Australian experts reveal key moments and scientific insights
When the human eye could finally see it, the Integrity capsule appeared like a small, fragile panettone hurtling through the sky at the speed of a meteor.
The world stopped breathing until the module, carrying the four now-famous astronauts, deployed its 11 parachutes and crashed into the cobalt waters of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on Saturday morning. Vault.
The heart-pounding spectacle followed a brutally rapid drop from space that saw the Artemis II crew hurtling through Australia’s upper atmosphere, reaching speeds approaching 40,000km/h, triggering a plasma fireball around the spacecraft that was seared with half the heat of the sun.
Then a “textbook” landing sealed the deal: Humanity managed to go to the moon and back for the first time in half a century. “This is the beginning of a new era in human space exploration,” said Howard Hu, NASA’s Orion program leader.
A new era in which frequent space travel to the Moon and beyond will occur.
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman called the mission’s four crew members “poets.” For 10 days, commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen talked about love, connection, joy, adoration, and grief; in many cases, they talked about moments that captured the hearts of millions of people who watched the first missions to the moon in real time.
Astronauts flew more than a million kilometers, reached farther from Earth than any other human in history, reached a top speed of 39,693 kilometers per hour, and achieved the correct flight path within 0.4 percent of their target angle. They sent back unprecedented images and scientific information from the far side of the Moon.
Flight director Rick Henfling said Artemis III is now very close. The next mission will launch the crew into low-Earth orbit to practice docking with lunar landers in preparation for astronauts to land back on the moon in 2028.
What else should you know about the most important space mission in a generation? We asked seven Australian space experts to tell us about their highlights.
Eclipse in space reveals meteor impact
“My favorite moment was when the crew witnessed live meteorite impacts on the lunar surface during a total solar eclipse,” said Australian of the Year and astronaut award winner Katherine Bennell-Pegg.
“The cameras on the spacecraft were not fast enough to capture impact flashes, one of many examples of why humans are critical there. Monitoring such impacts is critical to understanding the risks to future missions as well as the lunar environment.”
The Australian Space Agency’s director of space technology and one of the engineers contributing to the Artemis missions was also impressed by the technology demos and vehicle checks carried out throughout the astronauts’ journey, paving the way for future space travel.
Proving that the spacecraft supports human life (except for the broken toilet)
“The pivotal moment for me was proving that the Orion spacecraft operated with a human crew. This was a first for the spacecraft, which had been in development for more than a decade, and was key to our future lunar exploration,” said Lt. Gen. Larry James, former deputy director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“The fact that life support (other than the toilet) is working well and that we are conducting proximity operations that will be key to docking with future lunar landers, all bode well for sending humans back to the moon!”
NASA leaves Musk’s exploding rockets behind
“My highlight of this mission was actually the success of the launch,” said Professor Andrew Dempster, director of the Australian Aerospace Engineering Research Centre.
“NASA’s long-term plans are to use this rocket for Mars, and they’ve taken a very different approach to SpaceX in developing a Mars-capable rocket. SpaceX runs very rapid development cycles and is happy to blast and blow up many rockets along the way. NASA is taking the more measured, traditional high-reliability approach. So there was a lot going on with the launch, and its success is really great news.”
Astronauts disappeared for 40 minutes
“In many ways this was routine for us,” said CSIRO astronomer John Sarkissian, who helped track the Orion spacecraft with CSIRO’s Parkes Murriyang telescope.
“But what made this time so special was that my colleagues and I witnessed the radio signal suddenly disappear as the spacecraft passed behind the Moon, only to reappear 40 minutes later on the other side. This revealed that there were human companions out there who were seeing a side of the Moon that was never seen from Earth.”
The moment that broke the world’s heart
Swinburne University of Technology astrophysicist Dr. “As the crew orbited the moon, they discovered two new craters,” said Kirsten Banks.
“They named one after their pod, and they named the other Carroll. Carroll is the late wife of Commander Reid Wiseman, who passed away from cancer in 2020. This livestream moment caused people all over the world to feel all the emotions and shed collective tears for the beauty of this moment. Here were the people who broke the record for the farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth, and in that extraordinary moment, what came to mind was grief, love and affection. To me, this speaks to everything that is beautiful about human nature; the further we go.” Let’s go, we carry each other with us.”
Australian researchers tested NASA laser
“A highlight was the demonstration of the optical communications system sending a laser beam from the Orion space capsule to Mount Stromlo in Canberra,” said Swinburne Professor Alan Duffy, referring to Australian National University researchers who worked with NASA to test the new system.
“Australia’s decades of astronomy expertise meant we could track a spacecraft moving at tens of thousands of kilometers per hour to download huge amounts of valuable scientific images.”
Apollo Commander passes the torch
Australian Space Agency chief Enrico Palermo said Jim Lovell, the commander who flew on Apollo 13 and 8, passed away last year. But before the Artemis II mission, Lovell recorded a message sent to the crew during the moon flight: “Welcome to my old neighborhood!” Lovell said. “This is a historic day and I know how busy you will be. But don’t forget to enjoy the view.”
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Angus Dalton is science correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect with: X or email.
