: Now no earlier than 1:44 AM local time, in half an hour.

1:35: Launch poll started. ETA ~1:47.

 

[mfb]

Let's go!

 

[mfb]

LIFTOFF!

Boosters have separated, center core keeps firing, 4.5 minutes into the flight, so far everything looks great.

Edit: Reached a temporary orbit from the first stage as planned, solar panels of Orion have unfolded. The second stage burn will push it towards the Moon in a bit.

Edit2: Trans-lunar injection burn was a success, we had stage separation. SLS did its job and Orion is going to the Moon. It will make a first fly-by November 21.

 

[Janus]

Watched the launch last night from about 8:15 PST. ( With my fingers and toes crossed). Had to hit the hay shortly after. Glad to hear that everything went smoothly after that.

 

[pinball1970]

Watched the launch last night from about 8:15 PST. ( With my fingers and toes crossed). Had to hit the hay shortly after. Glad to hear that everything went smoothly after that.

It launched as I was on the way to work. Glad it went well.

 

[mfb]

I don't think solid rocket boosters are a good choice, especially not with crew - but they make liftoff look really cool.

 

[.Scott]

I found this space.com article interesting.

With Artemis 1's launch window ticking away on Tuesday night (Nov. 15), Cairns, Garrett and Annis arrived at the mobile launch platform(opens in new tab) underneath the highly dangerous SLS vehicle at 10:12 p.m. EST (0312 GMT on Nov. 16) to stop the leak — and fast — or risk losing this launch opportunity. Once at the platform, the crew discovered that the packing nuts were "visibly loose," according to a statement by launch commentator Derrol Nail on NASA TV's media channel.

It is certainly "highly dangerous", but certainly comparable to the risk that the Astronauts will work with during the final minutes before the launch.
But it's the "visibly loose" that caught my attention. Before reading that, I was imagining something way more subtle.

 

[Borg]

Another interesting quote from the article:

In a testament to how rare the dangerous procedure was, NASA TV commentators interviewing the Red Crew added that Cairns said he has served on the crew for 37 years and had never before been called in for a repair on a fully-fueled rocket before last night's daring excursion.

 

[berkeman]

I found this space.com article interesting.

NASA's daring Artemis 1 'Red Crew' saved the day for the launch to the moon.

I wonder if the folks there at NASA have the same saying for their Red Crew that folks on our aircraft carriers do for their purple sailors: "If you ever see a sailor wearing purple who is running for any reason, run along with them". (The "Fuel Handlers" are in charge of refueling the aircraft and are identified by their purple colors)

 

[.Scott]

"If you ever see a sailor wearing purple who is running for any reason, run along with them".

The flame propagation speed for H2 can be about as high as 3m/s. The fastest speed reach by a human in a sprint is about 12.4m/s. It could be done - but not by me.

 

[russ_watters]

In Star Trek the guy in the red shirt only lasts about 5 minutes...

 

[nsaspook]

In Star Trek the guy in the red shirt only lasts about 5 minutes...

Unless you are this red shirt.

 

[Janus]

Unless you are this red shirt.
View attachment 317346View attachment 317347

Though technically, he did die in "The Changling" only to be brought back by Nomad.

 

[nsaspook]

Though technically, he did die in "The Changling" only to be brought back by Nomad.

It was just a reboot.

 

[mfb]

Orion is approaching the Moon (livestream)

About 2 hours until the closest approach.

 

[Dullard]

Pre-Apollo, safety rules were less...safe. I worked at the shuttle pad with an old-timer (I was young then, and am a 'old-timer' now) who told me that when they went on a tower with a hydrogen-fueled vehicle, they always took a straw broom. Hydrogen fires are invisible - waving the broom (which would burst into visible flame) in front of you was a 'good' way to avoid walking into one. Yikes!

 

[Filip Larsen]

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...the-moon-with-a-lonely-earth-in-the-distance/

NASA's Orion spacecraft flew to within 130 km of the Moon's surface on Monday morning after executing one of the most demanding maneuvers of its 25-day mission.

