Artemis Moon Program

IMOHO, Trying to make a point around the vague idea of a turn of civilization for this is rather moot.

The all Artemis experience is not to go to the moon, again, but to return there with a plan: a safe, efficient, wealth providing, national safety compatible return. It's also an international endeavor with adjunct efforts all focused toward an end goal.

China's lonely stray to the moon would only emphasize this: it is an isolated nation led by a regime that speaks a language (figuratively) nobody shares anymore.
 
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Russia and the United States are currently in a heated anti-space race to see who can fire the most people-

Trump: I'm going to kill MSFC, Goddard, and Ames.

Putin: That's nothing--I just sold Baikonur to Borat for 20 Rubles

Another slap to the face
nasawatch.com

Union Letter To NASA MSFC Employees

the following email and attached memo was sent to NASA MSFC
nasawatch.com nasawatch.com
 
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TomcatViP said:
IMOHO, Trying to make a point around the vague idea of a turn of civilization for this is rather moot.
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It depends on how well the US responds should China achieve a such a prestigious goal first. They've been working for years to subvert the US and proclaim their own superiority as a civilization, and the USSR was able to capitalize on Sputnik for similar reasons.
TomcatViP said:
The all Artemis experience is not to go to the moon, again, but to return there with a plan: a safe, efficient, wealth providing, national safety compatible return. It's also an international endeavor with adjunct efforts all focused toward an end goal.
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I would argue that Artemis is fairly disjointed, not well planned, inefficient, wealth-wasting, and has little to do with national security. The Chinese space program has been quite competent at setting regular goals and meeting them, gradually expanding capabilities, rather than fits and starts as NASA is prone to.
TomcatViP said:
China's lonely stray to the moon would only emphasize this: it is an isolated nation led by a regime that speaks a language (figuratively) nobody shares anymore.
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China has a dozen countries signed up for the ILRS. A fraction of the Artemis Accords, yes, but should they beat the US back to the Moon, and maintain a steady pace of further landings, that will be a powerful inducement for undecided nations to rally around them.

My own opinion is that what matters most is not merely getting back to the Moon, but both sustaining a presence on the Moon, and really *doing* something with it beyond pure science. Bringing all of cislunar space into our economic sphere is orders of magnitude more important, and doing so would both piggyback scientific efforts financially as well as technically, making them more achievable. Going for science alone just won't be enough.
 
China could have been on the Moon earlier had they not diversified fuel choices. Their Soyuz clone flew over two decades ago. RD-270s would have kept hypergolics of early LM vehicles...and I think China could have finished Glushko's work.
 
BlueAbyssal said:
My own opinion is that what matters most is not merely getting back to the Moon, but both sustaining a presence on the Moon, and really *doing* something with it beyond pure science. Bringing all of cislunar space into our economic sphere is orders of magnitude more important, and doing so would both piggyback scientific efforts financially as well as technically, making them more achievable. Going for science alone just won't be enough.
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This part, we share completely.
And, if I may, this slight editing:

"Going for science [and glory] alone" would be an underachievement
 
NASA Goddard has put out a short video concerning exploring the Moon's South Pole:


The Moon is our nearest celestial neighbor, orbiting Earth at less than a quarter of a million miles on average. Now, for the first time since 1972, NASA is preparing to send astronauts to the Moon with the Artemis missions. Artemis III will target landing sites near the lunar South Pole. There, ancient rocks, minerals, and trapped water ice will not only provide resources for human explorers, they may also contain clues to the formation and evolution of our planet and the solar system.​
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Learn More: https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...umans-in-space/artemis-science/&v=AQAaAJW-uC0
Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Dan Gallagher: Producer/Editor
Kelsey Young: Scientist
Ernie Wright: Visualizer
Rob Andreoli: Videographer
John D. Philyaw: Videographer
Chris Smith: Animator
Brian Monroe: Animator
Derrol Nail: Launch Commentator
Lonnie Shekhtman: Public Affairs
Molly Wasser: Public Affairs
Caela Barry: Support
Aaron E. Lepsch: Technical Support
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Universal Production Music: “Transitions” by Harry Gregson Williams [BMI] and Ben Andrew [PRS]; “Love on the Moon” by Sebastian Barnaby Robertson [BMI] and Yaacov Kobi Hokima [BMI]
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Philip Sloss has posted a new video mainly concerning Artemis III:


