
NASA's acting administrator has instructed top staff to dramatically speed up plans to send mankind beyond the orbit of Earth for the first time since 1972.

Robert Lightfoot, who was previously the space agency's acting Associate Administrator, has asked staff to initiate a study to assess the feasibility of adding a crew to Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.

The mission was designed to be uncrewed, and was expected to launch in 2018.

By moving the manned mission up, commentators say it could give President Trump a 'Nixonesque' moment - and also prove the worth of Nasa's SLS megarocket as it vies for funding.

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The mission will use NASA's Orion capsule to carry up to four astronauts around the moon – the first time humans have left low orbit since 1972. The mission was originally set for launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, as early as 2021 - but could now been far sooner.

THE EM-1 MISSION Nasa's Orion, stacked on a Space Launch System rocket capable of lifting 70 metric tons will launch from a newly refurbished Kennedy Space Center in November 2018. The uncrewed Orion will travel into Distant Retrograde Orbit, breaking the distance record reached by the most remote Apollo spacecraft, and then 30,000 miles farther out (275,000 total miles). The mission will last 22 days and was originally designed to test system readiness for future crewed operations. Advertisement

'The SLS and Orion missions, coupled with record levels of private investment in space, will help put NASA and America in a position to unlock the mysteries of space and to ensure this nation’s world preeminence in exploring the cosmos,' NASA said.

The study, headed by Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, will examine the opportunities it could present to accelerate the effort of the first crewed flight and what it would take to accomplish that first step of pushing humans farther into space.

According to the Washington Post, Lightfoot sent a note to employees revealing the plan, saying: 'I know the challenges associated with such a proposition, like reviewing the technical feasibility, additional resources needed, and clearly the extra work would require a different launch date.

'That said, I also want to hear about the opportunities it could present to accelerate the effort of the first crewed flight and what it would take to accomplish that first step of pushing humans farther into space.'

Astronauts haven't gone beyond a low orbit around Earth since 1972, when NASA ended its Apollo program.

Bob Walker, an adviser to the Trump transition team and a former congressman who chaired the House Science Committee, told the Post 'What I hear being discussed is the potential for sometime within the first Trump term being able to go and do an Apollo 8 mission' - meaning a lunar orbit mission like the one performed by Apollo 8 in December 1968.

The new mission could give President Trump an 'Apollo 8 moment' echoing Richard Nixon's success in sending man to the moon

'This would be another precursor to ultimately landing,' Walker said.

'And I think sometime within a second Trump term, you could think about putting a landing vehicle on the moon.'

The European Space Agency and aerospace company Airbus have already delivered the propulsion and supply module for the unmanned flight of NASA's new Orion spacecraft next year.

Last week it was announced ESA and Airbus have now agreed with NASA to build a module for a second, manned mission that will fly around the moon as early as 2021 - which could now be pushed forward.

The Service Module provides propulsion, electrical power, water and thermal control as well as maintaining the oxygen and nitrogen atmosphere for the crew.

The first Orion with the service module will be launched in late 2018 on NASA's new Space Launch System.

Nasa's Orion, stacked on a Space Launch System rocket capable of lifting 70 metric tons will launch from a newly refurbished Kennedy Space Center in November 2018.

The month-long mission will be unmanned and will orbit the Moon before returning to Earth, testing the spacecraft and rocket before carrying astronauts.

The European Service Module is designed, built and assembled by a team of companies from 11 countries led by Airbus Space & Defence, based on proven technology from ESA's Automated Transfer Vehicle that flew to the International Space Station five times with supplies.

