{"id":354430,"date":"2026-01-24T07:01:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T21:01:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?p=937421"},"modified":"2026-01-24T07:01:33","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T21:01:33","slug":"nasa-selects-participants-to-track-artemis-ii-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=354430","title":{"rendered":"NASA Selects Participants to Track Artemis II Mission"},"content":{"rendered":"
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4 Min Read<\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNASA Selects Participants to Track Artemis II Mission\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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A visual representation of NASA’s Artemis I mission.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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NASA has selected 34 global volunteers to track the Orion spacecraft during the crewed Artemis II mission\u2019s journey around the Moon.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The Artemis II test flight will launch NASA\u2019s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, carrying the Orion spacecraft and a crew of four astronauts, on a mission into deep space. The agency\u2019s second mission in the Artemis campaign is a key step in NASA\u2019s path toward establishing a long-term presence at the Moon and confirming the systems needed to support future lunar surface exploration and paving the way for the first crewed mission to Mars.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

While NASA\u2019s Near Space Network<\/a> and Deep Space Network<\/a>, coordinated by the agency\u2019s SCaN (Space Communication and Navigation) program <\/a>, will provide primary communications and tracking services to support Orion\u2019s launch, journey around the Moon, and return to Earth, participants selected from a request for proposals<\/a> published in August 2025, comprised of established commercial service providers, members of academia, and individual amateur radio enthusiasts will use their respective equipment to passively track radio waves transmitted by Orion during its approximately 10-day journey.<\/p>\n

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The Orion capsule viewing the Moon during Artemis I. <\/div>\n
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\u201cThe Artemis II tracking opportunity is a real step toward SCaN\u2019s commercial-first vision. By inviting external organizations to demonstrate their capabilities during a human spaceflight mission, we\u2019re strengthening the marketplace we\u2019ll rely on as we explore farther into the solar system,\u201d said Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator for SCaN at NASA Headquarters in Washington. \u201cThis isn\u2019t about tracking one mission, but about building a resilient, public-private ecosystem that will support the Golden Age of innovation and exploration.\u201d<\/p>\n

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This isn\u2019t about tracking one mission, but about building a resilient, public-private ecosystem that will support the Golden Age of innovation and exploration.\u201d<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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\"KEvin<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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KEvin Coggins<\/p>\n

NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for SCaN<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

These volunteers will submit their data to NASA for analysis, helping the agency better assess the broader aerospace community\u2019s tracking capabilities and identify ways to augment future Moon and Mars mission support. There are no funds exchanged as a part of this collaborative effort.<\/p>\n

This initiative builds on a previous effort in which 10 volunteers successfully tracked the Orion spacecraft during Artemis I in 2022. That campaign produced valuable data and lessons learned, including implementation, formatting, and data quality variations for Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems, which develops communications and data standards for spaceflight. To address these findings, SCaN now requires that all tracking data submitted for Artemis II comply with its data system standards.<\/p>\n

Compared to the previous opportunity, public interest in tracking the Artemis II mission has increased. About 47 ground assets spanning 14 different countries will be used for to track the spacecraft during its journey around the Moon.   <\/p>\n

Participants List:<\/strong><\/h1>\n<\/p>\n

Government:<\/strong><\/p>\n