NASA's project to survey the Moon before the actual Artemis I mission, the CAPSTONE, recently lost all communications with the space agency, and it is unreachable, says the spokesperson. There are many reasons why the NASA CAPSTONE will go dark in space, and the CubeSat should not have as it still has fuel for its trip, among other factors.
NASA CAPSTONE: Spacecraft is Unreachable Says Space Agency
(Photo : NASA)
NASA CAPSTONE lost its communications with the space agency and is now in the dark while floating around in space. NASA aims to investigate what happened for the spacecraft and the reason behind its outage.
It would take several months to go to the Moon, and that is something that the tiny spacecraft is looking forward to before arriving at the natural satellite's orbit. However, before its travel endured the massive wait before its arrival, the NASA CAPSTONE became unreachable as the space agency lost contact with the spacecraft.
According to Space.com, Sarah Frazier, NASA's spokesperson, said in a statement that there are problems that the spacecraft is facing now, and it lost contact with the agency on its journey. The reason behind this is still unknown, and the company is working on ways to reestablish its communications with CAPSTONE for its mission.
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NASA CAPSTONE Gone Dark: CubeSat in Danger?
It lost contact last Monday, July 4. Still, an unknown factor resulted in its current problem, as Frazier said, it has "good trajectory data for the spacecraft based on the first full and second partial ground station pass with the Deep Space Network."
The CubeSat may or may not be in danger due to this communication outage. Further information is coming soon as NASA is already investigating what happened to the CAPSTONE.
NASA's CAPSTONE and the Artemis I
The CAPSTONE is the first modern mission towards the Moon during this time, and it will be surveying the lunar satellite's orbit before bringing the actual rockets and orbiter when the Artemis mission takes place. According to reports, it will create an unusual orbit as it inserts itself on the Earth and Moon's patterns, and it would test it for the upcoming mission.
The main goal of NASA for the CAPSTONE is to provide information and reports regarding the Moon's orbit that affects both the Earth and the lunar satellite that may happen soon in the future launch. The Artemis mission has a lot of research and studies behind it, and one way for NASA to do this is to launch its microwave oven-sized spacecraft ahead.
NASA's venture for the CAPSTONE is essential, and it aims to be the first to experience what the Artemis will face in the coming years before it arrives in space in time for its mission. However, massive problems are now present in the space agency's ventures, especially with CAPSTONE losing contact and going dark in space.
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Written by Isaiah Richard
