UNITED STATES: On August 29, the Artemis 1 mission is scheduled to lift off. As part of the Artemis 1 mission, the US space agency NASA has verified the launch of Lunar IceCube, a water-scouting cube satellite (CubeSat), along with a number of other miniature spacecraft.
As a component of the Satellite Launch System (SLS) rocket, Artemis 1 will travel four miles from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 18 before launching on an unmanned lunar trip by August 29.
The SLS rocket will launch Artemis 1 for the first time with the satellites integrated into the rocket. The 31-pound Lunar IceCube CubeSat will explore the Moon exclusively. According to the space agency’s website, the Lunar IceCube will orbit the Moon and use a spectrometer to look into lunar ice. The Artemis 1 mission will investigate further.
“It is into the water ice dynamic on the celestial body to comprehend how it evolves and interacts with its surroundings. Previous NASA expeditions have already found the presence of water ice on the Moon,” NASA said.
According to NASA, scientists are interested in how the water is taken up and released from regolith, the Moon’s stony and dusty surface. Not only would this increase NASA’s understanding of the components on the Moon, but it would also provide scientists with the chance to assess the exosphere—a very thin atmosphere-like volume—which surrounds the Moon.
The endeavour’s goal would be to determine whether these elements may be used as resources for upcoming missions. NASA would attempt to broaden its inquiry of various materials, resources, and atmospheric dynamics of water ice on the Moon and eventually the red planet Mars with the help of the numerous satellites aboard Artemis 1.
The Moon was last visited by astronauts in 1972.
On July 20, 1969, Michael Collins was orbiting the Moon when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, the first of the 12 moonwalkers, set foot on the powdery grey surface.
According to the report: “Following repairs from the countdown test last month, the 30-story Space Launch System rocket and its Orion capsule are now in the hangar at Kennedy Space Center. During the several launch rehearsals, NASA conducted at the pad, fuel leaks and other technical issues appeared.”
The rocket and Orion capsule are taller than the Statue of Liberty at 322 feet (98 metres). According to the source, astronauts might board Orion in 2023 for a lunar loop-around and make a genuine landing in 2025 if the mission to the Moon returns smoothly.
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