NASA is going to announce the names of four astronauts who will be sent flying past the Moon as part of the historic Artemis II mission, which is scheduled for 2024. The Space Agency has just released a cinematic trailer for the upcoming event, which will take place at a special event on Monday, April 3.
“It’s a new era of pioneers, star sailors, thinkers and adventurers,” NASA chief Bill Nelson proclaims at the beginning of the video.
During the Artemis II mission, four astronauts will fly along the same path as the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis I test mission without a crew, held at the end of last year. During the long-awaited mission, Orion and its crew will fly 140 km above the surface of the Moon before returning home.
On April 3, you will meet the team of astronauts flying to the Moon on the #Artemis II mission.
These explorers will pave the way for future lunar landings and our next giant leap — human exploration of Mars. https://t.co/PRlRVEsJVz pic.twitter.com/BBlyhVJZNV
— NASA (@NASA) March 28, 2023
After Artemis II, NASA is planning an even more exciting mission that will land the first woman and the first person of color on the surface of the Moon, which will be the first crew landing since the last Apollo mission in 1972.
The aim of the Artemis program is to establish a long-term scientific and human presence on the Moon, when astronauts live and work there just as they live aboard the International Space Station in low Earth orbit. The mission also aims to inspire the next generation of engineers and researchers to more ambitious achievements.
Perhaps in the 2030s, NASA will be able to use the Moon as a launch pad for the first manned mission to Mars, since the low gravitational pull of the Moon will provide easier launches and, therefore, more efficient deep space travel.
Check yourself, what do you know about the Artemis I mission.
Follow us on Twitter to get the most interesting space news in time
https://twitter.com/ust_magazine