Artemis II watch and Artemis III watch continue this week. In this video, I'll look back at the Long March 10 first stage static fire test, which is China's Moon rocket. The U.S. and China might be racing to the Moon, but they may be in different races. (It depends on who you ask.) Artemis III would be the U.S. lunar landing mission, and there's more SLS and Starship notes this week.​
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There's also some imagery we've received of Mobile Launcher-2 construction, but most of the video is about Artemis II launch preparations. The final piece of the vehicle arrived at Kennedy Space Center in Florida this week and Exploration Ground Systems provided a detailed update on the status of preparations.​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA and the China Manned Space Agency, except where noted.
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00:00 Intro
00:46 Artemis II watch this week: OSA arrives at KSC
03:51 More footage of recent Artemis II flight crew launch day practice and launch pad training
06:28 Update on Artemis II preparations from EGS senior vehicle operations manager Matt Czech
11:56 Artemis III watch this week: China static fires its Long March 10 Moon rocket
13:10 More footage of the SLS Core Stage-3 engine section install in VAB High Bay 2
16:09 Elon Musk lowers 2026 expectations for Starship
17:32 Bechtel provides imagery of Mobile Launcher-2 construction during the 1st half of 2025
22:30 Only able to get one SLS five-segment booster image from June Promontory tour
25:04 Thanks for watching!
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Another update on Artemis III from Philip Sloss:


The recently publicized milestones in China's lunar landing program development temporarily highlighted their status and increased the visibility into a race to land the next people on the Moon. Congress maintains that the U.S. has to win another race, and NASA says that Artemis III will fly in less than two years, but everyone is hiding their schedules from public view.​
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And it's not clear everyone is running the same race. Is China racing the U.S.? Is SpaceX in a hurry to get to Mars or the Moon? Does the White House really want to race if it means they have to keep funding SLS and Orion?​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA and the China Manned Space Agency, except where noted.
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Links to social media posts:
https://x.com/PhazzeeYeehaw/status/18... / pfbid02w6frrbd7fcex9polsc4nqsv8gd7wqd2qmdw... https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...wTeLFapgHUwhPHTuVFacTgVKnJn5L1l&v=E0i8uWvTlyQ
https://x.com/raz_liu/status/19563288...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev..._liu/status/1956328839543402538&v=E0i8uWvTlyQ
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Links to stories referenced:
https://english.www.gov.cn/news/20250...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...WS689eec3dc6d0868f4e8f4dcb.html&v=E0i8uWvTlyQ
https://www.china-in-space.com/p/long...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...://buymeacoffee.com/philipsloss&v=E0i8uWvTlyQ
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00:00 Intro
01:35 China static fires a ground test article of its new Moon rocket
02:54 Where does the Moon race stand today?
11:47 How big a lead does the U.S. still have?
14:15 Thanks for watching!
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Even if Starship never worked--having SLS on one pad and FH on the other would allow a mission similar to that enabled by two LM-10 payloads. There, the lander is ahead but the booster has yet to fly all-up.

New Glenn a bit ahead of LM-10.

Some thoughts:
spacenews.com

We led NASA’s human exploration program. Here’s what Artemis needs next.

