The Orion capsule looks back toward Earth
Humans could remain on the Moon for long periods within this decade, a NASA official told the BBC.
Howard Hu, who leads the Orion lunar spacecraft program for the agency, said habitats would be needed to support science missions.
He told Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday that Wednesday’s launch of the Orion-carrying Artemis rocket was a “historic day for human spaceflight.”
Orion is currently about 134,000 km (83,300 miles) from the Moon.
The 100-meter-tall Artemis rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center as part of NASA’s mission to carry astronauts to Earth’s satellite.
Sitting atop the rocket is the Orion spacecraft which, for this first mission, has no crew but is equipped with a ‘dummy’ that will record the impacts of the flight on the human body.
Wednesday’s flight followed two previous launch attempts in August and September that were aborted during the countdown due to technical problems.
Howard Hu is in charge of the Orion spacecraft
Hu told Laura Kuenssberg that watching Artemis take off was “an incredible feeling” and “a dream”.
“It’s the first step we’re taking for long-term deep space exploration, not just for the United States but for the world,” he said.
“And I think this is a historic day for NASA, but it’s also a historic day for all the people who love human spaceflight and deep space exploration.
“I mean, we’re going back to the Moon, we’re working towards a sustainable program and this is the vehicle that’s going to carry the people that are going to land us back on the Moon.”
Hu explained that if the current Artemis flight was successful, the next would be with a crew, followed by a third where astronauts would land on the moon again for the first time since Apollo 17, 50 years ago years, in December 1972.
The current mission was progressing well, he told the BBC, with all systems working and the mission team preparing for the next firing of Orion’s engines (known as a burn) early Monday of lunch to put the spacecraft into a distant orbit of the Moon.
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Mr. Hu admitted that watching the mission from Earth was not unlike being an anxious parent, but said that seeing the pictures and videos coming back from Orion “really gives you that excitement and feeling of, ‘Wow, we’re coming back.'” to the Moon “. “.
One of the most critical phases of the Artemis I mission is getting the Orion module back to Earth safely. It will re-enter the planet’s atmosphere at 38,000 km/h (24,000 mph), or 32 times the speed of sound, and its underside shield will be subjected to temperatures close to 3,000C.
Once Artemis components and systems have been tried and tested for safety, Hu said the plan was for humans to live on the moon “within this decade.”
A big part of the reason for going back to the moon is to find out if there is water at the satellite’s south pole, he added, because it could be converted to provide a fuel for craft going into deeper space. on Mars, for example.
“We’re going to send people to the surface and they’re going to live on that surface and do science,” said Mr.
“It will be very important for us to learn a little beyond our Earth orbit and then take a big step when we go to Mars.
“And the Artemis missions allow us to have a sustainable platform and transportation system that allows us to learn how to operate in this deep space environment.”
The Orion capsule will return to Earth on December 11.
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Watch the full interview with NASA’s Howard Hu on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday, November 20
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Watch live in the UK on BBC One and iPlayer from 09:00 GMT
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The program will also hear comments from the Conservatives and Labor following last week’s Autumn Statement
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Follow the program live here on the BBC News website from 08:00 GMT on Sunday and on Twitter @BBCPolitics
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