Artemis 1 (EM-1)

Launch data:

Designation	54257 / 2022-156A
Launch date	16 November 2022 - 06:47:44 UTC
Launch site	KSC, LC-39B
Launch vehicle	SLS Block1
Mission type	Uncrewed lunar orbital flight test
Spacecraft	Orion CM-002
Orbital parameters:
- Orbit	Selenocentric
- Periode	14 days
Flyby of Moon:
- Closest approch	21 Nov. 2022 - 21:57 UTC
- Distance	130 km
Moon orbiter:
- Orbiter insertion	25 Nov. 2022 - 21:52 UTC
- Orbiter departure	1 Dec. 2022 - 21:53 UTC
Flyby of Moon:
- Spacecraft	Orion
- Closest approach	5 Dec. 2022 - 16:43 UTC
- Distance	128 km
End of mission:
Landing	11 December 2022 - 17:40:30 UTC
Recovery by	USS Portland
Landing site	Pacific Ocean off Baja California
Mission Duration	25d 10h 52min
Distance travelled	2.1 million km ( 1.3 million miles)

Initial SLS test, with Orion Cabine.

Artemis I, formerly Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1),[9] was an uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission that was launched in November 2022. As the first major spaceflight of NASA's Artemis program, Artemis I marked the agency's return to lunar exploration after the conclusion of the Apollo program five decades earlier. It was the first integrated flight test of the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System ( SLS) rocket, and its main objective was to test the Orion spacecraft, especially its heat shield, in preparation for subsequent Artemis missions. These missions seek to reestablish a human presence on the Moon and demonstrate technologies and business approaches needed for future scientific studies, including exploration of Mars.

The Orion spacecraft for Artemis I was stacked on October 20, 2021, and on August 17, 2022, the fully stacked vehicle was rolled out for launch after a series of delays caused by difficulties in pre-flight testing. The first two launch attempts were canceled due to a faulty engine temperature reading on August 29, 2022, and a hydrogen leak during fueling on September 3, 2022.
Artemis I was launched on November 16, 2022, at 06:47:44 UTC (01:47:44 EST) from Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center.
After reaching Earth orbit, the upper stage carrying the Orion spacecraft separated and performed a trans-lunar injection before releasing Orion and deploying ten CubeSat satellites. Orion completed one flyby of the Moon on November 21, entered a distant retrograde orbit for six days, and completed a second flyby of the Moon on December 5.
The Orion spacecraft then returned and reentered the Earth's atmosphere with the protection of its heat shield, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on December 11.

SLS with Orion capsule in the VAB, March 2022. Credit: NASA.

First rollout of SLS in March 2022. It was subsequently rolled back in for repairs. Credit: NASA.

SLS on standby, ready for launch. Credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky.

SLS just after engine ignition. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls .

Artemis I was launched on the Block 1 variant of the Space Launch System. The Block 1 vehicle consisted of a core stage, two five-segment solid rocket boosters (SRBs) and an upper stage. The core stage used four RS-25D engines, all of which had previously flown on Space Shuttle missions. The core and boosters together produced 39,000 kN (8,800,000 lbf), or about 4,000 metric tons of thrust at liftoff. The upper stage, known as the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS), was based on the Delta Cryogenic Second Stage and was powered by a single RL10B-2 engine on the Artemis I mission.
Once in orbit, the ICPS fired its engine to perform a trans-lunar injection (TLI) burn, which placed the Orion spacecraft and 10 CubeSats on a trajectory to the Moon. Orion then separated from the ICPS and continued its coast into lunar space. Following Orion separation, the ICPS Stage Adapter deployed ten CubeSats for conducting scientific research and performing technology demonstrations.
The Orion spacecraft spent approximately three weeks in space, including six days in a distant retrograde orbit (DRO) around the Moon. It came within approximately 130 km (80 mi) of the lunar surface (closest approach)[5] and achieved a maximum distance from Earth of 432,210 km (268,563 mi).