(Updated) NASA spacecraft sets off on first leg of its journey to the Moon

NASA's Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE), a spacecraft which will chart a new path for the agency's Moon-orbiting space station Gateway, has just started its journey and the spacecraft is currently on its way to the launch site - at Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 (LC-1) on the Mahia Peninsula of New Zealand.

The CAPSTONE mission is planned for launch no earlier than May 2022 aboard a Rocket Lab's Electron rocket. The spacecraft will fly in cislunar space - the orbital space near and around the Moon - and validate innovative navigation technologies and verify the dynamics of this halo-shaped orbit.

According to NASA, the location of this orbit - formerly called near rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) - at a precise balance point in the gravities of Earth and the Moon offers stability for long-term missions like Gateway and requires minimal energy to maintain.

More specifically, the mission will validate the power and propulsion requirements for maintaining its orbit as predicted by NASA's models, reducing logistical uncertainties. It will also demo the reliability of innovative spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation solutions as well as communication capabilities with Earth.

And so, it begins! Our #CAPSTONE spacecraft has set off on the first leg of its journey to the Moon! The trailblazing #Artemis pathfinder left California yesterday and is now on its way to the New Zealand launch site. Latest updates: https://t.co/iiB6bYa8kZ pic.twitter.com/jz7MJeUxFK

— NASA Ames (@NASAAmes) May 10, 2022

Below are the key objectives of NASA's CAPSTONE mission:

• Verify the characteristics of a cis-lunar near rectilinear halo orbit for future spacecraft
• Demonstrate entering and maintaining this unique orbit that provides a highly-efficient path to the Moon’s surface and back
• Demonstrate spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation services that allow future spacecraft to determine their location relative to the Moon without relying exclusively on tracking from Earth
• Lay a foundation for commercial support of future lunar operations
• Gain experience with small dedicated launches of CubeSats beyond low-Earth orbit, to the Moon, and beyond

Update

NASA, Rocket Lab, and Advanced Space are currently targeting no earlier than May 31, 2022, for the launch of the CAPSTONE mission.