Launching in 2021, CAPSTONE will be the first mission of the Artemis Generation, and the spacecraft will be lifting off in just a few short months. After several days of getting into position, the CAPSTONE spacecraft will separate from the launch vehicle upper stage and begin its journey to the Moon. CAPSTONE will be launching on a Rocket Lab Electron Rocket. This will be the first mission for Electron beyond Low Earth Orbit and the CAPSTONE spacecraft will be the only payload launched on this flight. The injection accuracy is a critical start to the next phase of the mission.

Transfer starts out with a critical 72 hours where the spacecraft will turn on, boot up, get a navigation solution, and execute its first maneuver. This start to the transfer is very important, from this key beginning the transfer to the Moon will leverage a highly efficient transfer that utilizes solar gravity to get to the Moon while requiring very little fuel. The transfer is called a Ballistic Lunar Transfer, from injection by the launch vehicle it will travel to approximately 1.5 million km from the Earth. During the transfer the spacecraft will take images using the on-board camera and will execute several maneuvers to correct for errors and target the orbit insertion at the Moon. This transfer approach has been used by spacecraft in the past and is likely to be used by many missions in the future. Advanced Space specializes in these highly dynamic orbit designs and operations which have enabled CAPSTONE and will support future programs as well.

The target orbit at the Moon for CAPSTONE is the Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO). Entering into this orbit will require a critical maneuver from the spacecraft. A critical maneuver means that it must be executed and there is very little margin for error. The NRHO is the destination for NASA’s Lunar Gateway. This unique orbit has many beneficial attributes to support sustainable architectures for exploring, developing, and settling the Moon. This orbit requires a small maneuver about once every week. While in this orbit the CAPSTONE spacecraft and the team at Advanced Space will be demonstrating operational performance and confirming simulations to support future NASA utilization for the Gateway and other exploration elements.

Demonstrating enabling technologies for future cislunar exploration and development is a top objective for the CAPSTONE mission. Throughout the mission, the spacecraft will be demonstrating foundational capabilities for new technologies. Specifically the mission will mature the flight software for the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS). The mission will also be working closely with the NASA operations team for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) to demonstrate a first-of-its-kind crosslink. This operation will see CAPSTONE send a signal to LRO and for LRO to return it to CAPSTONE where it will be turned into a measurement and used in the CAPS software to determine the location of both spacecraft. This navigation approach will be the key to the future of cislunar operations where many more spacecraft will be operating at the Moon.

The future of humanity is in the stars, and though none of us can begin to guess what that future will look like in the end we can start to plan the pieces that will enable it. After the CAPSTONE demonstration of the NRHO and the CAPS capability, there is plenty of potential for continued development. Whether that is in support of additional missions flying to the Moon or providing a navigation node to surface operations, the versatility of the CAPSTONE satellite offers a variety of paths forward to further our exploration of the Moon and beyond.

Launching in 2021 on a Rocket Lab Electron, CAPSTONE is expected to be the first cislunar small spacecraft. After several days of getting into position at Low Earth Orbit (LEO), the CAPSTONE spacecraft will separate from the launch vehicle upper stage and begin its journey to the Moon. This will be the first mission for Electron beyond LEO and the CAPSTONE spacecraft will be the only payload launched on this flight. The injection accuracy is a critical start to the next phase of the mission.

Transfer starts out with a critical 72 hours where the spacecraft will turn on, boot up, get a navigation solution, and execute its first maneuver. This start to the transfer is very important, from this key beginning the transfer to the Moon will leverage a highly efficient transfer that utilizes solar gravity to get to the Moon while requiring very little fuel. The transfer is called a Ballistic Lunar Transfer, from injection by the launch vehicle it will travel to approximately 1.5 million km from the Earth. During the transfer the spacecraft will take images using the on-board camera and will execute several maneuvers to correct for errors and target the orbit insertion at the Moon. This transfer approach has been used by spacecraft in the past and is likely to be used by many missions in the future. Advanced Space specializes in these highly dynamic orbit designs and operations which have enabled CAPSTONE and will support future programs as well.

The target orbit at the Moon for CAPSTONE is the Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO). Entering into this orbit will require a critical maneuver by the spacecraft. A critical maneuver means that it must be executed and there is very little margin for error. The NRHO is the planned destination for NASA’s future lunar orbiting outpost known as Gateway. This unique orbit has many beneficial attributes to support sustainable architectures for exploring, developing, and settling the Moon. NRHOs are only marginally stable, so CAPSTONE will perform a small station-keeping maneuver about once a week. While in this orbit the CAPSTONE spacecraft and the team at Advanced Space will demonstrate operational performance and confirm simulations to support planning for future NASA missions.

Demonstrating enabling technologies for future cislunar exploration and development is a top objective for the CAPSTONE mission. Throughout the mission, the spacecraft will be demonstrating foundational capabilities for new technologies. Specifically, the mission will mature the flight software for the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS). The mission will also be working closely with NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) operations team to demonstrate a first-of-its-kind crosslink. This operation will see CAPSTONE send a signal to LRO and for LRO to return it to CAPSTONE where it will be turned into a measurement and used in the CAPS software to determine the location of both spacecraft. This navigation approach will be the key to the future of cislunar operations where many more spacecraft will be operating at the Moon.

The future of humanity is in the stars, and though none of us can begin to guess what that future will look like in the end we can start to plan the pieces that will enable it. The versatility of the CAPSTONE demonstration offers a variety of paths forward to further our exploration of the Moon and beyond. Advanced Space aims to support additional missions flying to the Moon in a variety of ways, such as providing a navigation node to surface operations.

Launching in 2021 on a Rocket Lab Electron, CAPSTONE is expected to be the first cislunar small spacecraft. After several days of getting into position at Low Earth Orbit (LEO), the CAPSTONE spacecraft will separate from the launch vehicle upper stage and begin its journey to the Moon. This will be the first mission for Electron beyond LEO and the CAPSTONE spacecraft will be the only payload launched on this flight. The injection accuracy is a critical start to the next phase of the mission.

Transfer starts out with a critical 72 hours where the spacecraft will turn on, boot up, get a navigation solution, and execute its first maneuver. This start to the transfer is very important, from this key beginning the transfer to the Moon will leverage a highly efficient trajectory that utilizes solar gravity to get to the Moon while requiring very little fuel. The transfer is called a Ballistic Lunar Transfer, from injection by the launch vehicle it will travel to approximately 1.5 million km from the Earth. During the transfer the spacecraft will take images using the on-board camera and will execute several maneuvers to correct for errors and target a precise orbit insertion at the Moon. This transfer approach has been used by spacecraft in the past and is likely to be used by many missions in the future. Advanced Space specializes in these highly dynamic orbit designs and operations which have enabled CAPSTONE and will support future programs as well.

The target orbit at the Moon for CAPSTONE is a Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO). Entering into this orbit will require a critical maneuver by the spacecraft. A critical maneuver means that it must be executed to achieve lunar orbit and there is very little margin for error. The same NRHO is the planned destination for NASA’s future lunar orbiting outpost known as Gateway. This unique orbit has many beneficial attributes to support sustainable architectures for exploring, developing, and settling the Moon. NRHOs are only marginally stable, so CAPSTONE will perform a small station-keeping maneuver about once a week. While in this orbit the CAPSTONE spacecraft and the team at Advanced Space will demonstrate operational performance and confirm simulations to support planning for future NASA missions.

Demonstrating enabling technologies for future cislunar exploration and development is a top objective for the CAPSTONE mission. Throughout the mission, the spacecraft will be demonstrating foundational capabilities for new technologies. Specifically the mission will mature the flight software for the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS). The mission will also be working closely with NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) operations team to demonstrate a first-of-its-kind crosslink. This crosslink demonstration will see CAPSTONE send a ranging signal to LRO and for LRO to return it to CAPSTONE where it will be turned into a radiometric measurement and used in the CAPS software onboard to estimate the state of both spacecraft. This navigation approach will be the key to the future of cislunar operations where many more spacecraft will be operating at the Moon.

The future of humanity is in the stars, and though none of us can begin to guess what that future will look like in the end we can start to place the pieces that will enable it. The versatility of the CAPSTONE demonstration offers a variety of paths forward to further our exploration of the Moon and beyond. Advanced Space aims to support additional missions flying to the Moon in a variety of ways, such as providing a navigation node to surface operations.