![]() It envisages regular launches starting in the later part of this decade and continuing into the 2030s.īefore then, a Lunar Pathfinder spacecraft designed to provide affordable communications services to lunar missions is due to be launched, perhaps by the end of 2022. The Gateway will be home to European astronauts as well as those from around the world, and it will have a communications module developed by ESA.ĮSA is working on plans for a European Large Logistic Lander to provide different types of uncrewed missions, from supply runs for Artemis astronauts, to stand-alone robotic science and technology demonstration missions and even a lunar return mission to bring samples to laboratories on Earth. There are several spacecraft orbiting the Moon and there will be plenty more to come, including CAPSTONE as part of NASA’s Artemis program.NASA’s Artemis programme plans to return humans to the Moon by 2024 and, in cooperation with ESA and other partners, intends to put a Gateway with living quarters for astronauts in lunar orbit. ![]() So does anything orbit the Moon? In summary, yes. Another really cool thing about CAPSTONE is that it is also demonstrating a really innovative navigation system that will allow future spacecraft to determine their location without having to rely exclusively on tracking from Earth. This NRHO orbit is at a precise balance point between the gravities of the Earth and the Moon, which offers a long, stable orbit so that Gateway and future spacecraft don’t have to carry so much fuel to stay in orbit around the Moon.ĬAPSTONE is helping lead the way for Gateway and helps reduce risk for future spacecraft in this orbit. What’s really cool about CAPSTONE is that it’s the first spacecraft to test the entrance and sustainability of a very unique near rectilinear halo orbit, also known as NRHO. ![]() NASA Small Satellites Engineer Ahn Nguyen tells us about it. On November 13, 2022, they welcomed CAPSTONE, a CubeSat designed to test a new and unique halo-shaped orbit that will offer stability for long-term missions like our upcoming lunar Gateway space station. There are a handful of satellites currently orbiting our closest celestial neighbor. On the other hand, if the satellite is slightly too far away from the Moon, the Earth’s gravity will pull the spacecraft out, flinging it away from the Moon altogether.ĭoes anything orbit the Moon? Yes. If a satellite orbits too close to the lunar service, the Moon’s gravity might cause the satellite to actually crash into the Moon. Gateway is a space station that will orbit the Moon and provide a place for astronauts to resupply and prepare for their trips down to the lunar surface.ĭid you know that orbits around the Moon are very unstable? The Moon’s gravity is extraordinarily lumpy, so it’s really hard to stay in orbit around the Moon. It serves as a pathfinder mission for Gateway as part of NASA’s Artemis program. CAPSTONE stands for the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment. One of the really cool CubeSats I’m excited about is NASA CAPSTONE, which joined these other spacecraft in orbit around the Moon. Yes, NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and a handful of other active spacecraft are currently orbiting the Moon. NASA’s Gateway, a vital component of Artemis program, will serve as a multi-purpose outpost orbiting the Moon that provides essential support for long-term human return to the lunar surface and serves as a staging points for deep space exploration. ![]()
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