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<\/p>\nOrion prime contractor Lockheed Martin has the spacecraft for NASA\u2019s Artemis III and IV lunar landing missions in production alongside the Artemis II vehicle that is going into final assembly at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Simultaneous assembly and test of three Orions is becoming the norm, as the Orion program works towards its goal of delivering one spacecraft every year for eventual, annual Artemis missions.<\/p>\n
Following the Artemis II lunar flyby test flight, the Artemis III Orion will be the first to demonstrate full rendezvous and docking operations when it meets up with SpaceX\u2019s Starship lunar lander in cislunar space during the mission. NASA still aspires to fly Artemis III as soon as December 2025, and the space agency continues to stress delivery dates for not just Artemis III, but also for the Artemis IV Orion to follow as close behind as possible.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Artemis III Orion first build under production and operations contract<\/p>\n
Lockheed Martin builds the crew module (CM) and crew module adapter (CMA) elements of NASA\u2019s Orion spacecraft in the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building at KSC; the industrial operations zone (IOZ) in the building is also where final assembly of the CM and CMA with the European Service Module (ESM) occurs. While that final assembly, test, and checkout of the Orion for Artemis II is going on at one end of the IOZ floor, hardware for the next two spacecraft are also being assembled simultaneously.<\/p>\n
The Orion program is aiming to have the spacecraft for Artemis III ready for delivery about a year after they turn the Artemis II Orion over to Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) next spring. \u201c[For] Artemis III, there are several things driving [production],\u201d Debbie Korth, Orion Deputy Program Manager for NASA, said during a Aug. 8 media event at KSC.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe docking system is certainly one of them [and] we have some ECLSS (environmental control and life support system) components coming from one of our subs (subcontractors). A lot of hardware has to get integrated, and then the European Service Module for Artemis III is set to be delivered by the end of this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Credit: Max Evans for NSF.<\/p>\n
(Photo Caption: The Artemis III Orion crew module at KSC on Aug. 8; Lockheed Martin is planning to complete assembly of the module next year and deliver the entire spacecraft for launch preparations in the spring of 2025.)<\/em><\/p>\n Space Technology (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/p>\n At a very high level, assembly starts with the structure of the spacecraft. After the primary and secondary structure is assembled, then tubing is welded in a \u201cclean room\u201d area, connecting up plumbing for fluids and propellant. Then wiring harnesses are laid out and connected on the inside and outside of the vehicle, followed by installation of spaceflight equipment, and finally testing and checkout.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n As seen on the floor of the IOZ during the early August media event, the CM and CMA for Artemis III have completed structural assembly and are progressing through tube welding as the parts for the tubing are delivered to KSC. Once all the tubing is welded into place, the welds will be proof tested.<\/p>\n \u201cThe ideal flow would be [to] have everything here, get it all installed, go in the clean room one time, [and then] do the proof and pressure [test], but it never works out that way,\u201d Korth said. \u201cWhat they end up doing is as they get components in, they install them, and then they\u2019ll go in and out of the clean room.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe do not have all the components in the factory yet for Artemis III, there\u2019s still several dozen that they\u2019re waiting on. Those guys that run the production floor, they keep track of the thousands of components as they\u2019re coming in and resequence things [and] if we\u2019re waiting on something, go do something else.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re going to install things as they get them and they move the vehicle around between the stations, whether that\u2019s clean room or the other areas,\u201d she explained. \u201cOnce components get here, things can go really quickly, I think the Lockheed assembly team they\u2019re very good about rescheduling and resequencing and keeping the vehicle moving.\u201d<\/p>\n The CMA is in a similar situation, it is waiting for a few more tubes to come in for final standalone welding work. \u201cThey still have to put some components in it, they still have to build it out, but once the ESM arrives here it\u2019s about three to four months after that when they put them together,\u201d Douglas Lenhardt, NASA Supply Chain Lead for Orion at KSC, said.<\/p>\n The Orion spacecraft for the Artemis III lunar landing mission will be the first to have full rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) capabilities. The Artemis II crew will manually pilot their spacecraft during a proximity operations and handling qualities demonstration on the first day of the mission, but the Artemis III vehicle will have fully automated RPOD software and hardware to link up with SpaceX\u2019s Starship HLS lunar lander in cislunar space.<\/p>\n A depiction of what the Orion docking system will look like in-flight beginning with Artemis III. Credit: Lockheed Martin.