Photo: NASA
NASA’s Artemis I missionto the moon launched on 1:47 a.m. EST on Monday and just hours later, it had already captured an impressive photo of Earth.
“The views of our blue marble in the blackness of space [are] now capturing the imagination of a new generation — the Artemis generation,” NASA spokesperson Sandra Jones saidduring a broadcast from the launch, which NASA also posted clips from on social media.
Jones added, “This view of Earth captured from a human-rated spacecraft not seen since 1972 during the finalApollo missionsome 50 years ago.”
David Melendrez, imagery integration lead for the Orion Program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, previouslydescribed the craft’s photo equipment in a press release.
“Each of Orion’s foursolar array wingshas a commercial off-the-shelf camera mounted at the tip that has been highly modified for use in space, providing a view of the spacecraft exterior,” Melendrez said.
A total of 24 cameras were installed on the rocket and spacecraft. Together, they will capture “liftoff, ascent, solar array deployment, external rocket inspections, landing and recovery,” along with stunning imagery of Earth and the Moon.
NASA
“A lot of folks have an impression of Earthrise based on the classicApollo 8 shot,” Melendrez continued.
The capsule is due to reach Earth’s natural satellite around Nov. 22after a 25-day mission.
Though there are no crew members on this mission, there are three mannequins on board, with one — named Campos — wearing an Orion crew survival suit in order to test the safety of the suits in space. NASA’sArturo Campos, who died in 2001, was a key figure credited inbringing the failed Apollo 13 mission home.
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As far as the next priority for Artemis missions, NASA says “they will land the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon, paving the way for a long-term lunar presence, and serving as a steppingstone to send astronauts to Mars.”
source: people.com
