A rocket that is expected to explode from New Zealand on Tuesday morning will cross a unique path around the moon where the US agency would like to place a space station in orbit. This base, called the Gateway, would serve as a place for Artemis astronauts to live and prepare for trips back and forth to the surface of the Moon. The mission to set up the space flight outpost could become a reality in just two years. Imagine the base as something like the International Space Station: a place for humans to live, with many ports to anchor spaceships and a space weather lab. Rocket Lab, a commercial rocket company, will begin NASA’s test mission, the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment, also known as CAPSTONE, with live coverage starting at 5 p.m. ET / 9: 00 UTC and take off at 5:55 a.m. ET Tuesday. Then, about a week after the launch, the public can watch where it is using the NASA Eyes on the Solar System tool. SEE ALSO: NASA Moon is supposed to be launched soon. Here is the wait. The tweet may have been deleted (opens in new tab) The tweet may have been deleted (opens in new tab) No astronauts will drive this time. Instead, Rocket Lab will send a 55-pound microwave-sized satellite to one of the Electron rockets, which the company says is the smallest rocket ever to launch to the moon. The satellite will be the first spacecraft to ever fly in a so-called “nearly straight halo orbit” around the moon. This path should have special gravitational properties – trailers from the Earth and the Moon to create an almost stable orbit – and ensure that the Moon’s base is constantly facing the Earth, allowing uninterrupted communication. Scientists looked at many possible orbits before determining that this was the best fit for a base. A low moon orbit, for example, would circle very close to the moon’s surface. This would bring the base closer to the ground, but would require much more fuel to offset the moon’s gravity, according to NASA. A long retrograde orbit, on the other hand, would be more stable and require less fuel, but would be less convenient to access the ground. In this infographic, NASA explains the unique halo orbit that the lunar Gateway space station will follow to orbit the moon. Credit: NASA With the proposed Gateway orbit, a spaceship would get the best of both worlds: short distance and fuel efficiency. Hanging like a necklace from the moon, the trail would be a weekly loop with relatively easy access to the moon’s surface, including the South Pole. There, NASA wants astronauts to test their ability to fight life on Mars. But scientists will also extract valuable data from that time spent in orbit. This orbit, according to NASA, “will allow scientists to take advantage of the deep space environment for a new era of radiation experiments that will inspire a greater understanding of the potential effects of space weather on humans and instruments.” The 59-foot-long Electron rocket will be the smallest rocket to launch to the moon, according to NASA’s commercial contractor Rocket Lab. Credit: Rocket Lab Rocket Lab’s small 59-foot Electron rocket will take CAPSTONE to its destination using a new approach. The rocket will first push the satellite into low orbit on Earth. From there, the company’s Photon spacecraft will take over, propelling it through space through a series of maneuvers. Building a speed of 24,500 mph, it will be released from Earth’s gravity and then the satellite will use its own propulsion system to take the rest of the orbit to the moon until November 13.
