Artemis II set to send humans to orbit the moon in 2024 after historic rocket launch exceeds expectations

NASA officials Tuesday provided post-flight updates on Artemis I mission’s technical performance, along with any impacts the mission may have on the timeline of Artemis II.Artemis I launched on Nov.

16, 2022 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center near Orlando, Florida and then returned on Dec. 11, 2022, splashing down off the coast of San Diego.It was the first in a series of Artemis missions to build a long-term human presence on the moon.

Artemis I was uncrewed to test the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, the most powerful rocket ever used. (NASA/FOX Weather)"[Artemis I] was a flight test for us, really, to prove out our systems in a real environment and even push the vehicle beyond where we had originally intended," said Jim Free, associate administrator of NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate."We did accomplish the objectives and very well," he added.NASA’s Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission was successfully recovered inside the well deck of the USS Portland on Dec.

11, 2022 off the coast of Baja California. After launching atop the Space Launch System rocket on Nov. 16, 2022 from the age (NASA)"It was an amazing flight," said Howard Hu, manager for NASA's Orion Program. "We did have a record-breaking mission in terms of where Orion went to the moon." Hu said that the spacecraft traveled as close as 80 miles from the moon's surface and farther than any human spacecraft at 270,000 miles from Earth."So, that was quite an accomplishment," he said. "We got pictures that I think inspire the world and certainly brought big smiles to the team in what we were able to see from that mission."According to Hu, Orion exceeded all performance expectations, and their team.