American Satellite CAPSTONE Launched To The Moon
Rocket Lab’s Electron light rocket launched Tuesday with the CAPSTONE satellite to the moon, the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said.
As part of the mission, it is planned to test the technologies of the promising American manned near-lunar station Gateway.
The launch was carried out from the Rocket Lab launch complex on the Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand at 05:55 local time (at 12:55 Moscow time).
Rocket Lab used an Electron rocket with a special add-on called a Lunar Photon booster with enough power to send it into deep space. According to the company, it is one of the smallest rockets attempting to put a payload into lunar orbit. It was launched from the Rocket Lab site on the Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand and is “the largest mass and highest performance Electron has ever been flown, by a wide margin”.
CAPSTONE will orbit the Earth for nine days to gain enough speed for a Translunar Injection (TLI) that will allow it to eventually circle the Moon. The main goal is to test a type of highly elliptical lunar orbit, referred to as “almost rectilinear halo”, which is planned for the Gateway space station. The Gateway will eventually be delivered to lunar orbit by SpaceX, complete with a science lab and astronaut accommodation, as well as ports for future spacecraft.
