Latest news with #ArtemisII
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Artemis booster explosion: NASA, Northrop Grumman investigate unexpected results during rocket test
The Brief NASA and Northrop Grumman completed an Artemis SLS rocket booster test flight in Utah. During the static fire test, there were some unexpected explosions. Space experts say this will likely not affect Artemis II, but engineers need to understand what triggered the explosions for future flights. ORLANDO, Fla. - Officials are investigating an unexpected explosion that occurred during a solid rocket booster test in Utah last week, raising questions about a key component of the Artemis moon missions. What we know NASA and Northrop Grumman completed the booster test in Promontory, Utah last week. It lasted around two minutes. Just after 100 seconds, the NASA livestream showed a few explosions on the livestream. The engineers calling out cues during the test expressed some shock during the static fire but continued with the test. The booster eventually ran out of fuel, and the test wrapped up without incident. CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX LOCAL APP This booster is proven technology that has taken astronauts to the moon since the Shuttle Era, but NASA is upgrading the boosters for further deep space missions. Space experts say that could have caused the anomaly. An investigation into what went wrong is underway. What we don't know It's unclear how long it will take teams to pinpoint what caused the explosions and if this could delay any future Artemis missions. What they're saying A space expert says it looked like the unexpected explosion happened near the nose cone of the booster. "It does appear that the fire initiated somewhere around that nozzle, so it's quite likely there was some sort of an issue there with this new configuration," said Florida Tech space professor Don Platt. Northrop Grumman released a statement acknowledging the anomaly the team is investigating. SIGN-UP FOR FOX 35'S BREAKING NEWS, DAILY NEWS NEWSLETTERS "While the motor appeared to perform well through the most harsh environments of the test, we observed an anomaly near the end of the two-plus-minute burn. As a new design, and the largest segmented solid rocket booster ever built, this test provides us with valuable data to iterate our design for future developments," said Jim Kalberer, who's the vice president of propulsion systems for Northrop Grumman. The Source FOX 35's Reporter Esther Bower watched the NASA livestream where the explosion happened. She also read a statement from Northrop Grumman following the booster test. She interviewed a space expert via zoom on June 30, 2025.
UPI
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- UPI
NASA to live-stream launches, spacewalks on Netflix
NASA will launch its live-streamed programming on Netflix -- featuring rocket liftoffs, astronaut spacewalks and live views of Earth from the International Space Station -- starting this summer, the space agency announced Monday. File Photo by Aaron Sprecher/UPI | License Photo June 30 (UPI) -- NASA plans to launch its live-streamed programming on Netflix -- featuring rocket liftoffs, astronaut spacewalks and live views of Earth from the International Space Station -- to the "broadest possible audience," starting this summer, the space agency announced Monday. Through Netflix, NASA+ could expand the space agency's reach to a global audience of more than 700 million viewers. NASA+ will continue to be available for free through the space agency's website and through the NASA app. "The National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 calls on us to share our story of space exploration with the broadest possible audience," said Rebecca Sirmons, general manager of NASA+ at the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C. "Together, we're committed to a Golden Age of Innovation and Exploration -- inspiring new generations -- right from the comfort of their couch or in the palm of their hand from their phone," Sirmons added. NASA's grainy footage of the first Apollo moon landing in 1969 captured 650 million viewers around the world. Now the space agency is planning to showcase its Artemis moon missions with numerous high-definition cameras. Artemis II, which will orbit a crew around the moon, is currently targeting a launch date of April 2026. Artemis III, which will land on the moon, is currently scheduled for the middle of 2027. "I hope to be on the moon missions, but if I'm not, I'm going to be glued to my TV, and I'm going to be watching almost everything that comes down," Artemis astronaut Scott Tingle told UPI in 2021. "There's a huge opportunity here to pipe a lot of this through NASA TV, and I don't think that this organization is going to miss an opportunity to do that if it's technically possible," Tingle added. Netflix has been showcasing space exploration content for years. In 2021, Netflix released a five-part docuseries on SpaceX and the first launch of its all-private orbital spaceflight, Inspiration4. The series featured footage of the entire mission "from training to launch to landing." That same year, Russia's space agency, Roscosmos, produced a full-length feature film shot at the International Space Station to promote the growing commercialization of orbital spaceflight. In 2020, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine tweeted that actor Tom Cruise would fly to the space station for a movie, but no date was announced. The film is still in development, as plans call for Cruise to become the first civilian to perform a spacewalk outside of ISS. "More and more movies and videos will be shot in space as the price of launches falls due to competition from firms like SpaceX and Blue Origin," James Neihouse, IMAX movie cinematographer told UPI.
