NASA and the electric vehicle company, Canoo Technologies, have introduced the electric vehicle (EV) that will be used to transport astronauts for next year’s Artemis II mission. This special vehicle will carry the astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center to the launchpad. Earlier this year, the vehicle was officially revealed by NASA, but attendees of the Formula 1 race in Austin, Texas, got an up-close look at its sleek design and comfortable interior.
Next November, three of these new electric vehicles will be responsible for transporting the four Artemis II astronauts. They will travel from the Kennedy Space Center’s Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to Launch Pad 39B, which is around eight miles away. There, the astronauts will board the SLS rocket and the Orion spacecraft for their mission.
Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, NASA’s Artemis launch director, highlighted the focus on the crews’ safety and comfort during the collaboration with Canoo. She expressed pride in the new vehicles and their role in the upcoming Artemis missions.
Although the Artemis II astronauts will not land on the moon, they will perform a flyby, essentially following the same trajectory as the uncrewed Artemis I test flight from the previous year. This mission came within 80 miles of the lunar surface. The Artemis II mission, lasting 10 days, will be crucial for testing the Orion spacecraft’s crew support systems and overall capabilities.
If successful, Artemis II will pave the way for Artemis III, which aims to achieve a historic milestone by landing the first woman and the first person of color on the moon. This mission is currently scheduled for 2025.