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NASA's Orion will be the first spacecraft inhabited to fly on the moon since the end of the historic Apollo program in 1972. Under the guise of Artemis – Apollo's twin sister – NASA will return to the US. man and will send the first woman to the moon in more than 50 years. Lockheed Martin, an aerospace and defense contractor, was tasked with building between six and 12 Orion Probe satellites. The contract, NASA said, will support the goal of the space agency to land on the Moon by 2024.
The agreement between NASA and Lockheed Martin was greeted by Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas.
He said, "This is a great day for the men and women of the Johnson Space Center.
"They are essential to our national space program and have an undeniable legacy and reputation for success in promoting US leadership in the human exploration of space.
"I am delighted that Director Bridenstine has responded to my calls and is taking important steps to ensure that Johnson continues to grow with the promising future of human exploration.
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"There is still much work to be done and I look forward to seeing production increase in the weeks and months to come and see more opportunities with NASA."
The contract with Orion was worth £ 2.1 billion ($ 2.7 billion) for the Artemis III to IV mission.
NASA will then order three additional Orion capsules during the 2022 exercise to equip the Artemis VI devices at VIII for an additional $ 1.5 billion ($ 1.9 billion).
US Vice President Mike Pence also congratulated the Space Agency for this agreement.
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He said in a tweet: "Congratulations @NASA for this milestone for @NASA_Orion, which brings us closer to the goal of bringing American astronauts back to the Moon by 2024!"
NASA's Orion spacecraft is presented as a multi-purpose vehicle with a crew capable of taking "humans farther than ever".
The spacecraft is designed to transport human beings to far-space destinations "a thousand times farther than the International Space Station".
Orion will transport NASA's astronauts to the Moon and to the Moon Bridge – a planned space station in lunar orbit.
The spacecraft must protect the astronauts for three weeks at a time, providing the life support systems needed to survive in space.
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Compared to the Apollo-era control module capsules, the Orion will be equipped with a full range of modern equipment.
The spacecraft will include a bathroom for long trips and training equipment to combat the effects of muscle loss in weightless environments.
Jim Bridenstine, NASA Administrator, said, "This contract guarantees Orion's production over the next decade, demonstrating NASA's commitment to building a sustainable presence on the moon to bring new knowledge and expertise to bear. to prepare the sending of astronauts on Mars.
"Orion is a state-of-the-art spacecraft, specifically designed for deep space missions with astronauts, and an integral part of NASA's infrastructure for Artemis missions and the 39, future exploration of the solar system. "
Mark Kirasich, Orion Program Manager at Johnson, also said: "No other spacecraft in the world can keep humans alive hundreds of thousands of kilometers from Earth for weeks with safety devices, the crew housing, technical innovations and reliability provides. "
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