Jet passengers have a blast as Artemis II rocket flies previous moments after lift-off
Passengers on Delta Airlines Flight 1784 from Costa Rica to Atlanta, US, could not believe their eyes a Artemis II buzzed past on its way to the Moon
(Image: threads)
Airline passengers had a real blast when Artemis II flew past their plane moments after lift-off.
Folk on Delta Airlines Flight 1784 from Costa Rica to Atlanta, US, could not believe their eyes when they looked out their windows at 33,000ft to find they were being overtaken by NASA’s first crewed mission to the Moon in half a century. They excitedly snapped once-in-a-lifetime souvenir photos and videos through the aircraft windows as the rocket shot past as it accelerated to a maximum speed of 24,500mph.
In footage that went viral one impressed passenger was heard saying: “Wow, that’s crazy.” The rocket successfully launched the Orion space capsule that will propel its four-strong crew of astronauts to the furthest point from Earth of any mission in history.
They will circle the Moon before returning to Earth in a 10-day operation to pave the way for Artemis III – which will put boots back on the lunar surface for the first time since 1972. The crew – including Christina Koch, 47, who will become the only woman in history to travel beyond low Earth orbit – will become the first humans to reach lunar space in five decades on day five.
The following day the spacecraft will perform a flyby of the Moon from 4,000 miles above the surface. The crew will spend three hours recording observational data, taking photos, and tracking specific geological formations.
This part of their journey could fly them further from the Earth than any crewed space mission in history and offer them a unique look at aspects of the Moon never before seen during human spaceflight. When it splashes down in the Pacific off San Francisco it will be travelling at just 17mph.
Much of the Orion – which the astronauts travel in following its separation from the rocket – has been made by the European Space Agency. A spokesman said: “Europe will be providing the power that makes the journey possible thanks to the European Service Module, the propulsion heart of the Orion spacecraft.
“The module supplies air and water for the astronauts, provides electricity through its four solar arrays, controls the spacecraft’s temperature, and delivers propulsion for key manoeuvres in deep space.”
European Space Agency director general Josef Aschbacher said: “This is the first time astronauts are flying aboard Orion. Artemis II builds on the success of Artemis I and confirms Europe’s essential role in humankind’s return to the Moon and future exploration beyond.
“ESA is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with its international partners led by NASA. Together,we are demonstrating that cooperation remains our most powerful engine for the future.”
The European Service Module has three types of engines that work together each with a specific role during the mission. A single main engine delivers the large changes in velocity needed to send Orion towards the Moon.
European engineers will support the mission around the clock from the space agency’s technical centre ESTEC in the Netherlands, NASA’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston and the European Astronaut Centre in Germany.
Daniel Neuenschwander, the European Space Agency’s director for Human and Robotic Exploration, said the module would play a ‘crucial role’ in the mission. This know-how is the foundation for future deliveries in the Artemis partnership but also for achieving our own European goals for human and robotic exploration,” he added.
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