NASA’s CAPSTONE spacecraft will plot course for a lunar space station

As part of its Artemis programme to return humans to the moon, NASA is launching a spacecraft to map the orbit of the planned Lunar Gateway space station

By Alex Wilkins

NASA’s return to the moon is set to begin in the next few weeks with the launch of its CAPSTONE spacecraft, which will test the orbit of a future lunar space station. It is the first step in the Artemis programme, which aims to put a man and the first woman on the moon by 2025.

The Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (CAPSTONE) will blast off between 13 and 22 June, depending on weather …