I want to give just the biggest kudos to Kelsey Young, the Artemis II science officer. She did a phenomenal job today of communicating clearly and joyously and it was honestly orders of magnitude more distracting than I thought it would be to have on.
So our data streams consist of: photos on the cameras, voice notes on the tablets, annotations within the LTP on the tablets, and discussions on the Orion loops (that get captured on Earth).
There are several built-in moments where we ask all four crew to discuss together. We give them prompts but then we expect them to build on each others's observations and inferences. This discussion might be audible to everyone (I hope it will be!).
A white board that reads “good luck Artemis II crew and lunar science team” and a doodle of a Snoopy.
Inside the Science Mission Operations Room at the Johnson Space Center this morning. #ArtemisII 🧪🔭
Periodically, one of the non-observing crew will provide an update over the loops so that we can tell how things are proceeding. There may be some Moon Joy in these sitreps :)
You will not hear the observing crew very well over the cabin loops. The observers use headset connections to the tablet to take voice notes. This keeps the flight loop clear for other activities and creates a permanent data file with the crew observation that we can downlink.
They will observe in pairs, one pair at the window while the other pair has other activities to do.They will swap observer pairs roughly every hour.
The crew are not robots! They are not there to take photos of exactly what we tell them and the tome we say. We have plenty of photos from our robotic missions.The crew are there to connect their eyes to brains and make sense of what they see in real time.
The crew has an observation plan, called the Lunar Targeting Plan, on board their tablets (or PCDs). It contains the target list, the science rationale, suggested actions with unaided eye and camera, and discussion prompts. You can see that here: science.nasa.gov/resource/art...
The flyby science activities take place over about 6.5 hours, starting 2:45 p.m. and ending at 9:20 EDT. There is a long break toward the end, after Earthrise, to reorient Orion to warm up and top off before pointing back to the Moon for the solar eclipse.
If you're following along today for the #ArtemisII flyby, here's some notes on what to expect. 🧪🔭🚀🌘
Look, I know I am biased, but the #ArtemisII crew don't talk about wastewater dumps with unbridled joy. They don't do suit tests with a grin that will break their face in half. Our human space flight serves many purposes, but SCIENCE is undoubtedly the shiniest. 🧪🔭🚀🌘
“Copy Moon joy” #Artemis
Amateur astronomers with telescopes equipped with video cameras are requested to look for impact flashes on the Moon tonight, to coordinate with #ArtemisII observations. Details here: www.geodes.umd.edu/impactflash
IT'S FLYBY DAY 🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🌘🚀🚀🚀🚀🔭🚀🚀🚀
Want a excuse to skip out of your Monday meetings? Follow along with the #ArtemisII crew and Lunar Science Team as human eyes and human brains observe and discuss the lunar far side for the first time ever. 🧪🔭🚀🌘
Download a guide to the observation plan here! science.nasa.gov/resource/art...
Download the guide to what the crew will be observing and discussing here to follow along! science.nasa.gov/resource/art...
technically it is tomorrow morning
The #ArtemisII crew loves Orientale! We made sure to give both crew pairs a chance to take in its majesty. Read this thread to find out what makes it so special! 🧪🔭🚀🌘
I found out the answer to this! Though the terms can be used interchangeably, generally perilune is for things in orbit and pericynthion for things sent from elsewhere on their way elsewhere.
This is absolutely for all the lunar scientists whose shoulders we stand on to have seen this far, and those lunar scientists for whom we are writing their future. 🔭🧪🚀🌘
the link to the guide is at the end of the blog post, it's a PDF download.
I am so thrilled to share this guide to the observations that the #ArtemisII crew will be making during their closest approach to the Moon!! I hope you'll follow along!
science.nasa.gov/resource/art...
we are still working on the final plan! I've asked our communications team whether it will be made public for the flyby, but if not it will certainly be part of our public data release.
It's fantastic that there is now a dedicated Science Officer position in NASA's Mission Control for all #Artemis missions. Kelsey, Angela and Trevor also happen to be the best scientists and human beings 😀
science.nasa.gov/missions/art...
FYI, this gallery has all the photos NASA is sharing from Artemis II in one place, with descriptions.
Already loving the little bit extra we're seeing of Orientale - can't wait to see more :)
