NASA recently sent a crewed spaceship around the moon. Why?<\/p>\n
NASA\u2019s Artemis II mission<\/a> launched April 1 and safely returned to earth on April 10, with a goal of testing human capability in deep space while setting a record for human distance away from the Earth. Pitt researchers specializing in space explain why the mission is relevant to furthering research in biomedicine, earth science and future space explorations.<\/p>\n According to Alan George, the founder of the Pitt Space<\/a> initiative and director of space engineering<\/a>, the mission served as a critical test of the systems required to safely send humans deeper into space and is only one phase of the larger Artemis program<\/a>. Artemis I<\/a> launched in 2022, and more missions<\/a> are planned for upcoming years with one of the goals being to land humans on the moon again.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Artemis program is to develop and prove and then deploy and use the technologies necessary to return mankind to the moon,\u201d George said. \u201c[The] Artemis II [mission] is, \u2018let\u2019s do it now with people on board and the four astronauts.’\u201d<\/p>\n George said many of the difficulties with spaceflight relate to the far distance, which is why testing new technologies in space is essential.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIf you tied a string around the Earth 10 times and stretched it out, that\u2019s about how far away the moon is. Getting to the moon and back is really challenging. It doesn\u2019t look far in the sky, but it\u2019s extremely far from Earth,\u201d George said. \u201cUntil you\u2019ve tested something in space and proven it, nobody really believes in it. It doesn\u2019t have space or flight heritage.\u201d<\/p>\n Afshin Beheshti, director for the Center of Space Biomedicine<\/a> in the Trivedi Institute<\/a>, said space missions like Artemis II allow researchers to study how the human body responds to deep space conditions<\/a>. Behesti said the goal of the institute and biomedical research in Pitt\u2019s Space Biomedicine<\/a> program is to conduct clinical research that is not limited only to space exploration but to \u201chelp humanity on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSpace accelerates all the health risks<\/a>. The whole goal of doing space biomedicine research is to help prevent that damage, like understanding the biology behind it, and understanding the impact on your health,\u201d Beheshti said.<\/p>\n Beheshti said that while there are many inventions that came from space-based research, including eyeglasses<\/a>, jacket insulation<\/a> and Nike Air<\/a>. He is most excited for biomedical innovations.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it\u2019s a medical breakthrough that improves millions of people\u2019s lives, I think that\u2019s going to have the most exciting impact,\u201d Beheshti said.<\/p>\n Pitt\u2019s space science<\/a> initiative seeks to explore what space missions like Artemis II can reveal about earth science and related technologies like data analysis and data modeling. Michael Ramsey, the director of space science at Pitt, said Artemis\u2019 perspective of Earth from the moon could potentially allow scientists to track long-term climate patterns like cloud formation, temperature changes and energy flow in Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can observe the percent clouds increase over time. If the climate\u2019s getting warmer, the models show that you\u2019re going to start to evaporate more water from the oceans. You\u2019re going to make more clouds. That might make them make more rain, so you might have higher flooding,\u201d Ramsey said.<\/p>\n Ramsey said these changes can be observed in a more efficient way from the moon than from satellites in Earth\u2019s orbit due to the difference in distance.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom the moon, getting what we would call a synoptic view<\/a>, this overall picture of the Earth in some ways is even more beneficial than what they can do from other satellites,\u201d Ramsey said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Kerry Handron, who works with the outreach program at the Allegheny Observatory, said she believes after the Artemis II mission, the community is showing a greater appreciation for moon trees<\/a>, which are grown from seeds that flew around the moon on NASA\u2019s 2022 Artemis I mission<\/a>. A sweetgum tree grown from some of the seeds is currently growing at Riverview Park<\/a> near the Observatory.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s become exciting, even a few weeks ago, everybody has a far greater appreciation when we [take tours] to go to the moon tree,\u201d Handron said. \u201cWe planted it a year and a half ago, so it\u2019s had a full growing season, and it\u2019s just starting to pop out its buds now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n