Artemis 2 is most similar to Apollo 8. What the missions had in common
Nearly 60 years ago, three Americans made history as the first humans to ever break free of Earth's orbit on their way toward the moon .
And when they passed behind the moon to the side Earth never sees, Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell ( who died in August ) and William Anders became the first humans in space to lose sight of their home world.
Now, similar to the Apollo 8 mission of 1968, NASA is preparing to send a new crew of astronauts on a relatively short voyage circling Earth's only natural satellite. And like their predecessors, the Artemis 2 crew members may not have the honor of making a lunar landing, but will instead pave the way for future astronauts to step foot on the lunar surface.
Interactive graphic: See how the Artemis II crew will get to the moon, step-by-step
Here's a look at how NASA's upcoming Artemis 2 moon mission compares to the iconic Apollo 8.
When is the Artemis 2 rocket launch date?
NASA is targeting April 1 for a launch of the Artemis 2 lunar mission from NASA's Kennedy Space Center along the Atlantic Coast near Cape Canaveral, Florida.
A crew of four astronauts will hitch a ride to orbit on an Orion capsule. Built by Lockheed Martin, the Orion vehicle will be perched atop NASA's 322-foot Space Launch System rocket , built by Boeing and Northrop Grumman.
While no moon landing is in store for the astronauts, the mission will serve a vital role in testing the systems and hardware on the spacecraft needed for future expeditions to the lunar surface.
Apollo 8 was 1st to send astronauts around the moon and back
The impending mission will not only represent NASA's first human moon mission since the Apollo era ended in 1972, but the first since that era really began with a similar mission in 1968.
Lifting off Dec. 21, 1968, from the Kennedy Space Center, the Apollo 8 mission sent three NASA astronauts on a six-day trip orbiting the moon before making a landing Dec. 27 in the Pacific Ocean.
As a prelude to a lunar landing, the flight was an important step in testing the flight trajectory and operations before astronauts stepped foot on the moon's surface.
The mission also made history in many ways.
The crew became the first humans to orbit the moon and the first to see the Earth rising on the lunar horizon in an event known as an Earthrise. Apollo 8 was also the first crewed launch for NASA's iconic Saturn V rocket, which at 363 feet tall remains to this day of the largest rockets ever made .
Who were the Apollo 8 astronauts?
Apollo 8 was composed of a crew of three NASA astronauts, all of whom have since died:
-
Frank Borman , commander of the mission who had previously flown on the Gemini 7 space orbital rendezvous mission with Gemini 6.
-
Jim Lovell , pilot of the command module who would also later command the infamous Apollo 13 mission.
-
William A. Anders , lunar module pilot.
Artemis 2 to go even further from Earth than Apollo mission
The crew of Artemis 2 are set to become the first humans to see parts of the far side of the moon that not even the Apollo 8 astronauts witnessed .
Traveling in the Orion capsule, the astronauts will venture up to 6,000 miles beyond the far side of the moon – the farthest humans have ever ventured in space , according to NASA. As a result, the astronauts will see the entire disk of the moon, including areas near the north and south poles.
The planned trajectory for the four-day return journey will use Earth's gravity to naturally pull Orion back home after flying by the moon, negating the need for propulsion or much fuel.
Who is the crew of Artemis 2?
Here's a look at the four-member crew of Artemis 2:
-
NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman , a Baltimore native and the mission's commander who last flew to space in 2014 on a Russian Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station .
-
NASA astronaut Victor Glover , the pilot from Pomona, California, who flew to space in 2020 on a SpaceX mission to the space station.
-
NASA astronaut Christina Koch , a mission specialist from Grand Rapids, Michigan, who holds several space agency records and who flew in 2019 on a Soyuz ISS mission.
-
Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen , another mission specialist who will fly to space for the first time.
Koch and Glover represent the first woman and first African American , respectively, assigned to a NASA lunar mission. Additionally, Hansen is set to become the first Canadian to fly close to the moon, according to Reuters .
Both Apollo 8, Artemis 2 missions to precede a moon landing
Like Apollo 8 before it, Artemis 2 is meant to precede a moon landing attempt in the years ahead.
In the case of Apollo 8, two more missions came before astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first humans to step foot on the moon in July 1969 during Apollo 11. That included Apollo 9 in March 1969 – during which two astronauts piloted a lunar module in Earth orbit – and Apollo 10 later in May, which was another moon-orbiting mission.
NASA had originally planned for a moon landing mission to follow Artemis 2 before leaders at the space agency announced an overhaul to the program at the end of February.
Before a moon landing is now attempted during Artemis 4 in 2028, astronauts in the Orion capsule are due to meet and dock in Earth orbit with at least one of the lunar landers being developed by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Elon Musk 's SpaceX. That new mission, targeted for 2027, is known as Artemis 3.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Similar to Apollo 8, NASA's Artemis 2 won't include moon landing
