Experts warn of issue with NASA rocket set to take astronauts to the Moon for the first time in 50 years

Space experts have warned of issues with a NASA rocket that’s set to take astronauts to the Moon for the first time in 50 years.

The Artemis 2 mission is meant to be NASA’s big return to crewed travel to the moon, with Orion carrying astronauts around the Moon.

But the spacecraft’s heat shield is back in the spotlight after it took unexpected damage on the unmanned Artemis 1 flight in 2022.

Now, some former NASA astronauts and thermal protection experts say the fixes sound risky.

EXPLORE SBX CARS – Supercar auctions starting soon powered by Supercar Blondie

Experts warn NASA rocket heat shield could still be a problem

All of the expert’s concerns lie with Orion, the capsule perched on top of NASA’s Space Launch System rocket.

When Artemis 1 returned to Earth, inspectors found the heat shield had cracked and chipped, with pieces of charred material breaking off in multiple spots.

NASA says it has identified the root cause: gases generated inside the ablative outer layer, known as AVCOAT, did not vent the way engineers expected, which allowed pressure to build up under the surface and led to cracking and material breaking off.

So what’s the plan?

Instead of swapping out the heat shield for Artemis 2, NASA has opted to change how Orion comes home, changing final preparations.

NASA plans a modified reentry to make the return less aggressive, reducing the chances of the same kind of gas buildup instead of building a different, expensive new heatshield.

Not everyone is reassured, including former NASA astronaut Charlie Camarda, who called the approach ‘crazy’ in comments to CNN, arguing that NASA is pushing forward with too much uncertainty.

NASA veteran Dan Rasky also warned that if big chunks start coming off, the spaceship could be operating close to a failure point, even if it does not immediately break apart.

Click the star icon next to supercarblondie.com in Google Search to stay ahead of the curve on the latest and greatest supercars, hypercars, and ground-breaking technology

Moon mission would be the first time in 50 years for astronauts

Artemis 2 is not a landing-on-the-moon mission, but it is still a major milestone: the first crewed journey toward the Moon in more than half a century, setting up later attempts to return humans to the moon surface.

There is debate inside the expert community about how much danger the cracking of the NASA rocket really represents.

Former astronaut Danny Olivas, who worked on the heat shield investigation, said cracking is expected, but he believes that NASA has built enough redundancy and protective layers underneath AVCOAT to keep the crew safe.

NASA leadership is confident too, pointing to the updated re-entry plan as a way to restore safety ahead of NASA’s rocket’s official launch to the moon.

DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie