The Orion spacecraft for the Artemis I mission moving from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center’s Multi-Payload Processing Facility to the Florida spaceport’s Launch Abort System Facility on July 10, 2021.

In that package is the Orion spacecraft which consists of the NASA’s Crew Module, the Crew Module Adapter and ESA’s European Service Module. Together these modules will power the spacecraft around the Moon and back. Over 30 engines, four solar wings, 8.6 tons of propellant and 11 km of cables are inside. For the first Artemis mission they will work in harmony to travel from Earth to the Moon, make two flybys and return.

For the European Service Module this is just another small step on its way to the Moon. With parts made in ten countries in Europe and assembled in Bremen, Germany, the complete module was flown to Kennedy Space Center at the end of 2018 to be integrated with the crew module.

The spacecraft is now being integrated with the launch abort system. This module placed on top kicks in if an anomaly occurs during launch and will propel astronauts to safety away from the rocket.

Launching later this year, Artemis I will be a test of the Orion spacecraft and its SLS rocket ahead of crewed flights to the Moon.