We led NASA’s human exploration program. Here’s what Artemis needs next.
spacenews.com spacenews.com
 
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Philip Sloss has another Artemis II launch preparations update video out:


The first part of my interview of Matt Czech with Exploration Ground Systems on Friday, August 22nd. EGS is getting the Artemis II vehicle ready for launch, Mr. Czech provided a detailed report on current work. In this part, I asked about the current status of Orion and SLS preparations ahead of the final mate of the spacecraft and rocket.​
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In the second part, coming in a later video, I asked about the outlook for work after Orion and SLS are mated, and the final stretch from there to rollout for launch.​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.
Matt's bio:https://www.nasa.gov/people/matt-czech/https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...www.nasa.gov/people/matt-czech/&v=TtcGlZg4aMU
https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...://buymeacoffee.com/philipsloss&v=TtcGlZg4aMU

00:00 Intro
00:55 Current status of Orion work in the Launch Abort System Facility
03:25 Forecast for Orion to move to the VAB for stacking
06:30 Installing the Orion Crew Module ogive fairing is the critical path
10:40 Current status of integrated test and checkout of SLS
15:30 Closing out the SLS Core Stage engine section for rollout and launch
17:15 Finishing "traveled work" on the Core Stage
19:00 Orion Stage Adapter pre-stack processing and schedule
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Philip Sloss has some more updates on Artemis II:


The successful completion of Starship flight test 10 during the past week gives SpaceX a big data set to iterate on; I'll provide a quick recap and the big picture questions for NASA and Artemis will return soon. The Artemis II watch continues, as Exploration Ground Systems works to get Orion encapsulated and ready for final stacking with SLS in October. I'll go through the latest pictures and status reports on that, a first look at the latest Boeing SLS production update, and an overview of a visit to the L3Harris Aerojet Rocketdyne production facility where RS-25 engine components are manufactured and assembled.​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.
Links to social media posts:
https://x.com/NASAArtemis/status/1960... (Artemis II crew update)
https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...://buymeacoffee.com/philipsloss&v=zKaDV4UIBXc

00:00 Intro
00:45 Starship flight test 10 accomplishes all objectives
04:01 Artemis II Watch continues
09:15 Behind the scenes with the Artemis II crew, simulating the burn to the Moon
11:40 Visiting the Canoga Park RS-25 engine factory in the Los Angeles areahttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKaDV4UIBXc&t=936s
15:36 Quick takeaways from late breaking Boeing SLS production update
17:01 Thanks for watching!
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www.bbc.com

Canada's first lunar rover looks to future space exploration

The mission's goal is to find water on the Moon, which could open the door for a sustained human presence there.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com

The Canadian vehicle is part of Nasa's Artemis programme, which aims to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon.

As part of that overarching goal, this rover aims to find water and measure radiation levels on the lunar surface in preparation for future manned missions, and survive multiple lunar nights (equivalent to about 14 days on Earth).

The rover will also demonstrate Canadian technology, building on Canada's history in space.
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NASA requesting offers for a Lunar Nuclear reactor to deliver sustained electrical power to NASA settlements and commercial clients on the Moon:

spacenews.com

NASA advances lunar nuclear plan with commercial focus

NASA is moving ahead with plans to support development of a lunar nuclear power system with an emphasis on commercialization.
spacenews.com spacenews.com
 

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Philip Sloss has uploaded part 2 of his Artemis II update video:


Part 2 of my interview of Matt Czech with Exploration Ground Systems on Friday, August 22nd. EGS is getting the Artemis II vehicle ready for launch, Mr. Czech provided a detailed report on current work. In this part, I asked about the outlook for work after Orion and SLS are mated, the final stretch from there to rollout for launch, applying lessons learned from Artemis I, and thoughts about getting ready for Artemis III.​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.
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Links to social media posts:

/ 1557115371592851460

/ 1557484881004924930

/ 1557779522463973376 https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...dSys/status/1557779522463973376&v=0njaN5I9sD4
https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...://buymeacoffee.com/philipsloss&v=0njaN5I9sD4
00:00 Intro
00:59 What is the schedule of integrated testing after Orion is stacked?
05:32 Rollout preps at the end, getting the vehicle ready to roll
08:10 Strategy for the contingency pad access system if needed for Artemis II
10:28 Asking how lessons learned from Artemis I have helped with Artemis II preparations
16:07 Final thoughts
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I think that neither US democratic nor republican administrations since the early nineteen seventies, the present one included, as well as most likely any future ones of either political stripe, (and BTW don't assume the EU is a player in this, unlike Russia or China) are on the actual factual record that will show any real interest at all of retreading the Apollo moon landings, let alone aim their sights on Mars. As much as it pains me personally to type this, I now honestly believe that Musk is the best hope for expanding human presence around the inner solar system.
 