 

[phinds]

As a long time employee of NASA (many years ago) and a avid fan of science and science fiction, I am a firm believer in the long term need for space exploration, BUT ... in this particular case, I agree w/ the Economist's Nov 16, 2022 article about Artemis:

 

[phinds]

I don't want to get into copyright issues so I can't quote or link to the whole article (I pay for a print/digital subscription) but I think fair use makes it OK to quote part of the Economist article, so here's the thrust of their argument against it:

 

[Vanadium 50]

straw broom

Also used for high pressure steam leaks.

 

[nsaspook]

Artemis Launch Sound Experience​

 

[Filip Larsen]

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...d-the-moon-returns-an-instantly-iconic-photo/:

NASA's Orion spacecraft reached the farthest outbound point in its journey from Earth on Monday, a distance of more than 430,000 km from humanity's home world. This is a greater distance from Earth than the Apollo capsule traveled during NASA's lunar missions in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

(The quote original wrongly said "This is nearly double the distance between Earth and the Moon and is farther than the Apollo capsule traveled during NASA's lunar missions in the late 1960s and early 1970s.")

 

[Tom.G]

Ahem... whoever wrote that caption got their miles and kilometers intermixed.

The above-linked article has been corrected though.
https://arstechnica.com/science/202...d-the-moon-returns-an-instantly-iconic-photo/

from: https://moon.nasa.gov/inside-and-out/overview/

Average Distance from Earth:

238,855 miles | 384,400 kilometers

 

[Filip Larsen]

whoever wrote that caption got their miles and kilometers intermixed.

This is nearly double the distance between Earth and the Moon ..

Good catch, I assume you refer to this part of the article which I happily quoted without reading properly first. I think my brain was stuck in amazement seeing the Moon at nearly same angular size as Earth.

 

[.Scott]

Just to check:

Diameter of Moon: 2159 miles, about 48 pixels
Diameter of Earth: 7917 miles, about 30 pixels
Earth to Moon distance: 238900 miles

So, camera-to-moon distance / camera-to-earth distance = about (30*2159)/(48*7917) = 0.17.
Camera to Earth distance: 238900 *(1+0.17) = 280,000 miles or 450,000 Km
A fair estimate of the advertised 430,000 Km.

 

[mfb]

Orion is approaching the Moon again (NASA coverage). It is expected to make a 300 m/s burn in 35 minutes, putting it on a trajectory towards Earth.

Splashdown is planned for Sunday.

 

[mfb]

Splashdown in a bit under an hour.

NASA coverage
Coverage by Everyday Astronaut, future real astronaut (via dearMoon)

European Service Module has been separated, Orion keeps approaching the atmosphere.

Orion does a skip-reentry maneuver: Its first contact with the atmosphere has a very flat angle and comes with so much lift that it will leave the atmosphere again for a few minutes before it re-enters and stays there. This is a bit easier for the heat shield, and it gives NASA good control over the splashdown zone: No need to land in bad weather because you can control the distance between the first skip and the second entry.

 

[Vanadium 50]

European Service Module

European Service? Brought to you by the same people who brought you French waiters...

first contact with the atmosphere

I always wondered why the 60's and 70's missions didn't do this. "Easier on the heat shield" is one reason, but you really don't want to miss your splashdown target. That increases the recovery time, and these capsules are not as seaworthy as maybe one would like. (e.g. Liberty Bell 7)

 

[mfb]

Brought by the same people who brought you French waiters...

Huh?

A skip-reentry needs a much better control over the trajectory. If you are off by a bit you don't land 100 km away, you might land 1000km away or even on the other side of the planet - with a dead crew because the capsule alone has very limited life support. That's fine today where the capsules have GPS and nanosecond radar timing measurements and can calculate their trajectories in milliseconds, but Apollo didn't have that level of control.

Here is a 1966 discussion.

Edit: Successful splashdown.