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NASA is preparing to launch a floating space station built to orbit around the Moon.

The Lunar Gateway is meant to act as a space home and science lab – and serve as a base for astronauts to make trips to the Moon's surface.

The Lunar Gateway is a floating space station that will orbit the Moon
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The Lunar Gateway is a floating space station that will orbit the MoonCredit: Nasa
The Moon-orbiting craft will host up to four astronauts
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The Moon-orbiting craft will host up to four astronautsCredit: Thales Alenia Space

Nasa says it'll be "the first permanent infrastructure at the Moon".

And it's designed to be a key part of Nasa's Artemis missions to return humans to the lunar surface.

With the Apollo missions, Nasa simply dropped astronauts straight onto the Moon.

But Nasa says having the Gateway orbiting the Moon will allow for longer stays on and around our rocky space neighbour.

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It's around a fifth of the size of the International Space Station, and will orbit the Moon at speeds up to two miles per second.

The 63-ton station will be around 141 x 62 x 67 feet and can house four astronauts.

And it'll be orbiting anywhere from 1,000 miles above the Moon at its closest approach to as far away as 43,500 miles.

It's difficult to say exactly when Nasa will put the Gateway into orbit as space launches don't always go to plan.

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But Nasa says it'll have a "minimum 15-year lifespan" once it's up there – with the "potential for extension".

Nasa says it'll need at least four rocket launches to get the parts for Gateway into space.

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And that process of launching and assembling it in orbit "will take approximately six years".

That might sound like a long time, but it's far less than the 13 years and 42 flights it took to build the ISS.

The first two modules are expected to arrive ahead of the Artemis VI mission.

This is the second crewed lunar landing mission in the Artemis program, expected to take place in 2028.

Mock-ups of parts of the station have already been created for testing, like this Lunar I-Hab module replica
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Mock-ups of parts of the station have already been created for testing, like this Lunar I-Hab module replicaCredit: Thales Alenia Space

NASA ARTEMIS MISSIONS – THE TIMELINE

The Artemis mission is designed to reestablish a human presence on the Moon.

The exploration program will involve a series of missions, including the create of a permanent Moon base.

As with all space missions, planned timings can be wildly off – but here's what we're expecting...

Artemis I (2022) – Successful uncrewed test of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

Artemis II (2025) – Planned crewed test flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft.

Artemis III (2026) – Crewed landing on surface of Moon – the first American landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

Artemis IV (2028) – Second crewed lunar landing mission using Orion, as well as Starship HLS that will dock with Lunar Gateway station near the Moon.

Artemis V (2030) – Third crewed landing, including the delivery of Nasa's Lunar Terrain Vehicle.

Artemis VI (2031) – Fourth crewed landing, integrating the Crew and Science Airlock with the Lunar Gateway Space Station.

This concept shows what the Lunar I-Hab module will look like from the outside in space
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This concept shows what the Lunar I-Hab module will look like from the outside in spaceCredit: Thales Alenia Space
The Lunar Gateway will feature a Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) – it's a high-power 60-kilowatt solar-electric propulsion spacecraft that can provide comms between the station and Earth
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The Lunar Gateway will feature a Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) – it's a high-power 60-kilowatt solar-electric propulsion spacecraft that can provide comms between the station and EarthCredit: Nasa / Maxar Technologies

Then the Lunar I-Hab will reach the Moon "no earlier than 2028" as part of that mission.

It's during that mission that astronauts will enter the space station for the first time.

And the plan is that astronauts will use the Gateway to descend to the Moon's surface.

"Gateway’s unique polar orbit will provide Artemis astronauts and their spacecraft access to the entire lunar surface," Nasa explains.

The Lunar View module will allow for cargo storage – but will also feature large windows for views of Earth, the Moon, and space
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The Lunar View module will allow for cargo storage – but will also feature large windows for views of Earth, the Moon, and spaceCredit: Nasa / ESA
British astronaut Rosemary Coogan is seen here inspecting the Lunar I-Hab
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British astronaut Rosemary Coogan is seen here inspecting the Lunar I-HabCredit: ESA

"Including the critical lunar South Pole region which is the focus of the Artemis missions.

"It will also ensure uninterrupted communications between the Moon and Earth, provide unique scientific opportunities within the deep space environment, and its high stability will enhance operational efficiency and reduce costs."

The Gateway will be made up several different parts.

There's the Lunar I-Hab, which is a living quarters with life-support systems and cameras.

The Lunar I-Hab will host life-support systems and equipment for scientific research
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The Lunar I-Hab will host life-support systems and equipment for scientific researchCredit: ESA
Nasa is working with other space agencies, such as ESA, to build the habitation modules of the spacecraft that Artemis astronauts will call home
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Nasa is working with other space agencies, such as ESA, to build the habitation modules of the spacecraft that Artemis astronauts will call home
Astronauts will use the Lunar Gateway as an orbiting base, allowing for transfers down to the Moon's surface
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Astronauts will use the Lunar Gateway as an orbiting base, allowing for transfers down to the Moon's surfaceCredit: ESA

You've also got the Orion spacecraft that shuttles astronauts from Earth to the Gateway and back.

Then there's HALO, which is also a habitation module with life-support systems, fire-detection and suppression, and a moon comms system called Lunar Link.

There's also an area called the Lunar View, which contains fuel tanks but also giant windows for astronauts to capture "stunning images" of the Earth and Moon, according to Nasa.

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Nasa is currently testing mock-ups of Gateway modules to see if they work as intended.

The Lunar I-Hab will be one of the most important parts of the Gateway station
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The Lunar I-Hab will be one of the most important parts of the Gateway stationCredit: Thales Alenia Space
Nasa hopes that the Lunar Gateway will provide support to a Moon base for 15 years – and potentially even longer
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Nasa hopes that the Lunar Gateway will provide support to a Moon base for 15 years – and potentially even longerCredit: Nasa

This included a trial of the Lunar I-Hab module in Turin, Italy in the summer of 2024.

The Moon – our closest neighbour explained

Here's what you need to know...

  • The Moon is a natural satellite – a space-faring body that orbits a planet
  • It's Earth's only natural satellite, and is the fifth biggest in the Solar System
  • The Moon measures 2,158 miles across, roughly 0.27 times the diameter of Earth
  • Temperatures on the Moon range from minus 173 degrees Celcius to 260 degrees Celcius
  • Experts assumed the Moon was another planet, until Nicolaus Copernicus outlined his theory about our Solar System in 1543
  • It was eventually assigned to a "class" after Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610
  • The Moon is believed to have formed around 4.51billion years ago
  • The strength of its gravitational field is about a sixth of Earth's gravity
  • Earth and the Moon have "synchronous rotation", which means we always see the same side of the Moon – hence the phrase "dark side of the Moon"
  • The Moon's surface is actually dark, but appears bright in the sky due to its reflective ground
  • During a solar eclipse, the Moon covers the Sun almost completely. Both objects appear a similar size in the sky because the Sun is both 400 times larger and farther
  • The first spacecraft to reach the Moon was in 1959, as part of the Soviet Union's Lunar program
  • The first manned orbital mission was Nasa's Apollo 8 in 1968
  • And the first manned lunar landing was in 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission
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