<\/p>\n Korth said that NASA is currently expecting the docking adapter to be delivered to KSC in January. The docking adapter will attach to the front of the crew module and will be jettisoned at the end of the mission. \u201cIt\u2019s jettisoned before re-entry, so we don\u2019t bring it back. It\u2019s packed on top of the forward bay cover.\u201d<\/p>\n Lockheed Martin and NASA are still evaluating where in the pre-launch production flow to install the docking adapter. \u201cIt is one of the last things that goes on and we\u2019re looking right now at whether or not we can have that installed when we\u2019re in the LASF (Launch Abort System Facility), so kind of playing with the installation sequence to see where that\u2019s most advantageous, but that is one of the last items that goes on.\u201d<\/p>\n After the spacecraft is delivered to EGS, it is moved to the Multi-Payload Processing Facility (MPPF) where commodities like propellant for the spacecraft engines and thrusters and oxygen and water for crew life support are loaded for flight; the spacecraft is then moved to LASF, where the Launch Abort System rocket-and-tower assembly is stacked on top of the crew module. The LASF is the last stop for the spacecraft before it is placed on top of its Space Launch System (SLS) launch vehicle in the Vehicle Assembly Building.<\/p>\n The ESM has the main storage tanks for the multi-week long Orion missions, storing the commodities that are loaded in the MPPF like propellant and oxygen and water. \u201cThose [storage tanks] are all installed, we have all the equipment installed, we just need to finalize some welding on some of the tubes on the propulsion side, but other than that the hardware, the big items, are all integrated,\u201d Bergemann noted.<\/p>\n \u201cEven the large propellant tanks have been integrated some weeks ago, which is a major milestone for us in the progress of that integration, and so now it\u2019s about testing, it\u2019s really about optimizing the test sequence in order to meet the delivery date here.\u201d<\/p>\n Credit: Philip Sloss for NSF.<\/p>\n (Photo Caption: The Orion crew module adapter for Artemis III is temporarily stored for the Aug. 8 media event. Standalone assembly is expected to be completed by the end of the year, which is when ESM-3 is expected to arrive in Florida. The two elements will be mated to become the service module next year.)<\/em><\/p>\n As noted, a few months after the ESM arrives in Florida, the CMA and ESM should be ready to mate together to form the service module (SM) for Artemis III. Right now, that would be in the spring 2024 timeframe around the same time that the Artemis II spacecraft is delivered for launch preparations.<\/p>\n Following the mating of the CMA and ESM, the next major milestone for the service module would be initial power-on or IPO, which is the start of the testing and checkout phase for the module. Right now, Orion projects both the crew module and the service module to be ready for their initial power-up in that spring 2024 timeframe.<\/p>\n Each module will go through a series of standalone thermal and acoustic tests; the nozzle for Orion\u2019s main engine would also be installed on the ESM, along with the Spacecraft Adapter that helps join Orion with SLS.<\/p>\n Following standalone testing and checkout, the schedule has the crew and service modules ready to be mated beginning in the fall of 2024. Another round of integrated testing, including a vacuum test in the IOZ, would need to be completed before the solar array wings would be attached and the spacecraft delivered to EGS for Artemis III launch preparations.<\/p>\n Currently, the Orion program\u2019s production goal is to deliver the Artemis III spacecraft to EGS in the spring of 2025, about a year after the Artemis II spacecraft delivery in late April 2024, which would support NASA\u2019s aspirational December 2025 date of launching Orion on an SLS rocket to begin Artemis III and the first mission to land astronauts on the Moon in over 50 years.<\/p>\n Orion looks to block buy of parts to establish delivery cadence, close in on annual goal<\/p>\n The Artemis IV Orion crew module and crew module adapter are also taking shape in the IOZ next to spacecraft it will follow. Structural assembly is still in progress for both elements; the pressure vessel at the center of the crew module was delivered from the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to KSC in February.<\/p>\n Kaileah Blazek, Mechanical Systems Integration & Test Engineer for Lockheed Martin, said at the Aug.8 media event that the crew module structure had just recently completed its proof pressure test. \u201cWe just finished last week,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The primary structure of the Artemis IV crew module is seen in Florida during the Aug. 8 media event, following a successful proof pressure test. Credit: Max Evans for NSF.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have about a week worth of test setup and integration, where we actually connect 700 [strain gauge] sensors, and then about a week for the actual test, between performing the test and data review. We do a few runs; we do a max design pressure run and then do the actual full proof pressure run.\u201d<\/p>\n Blazek noted that the maximum pressure test is short; the crew module structure is pressurized to one and a half times its maximum design pressure for less than a minute.<\/p>\n The remainder of the secondary structure will now be installed on the crew module, mostly brackets. \u201cIt\u2019s just now getting secondary structure,\u201d Korth said. \u201cI think the guys on the floor call it \u2018death by bracket\u2019 because it\u2019s just bracket after bracket after bracket after bracket, it\u2019s somewhere pretty early in the flow.