CNN
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NASA posted a selfie I took Orion capsule and close-ups of the lunar-cratered landscape as the spacecraft continues the Artemis 1 mission, a 25-and-a-half-day journey that spans more than 40,000 miles beyond the far side of the moon.
The most recent portrait of Orion, taken on Wednesday, the eighth day of the mission, by a camera on one of the capsule’s solar panels, shows the spacecraft giving views of part of the moon visible in the background. The big plans were made on Monday when Orion was doing his job. Closest approach to the moonpasses approximately 80 miles (129 km) above the lunar surface.
If Orion completes its journey beyond the Moon and returns to Earth, it will be the most distant spacecraft humans have ever traveled on. At the moment, the capsule only carries inanimate, scientific loads.
Orion is part of NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to create a lunar outpost that, for the first time in history, will be able to permanently host astronauts, with the hope of one day paving the way to Mars.
Mission of Artemis I It was released on November 16th.when NASA’s beleaguered and long-awaited Space Launch System, or SLS, catapulted its Orion capsule into space, cementing the rocket’s status as the most powerful operational launch vehicle ever built.
As of Thursday afternoon, the capsule was 222,993 miles (358,972 km) from Earth and 55,819 miles (89,831 km) from the Moon, moving at just over 2,600 miles per hour, according to NASA, according to NASA.
Orion is now about a day away from entering a “far retrograde orbit” around our nearest neighbor—far because it will be far above the Moon’s surface, and far because it will orbit the Moon in the opposite direction of the Moon’s motion. revolves around the earth.
The trajectory is intended to be a “stress test” for the Orion capsule, Michael Sarafin, NASA’s Artemis mission leader, said last week.
according to Artemis da NASA Blogtelevision coverage by the Deep Orbit Incineration Agency is scheduled for 4:30 pm EST Friday, and the burn is scheduled for 4:52 pm EST.
After a flyby of the Moon, the Orion capsule is due to return to Earth and land in the Pacific Ocean on December 11.