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Science
- Indian Express
Top 10 upcoming space missions to watch in 2025 and beyond
Space exploration is soaring to new heights in 2025, with a thrilling lineup of missions set to expand our understanding of the cosmos, from lunar landscapes to distant moons and Earth's own climate. While SpaceX continues to bolster global connectivity through its Starlink megaconstellation—demonstrated by its successful doubleheader launch of 53 satellites (27 in Group 10-34 and 26 in Group 15-7) on June 28, 2025, from Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Space Force Bases – the global space community is gearing up for a series of groundbreaking missions. These upcoming endeavours, led by NASA, ESA, ISRO, JAXA, and others, promise to push the boundaries of science and human exploration. 1. Intuitive Machines IM-3 (PRISM) Launch Date: 2026 Destination: Moon Description: As part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, Intuitive Machines' IM-3 mission will deliver scientific payloads and rovers to the lunar surface. This mission aims to study lunar geology and test technologies for future human exploration under NASA's Artemis program. Two previous launches faced challenges in landing. 2. ESCAPADE (Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers) Launch Date: December 2025 Destination: Mars Description: NASA's ESCAPADE mission, developed with UC Berkeley, consists of two small satellites, 'Blue' and 'Gold,' designed to orbit Mars at different altitudes. They will study the planet's plasma and magnetic fields to understand how Mars lost its atmosphere, a key factor in assessing its past habitability. 3. NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) Launch Date: 2025 Destination: Earth Orbit Description: A collaborative mission between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), NISAR will use dual-frequency radar to monitor Earth's surface with high precision. It will track land movements related to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and environmental changes like deforestation and ice melt. 4. Artemis II Launch Date: April 2026 Destination: Lunar Orbit Description: NASA's Artemis II will be the first crewed mission of the Artemis program, sending four astronauts on a 10-day mission to orbit the Moon, testing the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System (SLS) for future lunar landings. 5. Gaganyaan-2 Launch Date: 2025 (Test Flights) Destination: Low Earth Orbit Description: ISRO's Gaganyaan program will conduct two un-crewed test flights in 2025 to validate life support, avionics, and safety systems for India's first crewed mission, Gaganyaan-3. These missions are critical steps toward India becoming the fourth nation to independently send humans to space. 6. Space Rider Launch Date: 2027 Destination: Low Earth Orbit Description: ESA's Space Rider is a reusable, uncrewed spaceplane designed to conduct microgravity experiments in low Earth orbit. It will study plant growth, material behavior, and biological processes in near-weightless conditions. 7. Dragonfly Launch Date: July 2028 Destination: Titan (Saturn's Moon) Description: NASA's Dragonfly is a rotorcraft mission to Titan, set to explore its organic-rich surface and study prebiotic chemistry, despite delays due to funding and technical reviews. 8. Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Launch Date: September 2026 Destination: Phobos (Mars' Moon) Description: JAXA's MMX mission will explore Mars' moons, Phobos and Deimos, landing on Phobos to collect samples for return to Earth by 2031, studying their origins and Mars' early history. (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy) Launch Date: 2028 Destination: Venus Description: NASA's VERITAS mission will map Venus' surface in high resolution to study its geology, tectonics, and volcanic activity, aiming to understand why Venus evolved differently from Earth. 10. Sentinel-6C Launch Date: November 2030 Destination: Earth Orbit Description: A NASA-NOAA-ESA-EUMETSAT mission, Sentinel-6C will measure global sea level changes, ocean winds, and water vapor to support climate research, continuing the legacy of Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich and Sentinel-6B.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Utah powering NASA's SLS rocket and Artemis program
A group of guests from NASA teams working on the Artemis program visited the Clark Planetarium Tuesday to talk about what's next in space exploration, and Utah's role in it. Like many, Kjell Lindgren, a NASA astronaut who has logged 311 days in space, was inspired by the images of the Apollo astronauts. It's now been five decades since humans stepped on the moon. 'Our generation has recaptured that torch to carry exploration back to the lunar surface,' Lindgren said. Lindgren is referring to NASA's upcoming missions — Artemis II and Artemis III, which would include orbiting around the moon and landing on the moon, respectively. Artemis II is scheduled to launch in April 2026 and is succeeding uncrewed Artemis I in 2022. Artemis II will be the first mission with crew aboard the Space Launch System, or SLS, rocket and Orion spacecraft. The Artemis missions are under NASA's ambitious long-term exploration plan called Moon to Mars Architecture. The goal is to send humans deeper into space than ever before. Lindgren called Utah a 'partner in exploration for decades.' With more than 3,000 Artemis suppliers nationwide, Utah has become the factory for the very propulsion systems that the SLS rocket uses. Mark Pond, a Utah native and the senior director of NASA Programs at Northrop Grumman, said the Promontory Rocket Complex has been building boosters for the space shuttle program since the late '70s. Currently, they are responsible for the two white solid rocket boosters on the sides of the main stack of the SLS. 'We are a big part of the first two minutes,' Pond said. 'To be able to get the vehicle going, the velocities that it needs to go.' These boosters that are built and tested in Utah provide about 75% of the thrust needed to get the rocket off the ground, Pond said. They exert 3.6 millions pounds of thrust. Like Lindgren, Pond was captivated by the Apollo mission, particularly when Gene Cernan left the last human footprints on the moon. 