\u201d<\/p>\n Structural assembly of the Artemis IV crew module adapter is also well underway down the IOZ hallway, with longerons and intermediate frames radially attached to the CMA inner ring.<\/p>\n Both Artemis IV structures will proceed into the clean room in 2024 to begin tube welding, and the Orion program team is hoping that the acquisition strategy under the Orion Production and Operations Contract (OPOC) will allow progress to be made towards the long-term production goal of delivering one spacecraft every year for eventual Artemis missions to the Moon every year. At the time the OPOC award was announced in late 2019, the Artemis III, IV, and V vehicles were ordered as a set, so the components for Artemis III that are trailing the production schedule should be delivered with the same parts for Artemis IV and V.<\/p>\n \u201cOur components for Artemis III, IV, and V [are] ordered in lots,\u201d Korth explained. \u201cWhen Lockheed was put on contract for Artemis III, IV, and V, they [began] buying things in bulk, so while [Artemis] III may be a challenge as we\u2019re waiting for components to come in and have to rework schedules, when we get III, we largely get IV and V as well, because they\u2019re coming in as a set.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo, I think these schedule challenges get a little bit easier going forward because we\u2019re getting ahead of getting that hardware into the factory, and once it\u2019s there, there\u2019s a lot more flexibility on the schedule. When you\u2019re waiting on something, you\u2019re at the mercy of the [component schedule].\u201d<\/p>\n Credit: Philip Sloss for NSF.<\/p>\n (Photo Caption: The Artemis IV Orion crew module adapter in structural assembly. The structure will eventually be outfitted with fluid lines, electrical wiring, and avionics before being mated to ESM-4.)<\/em><\/p>\n In terms of reaching the annual delivery goal in the future, Korth also noted that \u201cthere are things like ESMs that need to be delivered on once-a-year centers as well to make that happen,\u201d since the European Service Module contracts are aligned along different builds.<\/p>\n The onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic shortly after the OPOC award and the subsequent supply chain disruption was an additional complication; although the industry and supplier base has recovered significantly, those COVID supply chain effects are still being felt. \u201cI think the supply chain has drastically improved in the last few months, but it is still our biggest challenge,\u201d Korth said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a lot of cases [we are buying] very unique hardware and, you know, we talk about this \u2018robust space economy\u2019 that\u2019s being energized and developed, [but] there\u2019s only so many companies that can build environmental control and life systems hardware, or spacesuits or prop systems. Valves is a huge thing; you\u2019re limited by the people who can actually build this kind of hardware and there\u2019s a lot of demand on them right now.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s getting better, but it\u2019s still a challenge,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Even with uncertainty about the schedule for Artemis III and other factors that will limit Artemis missions through the 2020s, NASA wants to keep its options open and officials within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD) have stressed to their programs and contractors to continue working towards long-established \u201cneed\u201d dates for deliveries. \u201cThe message that we\u2019re trying to take forward is please work to your commitment or your contract dates\u2026until we have to change that with a contract change,\u201d ESDMD Associate Administrator Jim Free said in a briefing to the NASA Advisory Council in May.<\/p>\n \u201cMissions are going to continue to move around and if all we do is move missions around everybody is going to get out of sync. We don\u2019t want to do that anymore; we want to deliver.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf we have to put things in storage, we\u2019ll put things in storage,\u201d Free added in May.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a lot of direct interaction with [subcontractors], which I think is really helpful, explaining [our schedules],\u201d Korth noted in August. \u201cSome people think \u2018why do you need it so early, [for] Artemis III we don\u2019t know when it\u2019s going to fly?’\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut we are on a cadence of delivering vehicles and we need to get them done because dragging our team along doesn\u2019t help us if we\u2019re waiting on hardware.\u201d<\/p>\n Left to right: ESM-4, ESM-3, and ESM-5 and seen in the cleanroom at the Airbus ESM assembly, integration, and test facility in Bremen, Germany, in January. Credit: Airbus Defence & Space.<\/p>\n Similarly, to NASA and Lockheed\u2019s production goal, the European Space Agency and Airbus are working towards delivering ESMs on an annual cadence. \u201cESM-4 is pretty much one year after ESM-3, so [with ESM-4] we are in the middle of harness integration,\u201d Bergemann said.<\/p>\n \u201cTypically we start with the structure, when we receive the structure we do primary\/secondary structure integration, bracket integration, which is followed by harness integration, and the integration of the first propellant tubes, so this is currently ongoing for ESM-4.