**Artemis Program Overview and Key Elements:**
– Led by NASA, established in 2017 via Space Policy Directive 1
– Aims to reestablish human presence on the Moon with a long-term goal of a permanent Moon base for Mars missions
– Key elements include Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System (SLS), Lunar Gateway, and Human Landing System (HLS)
**Artemis Program Missions and Timeline:**
– Includes Artemis 1 (uncrewed test), Artemis 2 (first crewed test), Artemis 3 (crewed lunar landing), Artemis 4 (second crewed lunar landing), and Artemis 5 (third crewed lunar landing)
– Support missions involve robotic landers, Gateway modules, Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS), and HLS for crew conveyance and support
– Mission timeline spans from 2022 to 2031 with specific objectives for each mission
**Artemis Program History and Redefinition:**
– Traces back to the Constellation program and its development challenges in the early 2000s
– Redefined as Artemis in 2017 with a focus on Moon and Mars missions
– Accelerated Moon landing goal to 2024 by Vice President Pence in 2019
– Named after the Greek goddess of the Moon
– Received increased funding requests in 2020 and 2021
**Artemis Program Development, Challenges, and Future:**
– Contracts awarded for HLS studies to Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX in 2020
– Faced budget concerns, criticism, and legal challenges
– SpaceX contracted for lunar lander flights in 2021
– Biden administration endorsed the program in 2021
– Future includes challenges with the 2024 lunar landing goal, ongoing legal disputes, and continued program support
**Artemis Program Infrastructure and Supporting Programs:**
– Infrastructure includes main components like SLS, Orion, HLS, Lunar Gateway, and commercial launchers
– Supporting programs like VIPER rover, Artemis Accords, Exploration Ground Systems, Gateway Logistics Services, and Earth-launch vehicles
– Details on Space Launch System (SLS), SpaceX Starship, Falcon Heavy, CLPS launchers, and space vehicles like Orion spacecraft
The Artemis program is a Moon exploration program that is led by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and was formally established in 2017 via Space Policy Directive 1. The Artemis program is intended to reestablish a human presence on the Moon for the first time since the Apollo 17 moon mission in 1972. The program's stated long-term goal is to establish a permanent base on the Moon to facilitate human missions to Mars.
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| Program overview | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Organization | NASA and partners: ESA, JAXA, DLR, ASI, ISA and CSA |
| Purpose | Sustainable crewed lunar exploration |
| Status | Ongoing |
| Program history | |
| Cost | US$93+ billion (2012–2025), $53 billion in 2021-2025 |
| Duration | 2017–present |
| First flight | Artemis 1 (16 November 2022, 06:47:44 UTC) |
| First crewed flight | Artemis 2 (NET September 2025) |
| Launch site(s) | |
| Vehicle information | |
| Crewed vehicle(s) | |
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Two principal elements of the Artemis program are derived from the now-cancelled Constellation program: the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (as a reincarnation of Ares V). Other elements of the program, such as the Lunar Gateway space station and the Human Landing System, are in development by government space agencies and private spaceflight companies. This collaboration is bound together by the Artemis Accords and governmental contracts.
The Space Launch System, Orion spacecraft and the Human Landing System form the main spaceflight infrastructure for Artemis, and the Lunar Gateway plays a supporting role in human habitation. Supporting infrastructures for Artemis include the Commercial Lunar Payload Services, VIPER rover, development of ground infrastructures, Artemis Base Camp on the Moon, Moon rovers and spacesuits. Some aspects of the program have been criticized, such as the use of a near-rectilinear halo orbit and the sustainability of the space program.
Orion's first launch on the Space Launch System was originally set in 2016, but faced numerous delays; it launched on 16 November 2022 as the Artemis 1 mission, with robots and mannequins aboard. According to plan, the crewed Artemis 2 launch is expected to take place in late 2025, the Artemis 3 crewed lunar landing is scheduled for late 2026, the Artemis 4 docking with the Lunar Gateway in late 2028, the Artemis 5 docking with the European Space Agency's ESPRIT, Canada's Canadarm3, and NASA's Lunar Terrain Vehicle in early 2030, and the Artemis 6 docking which is expected to integrate the Science Airlock with the Lunar Gateway station in early 2031. After Artemis 6, NASA expects yearly landings on the Moon to occur from then on.