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Philip Sloss has another Artemis II update video out:


While Congress and the White House continue to fight over the future of Artemis plans and money, Artemis II launch preparations continue at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Before going into how Washington avoided directly addressing problems or alternatives or schedules, in this video I'll run through the status of Exploration Ground Systems work for Artemis II and the balance of the Boeing SLS production update.​
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There's also some Q&A about the objectives of the RS-25 engine acceptance test back in June that was blacked out after the White House announced plans to terminate future work. Even though Congress put more money into the President's big bill that is now law, news of that work is still in executive branch exile.​
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A new NASA associate administrator was named this week from the Exploration directorate to focus on Exploration, but it remains to be seen how much control he will have to work on those problems and schedules.​
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Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.
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Links to social media posts:
https://x.com/Gwynne_Shotwell/status/...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...well/status/1962984963545981417&v=HbG7dGTmdWA
https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1963333...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...musk/status/1963333192938856662&v=HbG7dGTmdWA

00:00 Intro
01:32 Artemis II watch
04:58 Boeing SLS production update
09:41 A detailed recap of the RS-25 engine test in June
16:21 Political news and notes now that Congress has returned
21:02 Amit Kshatriya named the new NASA Associate Administrator
23:44 Thanks for watching!
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1963739462405370245
View: https://twitter.com/realhomerhickam/status/1963739462405370245

VP Mike Pence announced Artemis on Mar 26, 2019 in Huntsville during a National Space Council meeting with a directive to land Americans on the moon in five years "by any means necessary." I had talked to Mike about it beforehand & knew it was coming. Jim B. clearly did not. That look of concern and surprise on his face after the meeting while I was talking to the VP was very real. He had a golden opportunity to gather our best aerospace folks together and put together a system that would have gotten us there and kept us going back. Instead, he squandered it by going to the SLS/Orion/Gateway playbook which I had argued against in previous NSC meetings. Jim's not a bad person for doing that. It was what all his HQ people & Senators like Cruz wanted. Then Covid hit, the election heated up, the VP got fully distracted, the NSC fell aside, and the Rube Goldberg architecture we have now got put in place. Kamala Harris had no clue and things just rocked on under Bill Nelson and now here we are. The worst thing is neither the VP, Jim, Bill, Mr. Trump, Ted Cruz nor anyone with their hands on the levers of power have ever sat down and figured out "why" we should go to the moon - and beating the Chinese (the only "why" you'll hear these days) is simply not good enough for a sustained presence. The "why" (for Mr. Trump in terms he would understand) is essentially it's undeveloped real estate with all the possibilities of such.
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Choosing Starship by Kathy Lueders indicated to me that she knew SLS would ultimately be canceled. I think she figured to go ahead & fund Starship under the HLS guise while knowing it would actually be the way to get to the moon with a true lander aboard. Elon probably thinks that, too.
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The article mentions using either a modified Centaur V or a stage provided by Blue Origin. If you meant the ICPS, that isn’t mentioned at all.

Removing EUS in favor of a much cheaper alternative is a start towards making the SLS less moribund, but in my opinion it’s still arranging the deck chairs while the ship sinks.
 
Lockheed Martin is looking at converting Orion for cargo supply to the Moon and Mars.

Exploring Commercial Services for Orion

Video and Article:

Sep 9, 2025
The Orion spacecraft is the only exploration-class vehicle designed and built to take humans to the Moon, Mars and beyond. As NASA’s Artemis II mission approaches, we are working to make Orion more cost-efficient and sustainable.

By exploring a firm fixed-price, industry-led services model, we aim to streamline operations and provide Orion as a service—delivering a safe, reliable and more affordable path for future lunar exploration.

