This Monday, NASA launches a small satellite with a large mission. The CAPSTONE (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment) satellite will enter an unproven orbit around the Moon that NASA wants to use for future lunar outposts.
The satellite is being launched by New Zealand-based Rocket Lab, which will use one of its Electron rockets. The launch will be broadcast live and below we have the details on how to watch it from home.
What to expect from the release
Team members install solar panels on the CAPSTONE spacecraft, short for Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment, at Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems Inc. in Irvine, California. NASA / Dominic Hart
The CAPSTONE spacecraft is a small satellite called CubeSat that will be launched as a test for the lunar walkway planned by NASA. The idea is to send the small open satellite into a particular orbit around the Moon called an almost rectilinear halo orbit. This complex orbit brings the satellite closer to the Moon at times and at other distances for a seven-day cycle, as shown in this video posted by retired astronaut Chris Hadfield:
The orbits of the Moon can seem awkward, depending on where you look. This is a Halo Orbit, used this weekend by @RocketLab’s CAPSTONE pic.twitter.com/YB92q73y2E
– Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) June 25, 2022
This is the orbit planned for an eventual advanced place orbiting the moon called the Gateway, as it is a stable orbit that can be maintained at low power. However, this orbit had never been used before, so the CAPSTONE satellite is being sent to test it and see if it works as well in practice as in theory.
After the launch of CAPSTONE, the rocket will launch the satellite in six days. The satellite will then travel for four months before reaching its orbit where it will spend six months collecting data. In addition to testing the orbit, it will also test other technologies for future lunar missions such as communications with Earth and a new spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation system.
How to watch the release
The Rocket Lab Electron rocket sits on the platform of the company’s Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand for general rehearsal before the launch of CAPSTONE. Rocket laboratory
The launch is scheduled for 6 am ET (3 am PT) on the morning of Monday 27 June and will take place from Rocket Lab’s 1st launch complex in Mahia, New Zealand. The launch will be streamed live by NASA, which you can watch via the video embedded at the top of this page or by heading to NASA’s YouTube channel.
Coverage begins one hour before the first launch opportunity, at 5 am ET (2 am PT). Once launched, you can track CAPSTONE’s progress through NASA’s Eyes website, which gives you an interactive view of current NASA missions.
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