WASHINGTON – As Artemis 2 approaches the moon, a NASA science team is finalizing plans for the observations they want the astronauts to perform during their flyby.
At an April 4 briefing, a representative of the mission’s science team said they were working to complete a plan of observations by the astronauts on April 6, when the spacecraft swings around the moon on its free-return trajectory.
Kelsey Young, science flight operations lead for NASA’s Artemis internal science team, noted that the observing plan depended on which day the mission launched during the early April launch period because different parts of the moon would be in sunlight.
A science evaluation room for the mission at the Johnson Space Center has been working since the April 1 launch to finalize an observation plan. “What the crew is studying today is the 80% solution. It’s a study guide,” she said. “Tonight, the final targeting plan will get uplinked to them and they will review that prior to the flyby.”
Artemis 2 is primarily a test flight of the Orion spacecraft, but NASA has tried to incorporate science in the mission, with a focus on lunar observations. While NASA has imagery of the lunar surface from missions like the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter at a much better resolution than what Artemis 2 will obtain, scientists still see value in any observations the astronauts make.
“Human beings are really good at making nuanced color observations,” Young noted. She cited an example from Apollo 17, when astronaut Harrison Schmitt spotted orange soil on the surface, which revealed that the moon had volcanic activity much more recently than previously thought.
“We’re looking for the crew to take time during their flyby, let their eye adjust to what they’re seeing, and call out any of those subtle color nuances, especially on the parts of the far side that have never been seen before by human eyes,” she said.
In the weeks leading up to the launch, scientists also started planning for observations during an eclipse, as the sun disappears behind the moon for 53 minutes during the Artemis 2 flyby. The moon will block not just the sun but also part of its corona.
“We have science questions designed around looking at solar activity at the time of the eclipse,” Young said. “They’ll be able to make unique observations.”
There will be plenty of features on the lunar surface that scientists hope that the crew can observe. “If you ask 100 lunar scientists what their favorite features are, I’m sure you’d get 100 different answers,” she said.
One particular feature of interest is Mare Orientale, a large impact basin that straddles the near and far side of the moon. “The crew is really excited about that target and they’re really excited about understanding its significance in lunar science,” she said. “I’m really eager to hear their descriptions specifically of Orientale just given the excitement that the lunar science team has and the crew has.”
Much of the science will be in those verbal descriptions the astronauts provide. “Just having this crew describe visuals of the moon, visuals of the lunar surface, will give you goosebumps,” Young said.
In a public affairs event just before the briefing, the Artemis 2 astronauts noted they are already starting to see parts of the far side of the moon as they approach.
“Last night, we did have our view of the moon’s far side and it was just absolutely spectacular,” said Christina Koch. “Something about you senses that is not the moon I am used to seeing.”
The Orion spacecraft and the moon seen on the second flight day of the Artemis 2 mission. Credit: NASA
Toilet maintenance
As Artemis 2 cruises towards the moon, the Orion spacecraft has largely been working well. “The Orion spacecraft is in very good health and continues to operate nominally on its way to the moon,” said Debbie Korth, NASA Orion deputy program manager, at the briefing.
Controllers used cameras mounted on the ends of Orion’s solar arrays to perform a visual inspection of the spacecraft, showing the spacecraft to be in good condition. “We did side-by-side comparisons to Artemis 1, and it looks quite a bit better than Artemis 1 did at this point in the mission,” she said.
The trajectory of Orion has remained accurate enough that flight controllers canceled the second of three planned outbound correction maneuvers that was scheduled for April 4, after canceling the first on April 3.
“Orion is doing such a great job, we had great insertion accuracy,” said Judd Frieling, a flight director. He said later that they will likely perform the third planned maneuver on April 5, using reaction control system thrusters on the Orion service module.
One issue that has been a problem for the crew has been the toilet. After fixing problems with the toilet shortly after the April 1 launch, flight controllers said April 4 that a line to vent wastewater from the toilet into space was blocked, likely because of ice buildup. Controllers reoriented the spacecraft for a few hours to warm up that section of the spacecraft in the hopes of melting the ice.
As of the late afternoon briefing April 4, that work was in progress and had enabled a partial venting of the tank. The astronauts have been using backup collection devices until the line is fully cleared and the tank vented. “We want to keep the tanks half-full right now until we figure out what’s going on with the vent line,” Frieling said.
Korth said the icing was not unexpected, with similar ice buildup seen on some shuttle missions. “We’ve got ways to work through that. We just have to figure out how to point the vehicle we need to” to warm the vent line while also maintaining power generation and thermal control.
Agency officials shrugged off the inevitable jokes associated with the toilet problems. “I think the fixation on the toilet is human nature,” said John Honeycutt, chair of the Artemis 2 mission management team. “Everybody knows how important that is to us here on Earth, and it’s harder to manage in space.”