Learn more: Exploring Commercial Services for Orion

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ett2ahk4HE
 
Philip Sloss has new status video for Artemis II and III:


In this video, I'll go through the latest in public on Artemis II launch preparations at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. While Orion and its connector are going through final pre-stacking preparations and the astronauts and control teams continue their training, I got a graphic NASA Exploration Ground Systems to visualize the launch pad system that could allow Artemis II to stay there and avoid a rollback.​
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In Washington, it looks like the recent Senate hearing about the race to put the next footprints on the Moon has changed what the White House says about Artemis III, but not what they do. And a few days later, China test-fired a Long March 10 ground article again, but everyone's launch forecasts remain unexplained.​
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NASA also posted video showing the late August arrival of the Artemis V Orion crew module pressure vessel at KSC.
Imagery is courtesy of NASA, except where noted.
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Links to social media posts:
https://x.com/Astro_Jenni/status/1965...

• NASA to Share Details of New Perseverance ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-StZggK4hhA
https://bsky.app/profile/andrewjoness...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev....bsky.social/post/3lymuyrrwfc2a&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
https://bsky.app/profile/andrewjoness...

/ 1966404736925794634 https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev..._liu/status/1966404736925794634&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
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Links to stories referenced:
https://nasawatch.com/personnel-news/...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...nto-nasas-contractor-rif-plans/&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
https://www.nasa.gov/general/artemis-...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...ts-in-nasa-deep-space-research/&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
https://spacepolicyonline.com/news/du...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...nt-beat-china-back-to-the-moon/&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
https://www.nasa.gov/podcasts/houston...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...-have-a-podcast/advancing-nasa/&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
https://www.china-in-space.com/p/long...https://www.youtube.com/redirect?ev...://buymeacoffee.com/philipsloss&v=oOpVq5VhDXM
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00:00 Intro
00:45 Artemis II watch this week
04:21 EGS provides more documentation about their contingency pad access system
11:11 Artemis V Orion crew module pressure vessel shipped to KSC in late August
13:17 Second static fire for Long March 10 ground test stage
14:43 House appropriations passes funding bill that includes NASA money
16:19 White House changes Moon race rhetoric after Senate hearing, but Artemis III schedule still a mystery
22:48 Thanks for watching!
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Wind Tunnel test and pressure sensitive paint... with a pinch of real-time data churning:

During the Artemis I test flight, the SLS rocket experienced higher-than-expected vibrations near the solid rocket booster attach points, caused by unsteady airflow between the gap.

One solution proposed for Artemis II was adding four strakes. A strake is a thin, fin-like structure commonly used on aircraft to improve unsteady airflow and stability. Adding them to the core stage minimizes the vibration of components.

The strake solution comes from previous tests in the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel, where NASA engineers applied an Unsteady Pressure Sensitive Paint (uPSP) technique to SLS models. The paint measures changes over time in aerodynamic pressures on air and spacecraft.

It is sprayed onto test models, and high-speed cameras capture video of the fluctuating brightness of the paint, which corresponds to the local pressure fluctuations on the model. Capturing rapid changes in pressure across large areas of the SLS model helps engineers understand the fast-changing environment. The data is streamed to the NASA Advanced Supercomputing facility via a high-speed network connection.

“This technique lets us see wind tunnel data in much finer detail than ever before. With that extra clarity, engineers can create more accurate models of how rockets and spacecraft respond to stress, helping design stronger, safer, and more efficient structures,” said Thomas Steva, lead engineer, SLS sub-division in the Aerodynamics Branch at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
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View: https://youtu.be/oJqk26YyKRg


www.nasa.gov

From Supercomputers to Wind Tunnels: NASA’s Road to Artemis II - NASA

A partnership between NASA wind tunnel engineers, data visualization scientists, and software developers verified a quick, cost-effective solution to improve NASA’s Space Launch System rocket for the upcoming Artemis II mission. This will be the first crewed flight of the SLS rocket and Orion...
www.nasa.gov www.nasa.gov
 

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