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NASA is returning to the moon after almost 50 years and this time they plan to stay. This is all part of NASA’s Artemis program and it reads like a script from a science fiction movie. The Artemis program has two objectives, a manned mission to the moon and a permanent human presence on the lunar surface. The program is named after the Greek goddess of the moon. Artemis was the twin sister to Apollo. It’s a way for NASAs to show appreciation for the Apollo missions that landed the first man on the moon.
The main star of the Artemis program is the Artemis Base camp that will be developed near the south pole of the moon. This is part of NASA’s vision to develop a human foothold on Luna to support further Deep Space manned and unmanned missions. The Artemis Base camp will also play a critical support role for NASA and SpaceX’s manned mission to Mars.Show more

Humans will be returning to the moon for the first time in 2024, almost 50 years after the last manned mission to Luna as part of the Artemis program.

SpaceX’s won the bid to support NASA with Artemis Program, beating bids by Blue Origin and Dynetics. NASA awarded SpaceX a US$2.89 billion contract to develop and manufacture a modified variant of the Starship for Lunar Landings. The initial goal of the project is to conduct two flights — an uncrewed demonstration mission, and a crewed lunar landing.
SpaceX will be transporting astronauts from the lunar orbital gateway to the base camp on the surface. This will be done using a lunar lander variant of SpaceX’S Starship rocket called the Starship HLS. The HLS stands for Human Land System. The Starship itself is SpaceX's flagship rocket that will be leading the charge towards Mars as part of NASA and SpaceX's plans to visit and colonize mars. This modified starship was optimized for a human landing on the moon. The main difference between the standard starship design and starship HLS is the lack of heat shields and airbrakes. This is due to the fact the moon doesn’t have an atmosphere to heat the Starship HLS when landing. Starship HLS is also equipped with a special landing thruster that will be used on descent and takeoff from the lunar surface.

The plan is for the Starship HLS is to take off from earth un-crewed using the super-heavy boosters. The Starship HLS will reach the lunar orbit in approximately 3 Days. After that, the starship will just loiter in orbit awaiting its astronaut crew The four astronauts will perform their journey from earth to lunar orbit on NASA’s Orion Spacecraft. The plan is to use the Starship HLS as a taxi between the lunar orbit and the lunar surface. It is designed to make multiple trips transporting astronauts from the orbital station called the Lunar Gateway. Starship HLS is designed to dock in lunar orbit with either the NASA Orion spacecraft or NASA lunar Gateway space station, to take on passengers before descending to the lunar surface
For its first mission, two astronauts will stay on the Lunar Gateway. While two astronauts will go down the lunar gravity well towards the surface on the Starship HLS. The first lunar surface mission is planned to last a week, performing experiments and exploring the lunar surface. They will be using Starship HLS as a living space during this mission. After two weeks, surface astronauts will rejoin the rest of the crew back on the Lunar Gateway in Orbit.

The Artemis Base camp is planned to be developed near the south pole of the moon in a region called the Shackleton crater. Shackleton crater has a very unique location, as the peaks along the crater's rim are exposed to almost continual sunlight, while the interior is perpetually in shadow. NASA has also detected pockets of frozen water in that region. This is a significant finding since access to abundant water means that the base camp won’t have to depend upon an external supply of water. It also means the Artemis base camp can generate its oxygen by breaking up H2O molecules.

Shackleton crater fits NASA’s criteria for the ideal Base camp position. Among the many things NASA takes into account in choosing a specific location, these are the most important two key features: the site must bask in near-continuous sunlight to power the base and moderate extreme temperature swings, and it must offer easy access to areas of complete darkness that hold water ice. Having access to ice will help the Artemis Base camp to achieve its goal of self-sustainability.
Artemis Base Camp itself would be a lunar surface habitat that is planned to host four astronauts. Life support is at the top of the priority list for the base camp. The facility will require infrastructure for power, waste disposal, and communications, as well