On Nov. 15, 2022, NASA launched their rocket, Artemis 1, with the purpose of demonstrating a safe re-entry into Earth. This launch is used to “ensure a safe re-entry, descent, splashdown, and recovery.”

The rocket’s mission is said to last around 25 days with the splashdown date estimated to be on Dec. 11, 2022. Artemis 1 will travel around 1.3 million miles during its journey which is over 50 times the distance it takes to travel around the world!

Artemis 1 uses the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System to achieve its journey into space. The spacecraft will then use the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage and solar arrays to boost itself out of earth’s orbit then the moon’s orbit.

After orbiting 62 miles away from the moon, it will propel itself into a deep retrograde, traveling to a new orbit of 40,000 miles away. After its long space journey, it will make a re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere at approximately 25,000 miles per hour at temperatures of up to 5,000 degrees fahrenheit.

NASA hopes to use the information from Artemis 1 for future missions into deep space. The next scheduled launch will include a human crew aboard to send the first of humanity into deep space. We may be able to even see the first humans on the Moon since 1972 on the Apollo 17 mission.

With space exploration advancing further, NASA may soon be able to send humanity beyond our planet and onto other planets.