HOW THE HISTORIC MANNED MISSION WILL WORK NASA's original plan for the manned mission is built around a profile called a multi-translunar injection (MTLI), or multiple departure burns, and includes a free return trajectory from the moon. Basically, the spacecraft will circle our planet twice while periodically firing its engines to build up enough speed to push it toward the moon before looping back to Earth. After launch, the spacecraft and upper stage of the rocket will first orbit Earth twice to ensure its systems are working normally. Orion will reach a circular orbit at an altitude of 100 nautical miles and last 90 minutes. The move or burn to get the spacecraft into a specific orbit around a planet or other body in space is called orbital insertion. Following the first orbit, the rocket's powerful exploration upper stage (EUS) and four RL-10 engines will perform an orbital raise, which will place Orion into a highly elliptical orbit around our planet. The mission will send crew around the backside of the moon where they will ultimately create a figure eight before Orion returns to Earth. Instead of requiring propulsion on the return, the spacecraft will use the moon's gravitational pull like a slingshot to bring Orion home, which is the free return portion of the trajectory. Crew will fly thousands of miles beyond the moon, which is an average of 230,000 miles beyond the Earth. This is called the partial translunar injection. This second, larger orbit will take approximately 24 hours with Orion flying in an ellipse between 500 and 19,000 nautical miles above Earth. For perspective, the International Space Station orbits Earth from about 250 miles above. Once the integrated vehicle completes these two orbits, the EUS will separate from Orion and any payloads selected and mounted inside the rocket's universal stage adapter will be released. The payloads will then fly on their own to conduct their unique missions. After the EUS separation, the crew will do a unique test of Orion's critical systems. They will gather and evaluate engineering data from their day-long orbit before using Orion's service module to complete a second and final propulsion move called the translunar injection (TLI) burn. This second burn will put Orion on a path toward the moon, and will conclude the 'multi-translunar injection' portion of the mission. Advertisement

The mission and collaboration with NASA is part of ESA's vision to prepare for future voyages of exploration further into the Solar System, and continues the spirit of international cooperation that forms the foundation of the International Space Station.

Earlier this month NASA engineers simulated what it will be like inside of the Orion spacecraft during launch when it takes off on its first manned mission as early as 2021.

The mission plan for the flight is built around a profile called a multi-translunar injection (MTLI), or multiple departure burns, and includes a free return trajectory from the moon.

Subjects in the simulation were fitted with advanced crew escape suits as they carried out tests to determine how well they could see the display and controls as the craft vibrated atop the Space Launch System rocket.

The first mission is set to launch in 2018, and while this was supposed to be uncrewed, the space agency has plans to send astronauts aboard Orion just four years from now.

The first Orion with the service module will be launched in late 2018 on NASA's new Space Launch System (pictured).

The researchers at NASA are working to understand how Orion's launch vibrations will affect an astronaut's ability to see the displays and operate controls.

In the simulation, subjects sat in the latest design of the seat, atop the crew impact attenuation system.

According to the space agency, the achievement marks the first time this hardware was brought together for this type of assessment.

These efforts will help to ensure the spacecraft is ready for its first manned mission, which could come as soon as 2021.

In November, NASA and the US Navy revealed the success of a recent test in which the amphibious transport dock USS San Diego recovered the capsule from water.

Known as the Underway Recovery Test-5, it was part of a U.S. government interagency effort to safely retrieve the Orion crew module, which is capable of carrying humans into deep space.

This marks the second time a URT has taken place aboard San Diego, and comes amid final preparations for the Exploration Mission-1 (EM-1) in 2018.

'For me it was a lot of fun being part of the testing because I was onboard this ship when we did the first URT and took the test capsule out to sea in February 2014,' said San Diego Commanding Officer Capt. Carl W. Meuser.

'On that trip, these smart folks from NASA were able to collect data and understand the environment much better, and they designed systems accordingly.

'So it's been fun for me to see the progression of NASA's project from the first time we went to sea together, to this very successful testing that we just finished.'

With their main role of conducting amphibious operations, San Antonio-class ships have many unique capabilities that make them an ideal partner to support NASA.

The most important capability was the ability to recover the test capsule using the ship's well deck, which was originally designed to launch and recover amphibious craft.

San Diego also has the ability to carry and deploy multiple small boats which aid in the recovery process and contains an advanced medical facility for the returning astronauts.

Subjects in the simulation were fitted with advanced crew escape suits as they carried out tests to determine how well they could see the display and controls as the craft vibrated atop the Space Launch System rocket

URT-5 testing consisted of launching the test capsule from the well deck, then carefully maneuvering the ship alongside the capsule at slow speed.

Then, divers attached lines from the small boats to steady and guide the capsule toward San Diego, where a NASA-designed winch hauled the capsule into the well deck.

The test allowed NASA and the Navy to continue to demonstrate and evaluate the recovery processes, procedures, hardware and personnel in real, open ocean environment before conducting actual recovery operations for EM-1 and with additional coordination, subsequent exploration missions.

According to Jones, the next test will take place aboard another seasoned NASA recovery ship, USS Anchorage (LPD 23).

Future tests will eventually get NASA and the Navy to arrive at a safe and more efficient way to recover the capsule for the 2021 mission involving a flying crew.

The Orion spacecraft is designed to meet the evolving needs of our nation's deep space exploration program for decades to come.

It will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.