Space News reports that a cubesat launched “as a secondary payload on Artemis 1 may end its operations at the end of the month unless it can get its propulsion system working.” The LunaH-Map spacecraft “was one of 10 cubesats launched as secondary payloads on the inaugural flight of the Space Launch System last November.” The spacecraft had planned “to use an ion propulsion system on the 6U cubesat to perform a maneuver as it flew by the moon days later, ultimately allowing it to go into orbit.” However, the thruster failed to fire due to what is likely a stuck valve.
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Tag: Artemis I mission
Orion Begins Final Leg of Artemis I Mission
CNN reports on its website that the Artemis I mission “is now in the final stretch of its historic journey.” The Orion spacecraft “made another pass by the surface of the moon Monday morning, capturing views of notable lunar sites, including a couple Apollo landing sites. The spacecraft then passed just 80 miles (128.7 kilometers) above the lunar surface, its second close flyby of the moon.” Orion then “fired up its main engine for about three and a half minutes – the longest burn conducted on its trip thus far. The engine burn set the capsule on its final path home, kicking off the last leg of its 25-and-a-half-day trip.”
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NASA’s Artemis I Mission to Include Small Solar Sailing Spacecraft
ExecutiveGov reports that NASA “will send its small spacecraft with solar sail propulsion to space as part of the Artemis I human exploration mission.” Artemis I mission principal technology investigator Les Johnson “said in a statement published Wednesday the flight of the Near-Earth Asteroid Scout payload is partly meant to demonstrate the use of solar sailing spacecraft to reach new places and conduct science experiments.” The cubesat’s “aluminum-coated plastic film sail is designed to reflect sunlight and generate thrust to enable the spacecraft to accelerate and navigate through space for asteroid data-gathering efforts.”
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