\u201d<\/p>\n Currently, the Orion program is targeting delivery of the Artemis IV spacecraft to EGS in early 2026. Right now NASA schedules put launch of Artemis IV no earlier than September 2028. In support of that early 2026 delivery date, initial power-on of the crew module would be in late 2024, with the service module IPO following in early 2025.<\/p>\n That would lead to mating of the crew module to the service module in the summer of 2025, followed by final testing through the end of 2025 ahead of delivery to EGS in early 2026.<\/p>\n Orion factoring Artemis I recovery data, experiences into evolving reusability plans<\/p>\n NASA and Lockheed Martin have plans to reuse returning crew modules and crew module hardware extensively beginning with the Artemis III spacecraft; as the program transitions from development into a production and operations phase, those plans are being refined. \u201cReuse is definitely a work in progress on how it\u2019s going to play out,\u201d Korth said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat plan is evolving and a lot of it has to do with [what] we learned off Artemis I when we got the spacecraft back, [such as] how long it takes to decontaminate and get that module itself to a point where you could actually install new components on it, so ripping everything off that you can\u2019t reuse.\u201d<\/p>\n She gave an example: \u201cThings like you splashdown in the ocean and saltwater. We found on Artemis 1 when they took off the [backshell] panels you see salt crystals everywhere, so we\u2019ve got to start talking about corrosion resistance and what kind of coatings are we going to put on things so we can reuse them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re just learning as you go along, but [reuse is] definitely a priority for the program and I think it\u2019s the right answer, it\u2019s just doing the work to enable all that to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n Credit: NASA\/Josh Valcarcel.<\/p>\n (Photo Caption: The Artemis I crew module during post-splashdown recovery operations in the Pacific Ocean last Dec. 11. NASA and Lockheed Martin are studying ways to protect equipment that is soaked in saltwater after splashdown to improve the reusability of the spacecraft and its components.)<\/em><\/p>\n In addition to the electronics that were removed from the Artemis I spacecraft as soon as possible to be refurbished for installation on the Artemis II spacecraft early in 2023, Orion is looking at the condition of the spacecraft and the other equipment that came back from the program\u2019s first mission to the Moon and back, and how long it will take to refurbish them and turn them around for a next flight.<\/p>\n \u201cWe learned more about the timeline to do that, and then we\u2019ve learned more about when you do take a component out that requires a [subcontractor] to rework,\u201d Korth explained. \u201cLockheed has started working those contracts with those subs and what we may have estimated it being six or eight weeks could be six or eight months.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd so you\u2019re looking at maybe I can\u2019t use that item from [Artemis] III to [Artemis] VI, I need to use it from III to VII, so then what do I do on [Artemis] VI? The reuse plan is definitely evolving as we learn more from our suppliers what they can do [and] learn more about what we can do in terms of processing the spacecraft here at Kennedy, [with] the biggest thing being cleaning out [propellant].\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cProp is a big deal and there\u2019s only a couple of facilities you can do that in, and one of them is not the O&C right now,\u201d Korth added. \u201cIf we want to get back into the factory we\u2019ve got to work that.\u201d<\/p>\n The naming conventions for reuse are also evolving with the plans. \u201cWe got rid of the monikers of \u2018light and heavy\u2019 and we call [it] \u2018component and module\u2019 [reuse],\u201d Korth noted.<\/p>\n (Lead image: Left to right, the Orion crew modules for Artemis III, IV, and II are seen in their Florida production building on June 22. Credit: NASA\/Marie Reed.)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Orion prime contractor Lockheed Martin has the spacecraft for NASA\u2019s Artemis III and IV lunar landing missions in production alongside the Artemis II vehicle that is going into final assembly at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Simultaneous assembly and test of three Orions is becoming the norm, as the Orion program works towards […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[304,708,6654,7766,472,190,640],"class_list":["post-24203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-artemis","tag-artemis-3","tag-artemis-iii","tag-ksc","tag-lockheed-martin","tag-nasa","tag-orion"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24203"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24203\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}See Also<\/h4>\n
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The ESM for Artemis III is a little farther along in its production in Germany. \u201cESM-3 is currently undergoing final integration steps at our integration facility at Airbus in Bremen, we are finishing the welding for the propulsion part, we are starting to do some testing; at this very moment we are doing the electrical checkouts,\u201d Kai Bergemann, European Service Module Deputy Programme Manager for Airbus, said at the Aug. 8 media event. \u201cWe are still on-track for delivery at the end of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasaspaceflight.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/P1210498-watermarked.jpg\")
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