NASA capsule buzzes moon, last big step before lunar orbit
Last edited Mon Nov 21, 2022, 10:18 AM - Edit history (2)
Source: AP
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- NASA's Orion capsule reached the moon Monday, whipping around the far side and buzzing the lunar surface on its way to a record-breaking orbit with test dummies sitting in for astronauts.
It's the first time a capsule has visited the moon since NASA's Apollo program 50 years ago, and represents a huge milestone in the $4.1 billion test flight that began last Wednesday.
The close approach of 81 miles (130 kilometers) occurred as the crew capsule and its three wired-up dummies were on the far side of the moon. Because of a half-hour communication blackout, flight controllers in Houston did not know if the critical engine firing went well until the capsule emerged from behind the moon, 232,000 miles (370,000 kilometers) from Earth.
The capsule's cameras sent back a picture of the world -- a tiny blue orb surrounded by blackness. "Our pale blue dot and its 8 billion human inhabitants now coming into view," said Mission Control commentator Sandra Jones. The capsule accelerated well beyond 5,000 mph (8,000 kph) as it regained radio contact, NASA said. Less than an hour later, Orion soared above Tranquility Base, where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on July 20, 1969.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/astronomy-space-exploration-science-business-moon-18cfd8a2592a544976f4cf72209ae9e4
[NOTE: THIS IS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH SPACEX BUT IS NASA (and it's contractors)]
Have been watching the stream. Orion was to have made its closet approach to the moon (81 miles above the surface) during this maneuver.
Before losing comms and after comms restored once around the back side of the moon -
(the camera is on the end of one of the SAWs (solar array wings))
Article updated.
Original article -
The close approach occurred as the crew capsule and its three test dummies were on the far side of the moon. Because of the half-hour communication blackout, flight controllers in Houston did not know if the critical engine firing went well until the capsule emerged from behind the moon, more than 232,000 miles (375,000 kilometers) from Earth.
It's the first time a capsule has visited the moon since NASA's Apollo program 50 years ago, and represented a huge milestone in the $4.1 billion test flight that began last Wednesday. Orion's flight path took it over the landing sites of Apollo 11, 12 and 14 -- humanity's first three lunar touchdowns.
The moon loomed ever larger in the video beamed back earlier in the morning, as the capsule closed the final few thousand miles since blasting off last Wednesday from Florida's Kennedy Space Center, atop the most powerful rocket ever built by NASA.
= new reply since forum marked as read
The heavy lift that got that there is bigger than SpaceX's Falcons.
Orion was launched atop the SLS Block 1 rocket in the below (5th rocket from the left) -
Falcons (for comparison) -
Doing what the American and Soviet space programs have been doing since...what....the freaking 60's?! 
Artemis is a NASA program done pretty much old style. Not a man-child play thing.
...just like Erratic Elon's self driving cars.
Musk wasn't even born yet when..... You go, Buzz!
Response to BumRushDaShow (Original post)
"How beautiful that small planet is" (not in English, of course) 
Then they come closer and realize there's a stupid species with weapons of mass destruction on it!
What a let down... 
were designed to add successive "modules" on top for different combos of cargo/payloads and crew capsules.
Once they get something built there, who knows what they will find! It might be 21 years late (from now) but...