NASA will pursue Moon exploration with their new Artemis missions.

Artemis II

In November of 2024, NASA is sending the first person of color, the first woman, the first Canadian and an other American astronaut to explore the region near the Lunar South Pole during the Artemis II mission.

The mission is going to be two weeks long and will serve to show the functionalities of the new spacecraft. They will be onboard a European service module named The Orion. It is crafted by NASA and prime contractor Lockheed Martin. The Orion will also be equipped with very advanced technologies from Space X.

NASA declared “It is also the first spacecraft capable of crewed deep space flight and highs peed return to Earth from the vicinity of the Moon.”

The launch will take place at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, but before they do the real mission, it is going to go around Earth twice to make sure that Orion’s systems are working.

Artemis III

The mission Artemis III will be the first visit since 50 years to the lunar surface. “Its planned for 2025,” NASA said. The mission is designed to lay the groundwork for further missions to Mars’s surface.

Artemis III is the only rocket that is powerful enough to send Orion, its crew, and the supplies to the moon.

On the first day, no human will be setting foot on the Moon because they want to ensure that all the systems on the rocket are working. During the mission, they will be taking photos of the Moon’s south pole, which have not been captured in the Apollo mission. After the journey, the crew will spend five days in orbit before coming back on Earth.

When the spaceship crashes down, it’s going to be helped by 11 parachutes. The spaceship is going to splash down the Pacific Ocean, where the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy will be waiting to welcome back the astronauts.