ARTEMIS at Lagrange: The View from Above

  • Released Wednesday, October 27, 2010
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This visualization is built from the components of ARTEMIS Mission with emphasis on the maneuvers of the two ARTEMIS spacecraft (red=ARTEMIS-1, green=ARTEMIS-2) around the lunar Lagrange Points L1 and L2.

As with the ARTEMIS Mission visual, we show the Earth, the Earth's magnetosphere, the Moon and Sun, with the direction of the Sun from the Earth indicated by the yellow arrow.

In this version, the satellite trails are are constructed in a lunar-centric inertial coordinate system so the trails reveal the motion of the satellites relative to the Lagrange points in INERTIAL space (fixed with the distant stars). To see another example of how coordinate systems dramatically affect the construction of trails, see LRO in Earth Centered and Moon Centered Coordinates.

In this movie, the camera stays above the Moon's orbital plane for a better view of the motion in the orbital plane. For a change in perspective, see ARTEMIS at Lagrange.

The full movie, from the time ARTEMIS-1 enters the influence of L2 to both satellites being captured into lunar orbit.

Opening view as ARTEMIS-1 is captured in the region around L2.

Opening view as ARTEMIS-1 is captured in the region around L2.

ARTEMIS-2 is now orbiting L1, with ARTEMIS-1 orbiting L2.

ARTEMIS-2 is now orbiting L1, with ARTEMIS-1 orbiting L2.

Both spacecraft now orbit L1.

Both spacecraft now orbit L1.

And finally both are captured into lunar orbit.

And finally both are captured into lunar orbit.

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio

This page was originally published on Wednesday, October 27, 2010.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:53 PM EDT.

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