Terran Orbital Concludes Final Launch Preparations For LunIR

Terran Orbital has concluded final launch preparations for LunIR. The groundbreaking lunar satellite will launch aboard NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) as part of the Artemis I mission. The rocket is set to launch from Kennedy Space Center on August 29 at 8:33 a.m. E.T. LunIR will take images of the lunar surface with a new infrared imager that could be useful in supporting future NASA planetary and lunar exploration efforts.

Terran Orbital Integrates LunIR Into NASA’s Space Launch System

Terran Orbital integrated the Lunar Infrared imaging spacecraft, also known as LunIR into NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS). With its unprecedented power and capabilities, SLS is the only rocket that will be able to send the Orion capsule, astronauts, and cargo directly to the Moon on a single mission. LunIR will fly by the Moon and collect surface thermography as a secondary payload on Artemis 1 – a test mission for SLS. After the flyby, the 6U satellite will conduct technology demonstrations related to deep-space operations for future Mars missions.

Why NASA Wants to Go Back to the Moon

Artemis 1 will mark the inaugural launch of a 32-story rocket called the Space Launch System, topped by the Orion space capsule. The capsule will fly within 62 miles of the lunar surface, while deploying small spacecraft for research on—and beyond—the moon. Although this first flight will be uncrewed, others with astronauts will follow in the coming years, and Orion is capable of carrying humans farther than any spacecraft has ever flown before.