'I feel completely cheated that I didn't get to be a part of that endeavor,' Pond said. He's now been working in propulsion systems for over 25 years. NASA is working thoroughly with its partners to ensure that spacecraft is safe and ready for launch day. 'We're gonna knock it outta the park,' Pond said. The guests described, almost in unison, the insatiable spirit of human exploration as the basis of this return mission. 'It's about going back to stay,' Stephen Creech, the assistant deputy associate administrator of the Moon to Mars Program, said. Lindgren explained NASA wants to land on the south pole of the moon, where water in the form of ice can be found. 'There's tremendous opportunity for exploration,' Lindgren said, 'to understand what resources might be available to not only sustain, but to support future exploration.' Dave Reynolds, another Utah native and program manager for the SLS Booster Office at NASA, echoed Lindgren's view of the moon as a starting point for further exploration. " It is the the best place that we're gonna be able to learn how to work and live on another planet and still be able to phone home," Reynolds said. The International Space Station is in orbit about 250 miles above the Earth. It takes about nine minutes to go from the surface of the Earth into the Earth's orbit, and anywhere between six hours and three days to reach the space station. The exact duration depends on the spacecraft, launch procedures, and the space station's position in orbit. In comparison, getting to the moon on a direct route takes about three days there, and three days back. Going to Mars, as it turns out, is a bit more challenging. 'You don't go to Mars, you go to where Mars is going to be,' Reynolds said. 'It's such a high-precision dance that we have to do when we're trying to meet with another celestial object.' Put simply, it would take about nine months to get there, plus a waiting period to ensure the Earth is in the right location before the trip back. Lindgren talked about the hardships of space travel in the human body, which include muscle and bone loss and cardiovascular changes, as well as some degree of radiation. While astronauts in the International Space Station are still exposed to radiation, they are protected by the Earth's magnetosphere. Astronauts traveling to Mars will lose that protection. That's something that researchers, scientists and doctors are trying to figure out, Lindgren said. Even though there are some unknowns NASA is still working on, there's optimism around the upcoming missions. 'There's (an) opportunity to learn the lessons from what we've done over the past decades,' Lindgren said. 'There's an opportunity to do it more efficiently, to go into it with a better understanding of the architecture that we want in order to make it sustainable.' The whole world is watching and Pond said NASA is working hard to ensure the astronauts are safe and able to return home. Pond said the program, which includes a Canadian astronaut on the Artemis crew, has inspired scientific progress and international collaboration. " We have so many people that are pushing for us. They want to see us succeed," Pond said. As NASA is getting ready for the launch of Artemis II, preparation for Artemis III is already underway. Northrop Grumman will be testing a new booster rocket that will be used in Artemis III on Thursday at 11 a.m. at its site near Promontory Point. For those interested, there will be a public viewing area along Highway 83. '(The new booster) addresses several different obsolescence issues that we have with the current boosters,' Pond said. The new booster will exert nearly 4 million pounds of thrust — 0.4 million pounds more than the current booster — and will create a 'cool light show' in Utah skies as well as a lot of smoke and fire.
UPI
23-06-2025
- Science
- UPI
NASA completes full-duration 'hot fire' test of new RS-25 engine
NASA tests RS-25 engine No. 20001 on Friday, at the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center at Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Test teams fired the engine for almost 500 seconds, the same amount of time RS-25 engines fire during a launch of a Space Launch System rocket on Artemis missions to the moon. Photo by NASA June 23 (UPI) -- NASA fired up a full-duration test of its new RS-25 engine that will power the Space Launch System rocket on Artemis missions to the moon, the space agency announced Monday. NASA tested RS-25 engine No. 20001 on Friday at the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center at Bay St. Louis in Mississippi. The full-duration "hot fire" test was the first since NASA completed certification testing for new production RS-25 engines last year. The engine, built by contractor L3Harris Technologies -- formerly Aerojet Rocketdyne -- was fired up for nearly eight-and-a-half minutes. That is the same amount of time it would take four RS-25 engines to launch an SLS rocket, sending astronauts aboard the Orion into orbit. The engine was also fired up to the 111% power level to test its limits. The test was conducted by a team from NASA, L3Harris and Syncom Space Services, which is the contractor for site facilities. All RS-25 engines are being tested and proven flightworthy at NASA Stennis after the space agency completed its RS-25 certification test series in April 2024. "The newly produced engines on future SLS rockets will maintain the high reliability and safe flight operational legacy the RS-25 is known for while enabling more affordable high-performance engines for the next era of deep space exploration," Johnny Heflin, SLS liquid engines manager, said last year. The RS-25 engine dates back to the 1960s, with a previous iteration of Rocketdyne from the 1970s. NASA's first space shuttle flight used RS-25 engines to launch in April 1981. It will take four RS-25 engines, producing a combined 8.8 million pounds of thrust at liftoff, to launch the SLS rocket for Artemis missions. NASA is targeting the first crewed Artemis mission, Artemis II, for April 2026. It will be the first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. During Artemis II, four astronauts will make a trip around the moon. Artemis III will include a lunar landing, which is currently scheduled for 2027.
