The Orion spacecraft splashed down in December 2022, marking the end of the Artemis I mission. On Dec. 11, 2022 – the time of the Artemis I reentry – this shield took severe damage, which ...

Taking the heat To understand what exactly happened to Orion, let’s rewind the story. As the capsule reentered Earth’s atmosphere, it started skimming its higher layers, which acts a bit like ...

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said the Orion spacecraft heat shield underwent extensive testing after the 2022 Artemis 1 flight around the Moon to understand the risks to astronauts.

For Artemis II, Orion will not use a “skip” reentry method, which sees the capsule skim the atmosphere before committing to a full reentry. Instead, Wiseman explained that Orion will aim for a lofted ...

For the Artemis II crewed test flight, engineers will continue to prepare Orion with the heat shield already attached to the capsule. The agency also announced it is now targeting April 2026 for ...

The missions will be pushed to April 2026 and mid-2027 respectively, which is around six months later than previously planned. The delay is due to problems with the Orion spacecraft’s heat shield.

NASA has found a way around the Orion capsule’s heat shield issue, but the space agency’s return to the lunar surface is facing more delays due in part to safety concerns with the crew ...

NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy said Orion's shield "wore away differently than expected" upon the skip re-entry, the maneuver used to slow the spacecraft down as it re-enters Earth's ...

Experts discussed results of NASA's investigation into its Orion spacecraft heat shield after it experienced an unexpected loss of charred material during re-entry of the Artemis I uncrewed test ...

Experts discussed results of NASA's investigation into its Orion spacecraft heat shield after it experienced an unexpected loss of charred material during re-entry of the Artemis I uncrewed test ...