“NASA remains confident it has the problem under control and the vehicle can get the crew home safely.” reports CNN.But “As four astronauts embark on a historic journey around the moon as early as February 6, they will climb aboard NASA’s 15-foot-wide Orion spacecraft, with the understanding that it has a known flaw — a flaw that has some experts urging the space agency not to fly the mission with humans on board…”
The problem involves a special coating applied to the lower part of the spacecraft called the heat shield… This vital part of the Orion spacecraft is almost identical to the heat shield it flies. Artemis Ian unmanned test flight from 2022. The Orion vehicle from that earlier mission returned from space with a heat shield full of unexpected damage, prompting NASA to investigate the problem. And while NASA is about to release the heat shield for the flight, even those who believe the mission is safe acknowledge there is some unknown risk involved. “This is an anomalous heat shield,” said Dr. Danny Olivas, a former NASA astronaut who was part of a space agency-appointed independent assessment team that investigated the incident. “There’s no doubt about it: This is not the heat shield NASA would want to give its astronauts.” Still, Olivas said he believes that after years of analyzing what went wrong with the heat shield, NASA is “embracing the problem…”
“I don’t think there’s a single flight that ever takes off that you don’t have a lingering doubt about,” Olivas said. “But NASA really understands what they have. They know the importance of the heat shield to crew safety, and I really believe they did their job.” Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy assistant administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, echoed that sentiment in Septembersaying, “from a risk perspective, we’re very confident.” And Reid Wiseman, the astronaut who will command the Artemis II mission, has expressed his confidence. “The researchers discovered the root cause, which was key” to understanding and solving the heat shield problem, Wiseman told reporters last July. “If we stick to the new reentry path that NASA has planned, this heat shield can fly safely.”
Others aren’t so sure. “What they’re talking about is insane,” says Dr. Charlie Camarda, heat shield expert, research scientist and former NASA astronaut. Camarda — who was also a member of the first space shuttle crew launched after the 2003 Columbia disaster — is among a group of former NASA employees who don’t believe the space agency should put astronauts aboard the upcoming moon excursion. He said he tried in vain for months to get the organization’s leadership to heed his warnings. Camarda also emphasized that his opposition to Artemis II is not motivated by the belief that it will end in catastrophic failure. He thinks the mission will likely return home safely. Above all, Camarda told CNN, he fears that a safe flight for Artemis II will serve as confirmation to NASA leadership that its decision-making processes are sound. And that will undoubtedly give the agency a false sense of security, Camarda warned.
CNN adds that Dr. Dan Rasky, an expert in advanced access systems and thermal protection materials who worked at NASA for more than 30 years, also doesn’t believe NASA should allow astronauts to fly aboard the Artemis II Orion capsule.
And “a critical milestone could occur in just a few days as Artemis program leaders meet for final risk assessments and flight readiness assessments,” when NASA’s top brass determines whether the Artemis II rocket and spacecraft are ready to lift off with a human crew.
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