Kamal Ghorui
The crew of Nasa’s historic Artemis II mission, with support from mission control, successfully restored the Orion spacecraft’s toilet system after it experienced a recurring issue following Wednesday’s launch (US local time) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.“Ahead of the apogee raise burn on April 1, the Artemis II crew reported a blinking fault light and mission control teams successfully assessed the data and worked with the crew to troubleshoot and resolve the issue,” the US space agency said in a statement.Click here for live updates“Happy to report that the toilet is go for use. We do recommend letting the system get to operating speed before donating fluid,” BBC quoted mission control as saying.The issue was reported by Christina Koch, one of the four astronauts aboard the Artemis II mission. She encountered the problem just seconds after starting up the toilet.The toilet is located on the “floor” of the capsule, with a door and curtain for privacy. It is an upgraded version of an experimental toilet that was sent to the International Space Station in 2020. That station toilet is currently out of order, though two others are functioning normally.Also Read: Artemis II astronauts manually pilot Orion: Nasa video shows spacecraft heading towards MoonNasa’s Artemis II missionArtemis II marks humanity’s return to the Moon’s vicinity for the first time in more than 50 years. The mission also has the potential to surpass the distance records set during the Apollo era, venturing further into deep space than any previous human endeavor.Leading the expedition is Mission Commander Reid Wiseman, 50, a former US Navy officer and NASA astronaut since 2009. The Orion spacecraft is being piloted by 49-year-old Victor Glover, a Navy veteran who transitioned to Nasa from a role as a US Senate legislative advisor.Christina Koch is the only female crew member and is set to become the first woman to reach the lunar vicinity. An experienced engineer who has conducted research in Antarctica, she holds the record for the longest continuous spaceflight by a woman.Rounding out the team is Jeremy Hansen, 50, representing the Canadian Space Agency and the only non-American astronaut on the mission. A former fighter pilot, Hansen will be the first non-American to travel to the Moon’s neighbourhood.(With AP inputs)
