NASA's Artemis 1 Orion capsule is exceeding expectations in deep space and remains on target to fly by the moon on Monday (Nov. 21), agency officials said.
The Artemis 1 mission launched on Wednesday morning (Nov. 16), sending an uncrewed Orion toward the moon atop a huge Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. This is Orion's first-ever journey beyond Earth orbit, but the capsule has been checking boxes like a veteran, mission team members said.
"Orion has been performing great so far," Jim Geffre, NASA's Orion vehicle integration manager, said during a press briefing on Friday afternoon (Nov. 18). "All of the systems are exceeding expectations from a performance standpoint."
By Susie Madrak
— November 19, 2022