Jala News – On December 11, 2022, NASA’s uncrewed Orion capsule successfully completed its mission to the moon and safely returned to Earth, concluding the groundbreaking Artemis 1 expedition. The momentous event was captured by the capsule’s onboard cameras, which recorded its dramatic reentry through Earth’s atmosphere, leaving a fiery trail blazing across the sky.
In a bid to share the excitement with the world, NASA released a gripping one-minute clip of the footage on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) and provided a link to the full 25-minute video, allowing viewers to witness the capsule’s journey from beginning to end.
The Artemis 1 mission commenced on November 16, 2022, with the successful liftoff of the Space Launch System (SLS) megarocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This launch not only marked the beginning of Artemis 1 but also served as the inaugural flight for the SLS, currently the most powerful rocket in operation.
The Orion capsule, which had previously completed a successful test flight to Earth orbit in 2014, reached the moon’s orbit on November 25, 2022. It remained in orbit for nearly a week, gathering valuable data and conducting experiments, before embarking on its journey back home.
On December 11, the capsule reentered Earth’s atmosphere at an astonishing speed of approximately 24,500 mph (39,400 kph), rigorously testing its heat shield. NASA confirmed that the heat shield passed the test, although they observed some variances from their computer models’ predictions.
With the Artemis 1 mission triumphantly behind them, NASA is now setting its sights on Artemis 2, the first crewed flight in the Artemis program, scheduled to launch in 2024. This ambitious mission will transport four astronauts around the moon and safely return them to Earth.
The Artemis program, which aims to establish a permanent human presence on and around the moon by the late 2020s, ultimately paves the way for future missions to Mars. NASA’s remarkable achievements and unwavering commitment to expanding our understanding of our celestial neighbors continue to inspire people around the world.
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