What is the NASA Artemis Mission?

Recently, NASA deployed the Artemis 1 lunar mission to a test launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA. NASA Artemis (goddess of the moon) mission is a lunar exploration and is named after the twin sisters of Apollo in Greek mythology. Under the NASA Artemis program, the objective is to land the first person of colour and the first woman on the moon. NASA will set up an Artemis base camp on the surface and a gate (Lunar Outpost around the Moon) in the orbit of the Moon to support the exploration of robots and astronauts. The gateway is a key part of lunar activities and acts as a versatile outpost that orbits the moon.

Other space agencies are also involved in the NASA Artemis program. The Canadian Space Agency has promised to provide gateways with advanced robotics. The European Space Agency provides international habitats and ESPRIT modules. They, among others, will also provide additional communication facilities. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will provide housing parts and logistics supplies.

NASA Artemis 1 Mission Importance

Artemis I is the first integrated flight test within NASA's deep space exploration system. Orion Spacecraft will stay in space longer than any astronaut spacecraft has ever done without docking at the space station. In the course of the mission, it will travel 2,80,000 miles from Earth for more than 4-6 weeks. A newly upgraded exploration ground system at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, is set up. The mission ends with the safe return of the Orion Spacecraft to Earth.

NASA Artemis - History of Lunar Exploration

1. In 1959, the Soviet Union's unmanned Luna 1 and 2 became the first rover to visit the Moon.
2. The US tried to send people into space in 1961.
3. Eight years later, on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong, along with Edwin Aldrin, under the Apollo 11 mission, was the first to set foot on the Moon.
4. Two American astronauts visited the moon between July 1969 to 1972.
5. In the 1990s, the US restarted its explorations of the moon with Clementine and Lunar Prospector robotic missions.
6. In 2009, a new series of robotic missions to the Moon began with the launch of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).
7. In 2011, NASA launched NASA Artemis.
8. In 2012, the Gravity Recovery and Internal Research Institute (GRAIL) spacecraft investigated lunar gravity.
9. In addition to the United States, the European Space Agency, Japan, China, and India have launched a mission to explore the Moon.
10. China has landed two rovers on the ground, including the first landing on the moon's far side in 2019.

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On the second flight of the program, crew members will carry passengers to test Orion's critical systems. The results will be used for the NASA Artemis program to send the first astronaut to Mars. NASA plans to use the lunar orbit to extend human space exploration into the solar system.

FAQs on NASA Artemis

Q.1. What is ISRO's lunar exploration initiative in context to NASA Artemis?

The Chandrayaan project was started in 2007 by a cooperation agreement between the Indian Space Research Organization ISRO and Russia's Roscosmos. However, the mission in regards to the NASA Artemis was postponed to January 2013 and delayed to 2016 because Russia could not develop the lander on time.

Q.2. What was the result of the moon's travel under NASA Artemis?

NASA Artemis confirmed the existence of lunar water. There was proof of a lunar cave that was created by ancient lunar lava flows. Errors and crevices that may be characteristic of past internal structural activity associated with meteorite impacts were detected.

Q.3. What is the relevance of Chandrayaan-2 as compared to NASA Artemis?

Chandrayaan - 2 is India's second mission to the Moon, consisting entirely of indigenous orbiters, landers (Vikram), and rovers (Pragyan). As compared to NASA Artemis, the Rover Pragyan is housed on the lander. The ISRO recently announced Chandrayaan 3, India's third lunar mission.

Q.4. What is the purpose of NASA Artemis?

NASA Artemis of the US space agency investigates the potential for life on Mars, studies Saturn's moons, the colourful display of the sky at high latitudes, and constructs a space laboratory for studying stellar explosions.

Q 5. Name the different countries that have launched a mission to explore the moon, like the NASA Artemis.

In addition to the United States, the European Space Agency, Japan, China, and India have launched a mission to explore the moon, like the NASA Artemis.