We Are Going: Making Artemis a Reality

Jacobs, along with NASA and industry counterparts, is committed to providing integrated solutions in support of the agency's deep space human exploration program, Artemis. Named after the twin sister of Apollo and goddess of the moon in Greek mythology, NASA’s Artemis missions aim to land the first woman and the first person of color on the moon and establish sustainable exploration in preparation for missions to Mars.

Artemis I, an uncrewed flight test of NASA’s Orion spacecraft capsule atop the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, is the first in a series of increasingly complex missions that will enable human exploration to the moon and beyond.

Across multiple NASA Centers, contracts and programs, Jacobs is committed to providing innovative solutions and technologies in support of the agency’s Artemis program.

As the Artemis prime contractor at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) for NASA's Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) Program, Jacobs is responsible for receiving all SLS and Orion flight hardware, assembling and integrating all the large elements, conducting final tests and checkouts, transporting the rocket and spacecraft to the pad, helping to launch it on the mission, and then supporting the recovery of Orion.

The Artemis I rocket recently underwent the final major milestone ahead of launch: The Wet Dress Rehearsal, or WDR. For this test, the rocket stack was transported on the massive crawler transporter to Launch Pad 39B at KSC, where the launch control team filled the fuel tanks with cryogenic (supercooled) liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, then conducted a launch countdown from T-10 minutes down to T-29 seconds. This marked the second trip to the launch pad for a WDR test, and this successful effort allowed the team to move forward and focus on final preparations for launch.

Following the WDR, the skyscraper-sized Artemis I stack atop the mobile launcher was rolled back to the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), where it is undergoing final flight hardware closeouts before returning to the pad for launch.

Jacobs is also supporting the SLS and Orion spacecraft development through contracts at Marshall Space Flight Center, Johnson Space Center (JSC), Langley Research Center, Ames Research Center and the Glenn Research Center, as well as project support at Stennis Space Center and Michoud Assembly Facility.

Jacobs is providing technical leadership and support to NASA’s Space Launch System Program in the areas of vehicle systems engineering and integration; flight software development; avionics systems integration; lab construction and operation; vehicle structural load development; structural, propulsion and acoustic testing; and design, development and analysis.

At Marshall Space Flight Center, Jacobs’ support includes construction and operation of the SLS flight software/hardware integration and test facility, the Systems Integration Lab (SIL).

The Jacobs team also designs and oversees development and test of the Ground Support Equipment required to transport, test, and operate the massive SLS flight hardware on the ground.

Additionally, we're helping to ensure Orion is as safe as possible from launch to re-entry and through  splashdown. Our team worked with NASA engineers to fully develop and test the Orion re-entry parachute system that will slow down the capsule to about 300 mph at 25,000 feet   to less than 25 mph at water impact. We successfully performed numerous tests around technical condition scenarios and fully certified the system for approved use on NASA’s Orion spacecraft.

For NASA’s launch abort system project, we worked across five NASA centers to help develop and successfully test the reliability of the abort system for Orion.

Gateway will serve as an orbital space station providing support for lunar surface missions, docking ports for a variety of spacecraft, space for crew to live and work, and capabilities for scientific missions. Jacobs is helping to design and test the Habitation and Logistics Module, or HALO, a critical component of NASA’s Gateway.

The HALO module will feature a pressurized crew habitat with full communications, navigation, thermal control and life support systems. Our team will help test and develop critical life-support systems that will safely protect and sustain astronaut crews for extended periods of time aboard Gateway.