Washington. the space capsule Orion flew over the Moon on Monday less than 130 kilometers from its surface, a maneuver that marks the beginning of the return trip to Earth of this first mission of the program Sagebrush from NASA.
By making this flyby very close to the surface, the spacecraft took advantage of the satellite’s gravitational pull to propel itself on its return trajectory.
Communication with the capsule was interrupted for 30 minutes when it passed behind the far side of the Moon. It was also to fly over the landing sites of the Apollo mission.
The essential thrust of the European Service Module main engine, which propels the capsule, lasted just over three minutes.
“We couldn’t be more pleased with the spacecraft’s performance,” Debbie Korth, deputy director of the Orion Program, later stated.
While spectacular images appeared on their screens once communication was restored, at a press conference, Korth stated: “Everyone in the room had to stop and pause, and look (…) Wow, we are saying goodbye to the Moon” .
This was the last major maneuver of the mission, which began with the takeoff of the new megarocket. Sagebrush from NASA on November 16, for a trip that should last 25 and a half days in total.
Orion will now make only slight course corrections until it touches down in the Pacific Ocean off the US city of San Diego on Sunday. She will be recovered and hoisted aboard a US Navy ship.
The main purpose is to test the resistance of the heat shield of Orion, the largest ever built, when it enters the earth’s atmosphere at a speed of 40 thousand kilometers per hour. It will have to withstand a temperature of 2,800 degrees, half of what is on the surface of the Sun.
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