Was it real? Did Reid, Victor, Christina and Jeremy really fly around our Moon? A lot of people find it hard to believe and still thinks that NASA set it all up – like a Hollywood scene. But let’s be honest and use Neil deGrasse Tyson’s word: “It’s easier to film on location”. And I believe that too.
If you like astronomy or not, you’ll love the Artemis program. It’s filled with exciting missions and Artemis II was no different. All the way from the launch to the splashdown. And along the way we’ve seen some things that make me personally believe it was real all the way through. So what was that?
First of all: If you wanted to, you could see the crew launch from the Kennedy Space Center on April 1st. Not on YouTube or through livestream – but in real life. The rocket launched, and so did the crew of four. Afterwards the Orion took on the trip on it’s own and the images that came out was astonishing. Throughout the nine days, you could see how Orion got closer and closer to the Moon before flying around it and back home.
The whole thing was planned to perfection and people often forget to take into consideration that both the Earth and the Moon moves while Orion is on it’s way. So they always have to adjust where they are going to reach their destination. The work that was put into the mission has to be acknowledged. It’s not easy, and yet some people think everything was shot in a studio and tried to manipulated the images and videos that NASA released.
While Orion was flying around the Moon, the crew shot what was probably the best video from the whole mission: Earthset. The Earth setting behind the Moon in a spectacular view. Something not alot of people will ever witness. But they did. And it’s on video. And the data are there to back it up.
When I speak to friends and family about the mission and they ask me why I believe in it, I always give the same answer. Before saying that you don’t believe it the mission, do your research and make yourself understand what it really takes to launch from Earth, fly out in the open space, all the way to the Moon 238.855 miles, around it and back to Earth again while livestreaming every single second. When you really understand what it takes, then you’ll believe that it is in fact easier to do it rather than trying to fake it in front of every single human being.
Imagine if it was a setup from NASA and that they didn’t really fly around the Moon. One single mistake would destroy the legacy of NASA and everyone involved. And you can not manipulate something that big infront of the World.
My honest take on the Artemis II mission: I love it. It was wonderful. It was unique. It was history – and I can’t wait for Artemis III.