NASA is preparing to throw a 14,000-kilogram model of the Orion spacecraft into a large pool in Virginia, the latest in a series of crash tests that led to the eventual monthly Artemis II mission. The test is set for 1:45 pm ET and can be watched live on NASA TV (see stream below).
The drop of the model crew module will take place at NASA’s Hydro Impact Basin. The new series of tests began on March 23 and focuses on the completion of computer models for cargo and structures before the planned manned flight from 2023 to the Moon., a mission called Artemis II (the astronauts will not actually land on the moon during this mission – which will hopefully come during Artemis III). The pool is 20 feet deep and contains about a half-and-a-half Olympic pool worth of water. Throwing the capsule from different angles and at different speeds helps NASA engineers understand how the capsule will withstand real-world conditions, such as entering Earth’s atmosphere and splashing into the ocean.
Before the SpaceX Crew Dragon team landed in the Gulf of Mexico in August last year, it had been 45 years since NASA made an explosion. Half a century after the Apollo program, Artemis missions will take humans back to the moon, with plans to land our species on the lunar surface with Artemis III in 2024.. Missions must also see the astronauts safely back, spinning once again in Pacific waters.
NASA has been practicing every element of landing since abortion system in the recovery of spacecraft. The new crash tests will build on previous versions and further enhance NASA’s awareness of what Orion and his crew will experience in the final, crucial moments of Artemis II’s return journey.