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DearMoon project

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SpaceX lunar tourism mission (unofficial name)
Mission typeManned Lunar Flyby
OperatorSpaceX
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft typeDragon 2[1]
Start of mission
Launch dateLate 2018 (planned) [2]
RocketFalcon Heavy[2]
Launch sitePad 39A[3]

The SpaceX lunar tourism mission (unofficial name) is a planned private mission to fly two space tourists around the moon aboard SpaceX's Dragon 2 spacecraft. SpaceX aims for a launch sometime late 2018, after the Dragon 2 is tested and flown under NASA's Commercial Crew Program.[1] The Space X lunar tourism mission could fall around the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 8 flight, which flew astronauts around the moon for the first time, as part of the Apollo program.[2] The announcement for this mission was made on February 27, 2017.[1]

Overview

It is a lunar space tourist mission to be flown by SpaceX aboard the Crew Dragon, launched via Falcon Heavy rocket, to fly on a free-return trajectory around the Moon, scheduled for late 2018. It is also to serve as a development mission in SpaceX's further plans to colonize Mars.[4] A 2018 mission would mark the 50th anniversary of the first manned Moon mission, Apollo 8, of 1968. It would be the first manned Moon mission since Apollo 17 of 1972, some 46 years earlier.[5][6][7]

The Apollo 8 mission was a similar mission during NASA's Project Apollo, which orbited the Moon without landing. However Apollo 8 entered orbit, while the SpaceX mission will not. The only manned spacecraft to have performed this maneuver is Apollo 13, which was forced to use a free-return trajectory in order to return to earth after an accident that prevented it from using its thrusters to enter orbit around the moon. The original Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) and EM-2 for the NASA Orion MPCV/SLS combo were also free-return loop-around-the-Moon missions, very similar to this SpaceX mission. Since the 2017 Trump-era revision, both EM-1 and EM-2 missions will enter lunar orbit.[8][9][10]

Several have pointed out that the Dragon V2 crew capsule was still under development and that the Falcon Heavy had yet to fly at the time of announcement, and the schedule was very aggressive. The capsule would also need modifications to handle the differing mission profile from crew transfer to Earthly space stations.[11]

Launch

A Falcon Heavy can be used to put the Dragon 2 in a weeklong cruise around the moon. SpaceX has planned the launch from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center. The Dragon 2 will go on an automated cruise around the moon, although the crew will be trained for emergencies.[3]

Crew

SpaceX has not disclosed the names of the crew that they are planning to fly on the mission. SpaceX says that two private citizens have paid a "significant deposit."[1] Although SpaceX hasn't shared how much the tourists will pay, Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, did reveal that the cost will be "comparable" to the cost of a crewed mission to the International Space Station.[12]

Concerns by non-participating parties

In May 2017, RSC Energia general director Vladimir Solntsev questioned whether SpaceX could meet its schedule, and thought it more likely that it would be 2020 or later, and not 2018, that SpaceX could launch. He also was questioned whether hardware designed for missions to the International Space Station and launch aboard Falcon 9 rockets could be used for a lunar mission and launched aboard Falcon Heavy. RSA Energia is a Russian competitor of SpaceX.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Shanklin, Emily (2017-02-27). "SpaceX to Send Privately Crewed Dragon Spacecraft Beyond the Moon Next Year". SpaceX. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
  2. ^ a b c "As SpaceX Unveils Space Tourist Moon Flight, NASA Reacts". Space.com. Retrieved 2017-03-11.
  3. ^ a b McFarLand, Matt. "SpaceX to fly two space tourists around the moon in 2018". CNNtech. CNN. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  4. ^ David Dickinson (1 March 2017). "SpaceX Announces 2018 Moonshot Mission". Sky and Telescope.
  5. ^ Bob McDonald (8 March 2017). "SpaceX moon mission as daring as first voyage". CBC News.
  6. ^ SpaceX (27 February 2017). "SpaceX to Send Privately Crewed Dragon Spacecraft Beyond the Moon Next Year". SpaceX.
  7. ^ "NASA Statement About SpaceX Private Moon Venture Announcement". NASA. 27 February 2017. 17-010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |authors= ignored (help)
  8. ^ "SpaceX promises a Moon vacation in 2018". The Verge. 3 March 2017.
  9. ^ Dave Trumbore (27 February 2017). "SpaceX Will Attempt to Send Humans Around the Moon Next Year". Nerdist.
  10. ^ Charlie Wood (25 February 2017). "Apollo 8 redux: Why NASA may send humans around the moon, again". Christian Science Monitor.
  11. ^ Mike Wall (4 March 2017). "Could SpaceX Get People to the Moon in 2018?". Scientific American.
  12. ^ Chang, Kenneth (2017-02-27). "SpaceX Plans to Send 2 Tourists Around Moon in 2018". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-12.
  13. ^ Shivali Best (18 May 2017). "Russian rocket chief slams SpaceX's plans to launch tourists into space next year, claiming it 'would be difficult even in 2020'". The Daily Mail (London).
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