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4 Min Read NASA Uses Colorado Mountains for Simulated Artemis Moon Landing Course
NASA has certified a new lander flight training course using helicopters, marking a key milestone in crew training for Artemis missions to the Moon. Through Artemis, NASA explore the lunar South Pole, paving the way for human exploration farther into the solar system, including Mars.
The mountains in northern Colorado offer similar visual illusions and flight environments to the Moon. NASA partnered with the Colorado Army National Guard at the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site near Gypsum, Colorado, to develop the foundational flight training course.
“Artemis astronauts who will land on the Moon will need to master crew coordination and communication with one another,” said Paul Felker, acting deputy director of flight operations at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “Much like they will on the Moon, astronaut teams are learning how to work together efficiently in a stressful environment to identify hazards, overcome degraded visual environments, and evaluate risks to successfully land.”
During the two-week certification run in late August, NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Matthew Dominick participated in flight and landing training to help certify the course. The pair took turns flying a helicopter and navigating to landing zones. Artemis flight crew trainers, mission control leads, and lunar lander operational experts from NASA Johnson joined them on each helicopter flight to assess the instruction, training environment, and technical applications for crewed lunar missions.
NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick (left) and Mark Vande Hei (right) prepare to fly out to a landing zone in the Rocky Mountains as part of the certification run for the NASA Artemis course at the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site in Gypsum, Colorado, Aug. 26. NASA/Michael DeMocker A LUH-72 Lakota helicopter stirs up dust at the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site in Gypsum, Colorado, Aug. 28. NASA/Charles Beason A member of the Colorado Army National Guard peers out of a CH-47 Chinook in preparation for landing Aug. 22. NASA and trained instructors from the Army National Guard use a range of aircraft during flight training. Chinooks are used to demonstrate challenges with landing on the Moon. NASA/Charles Beason NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick (left) and Mark Vande Hei (right) celebrate after returning from a training flight Aug. 26 during a certification run for a lander flight training course for crewed Artemis missions. NASA/Michael DeMocker Paired with trained instructors with the Army National Guard, astronauts fly to mountaintops and valleys in a range of aircraft, including LUH-72 Lakotas, CH-47 Chinooks, and UH-60 Black Hawks. NASA/Charles Beason NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei lands a helicopter as part of flight and landing training at the High Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site Aug. 28. NASA/Michael DeMocker A member of the Colorado Army National Guard looks out of a CH-47 Chinook as it lands at a steep angle Aug. 29. A crater on the Moon could have a similar incline, posing landing challenges for future crewed Artemis missions. NASA/Michael DeMocker A LUH-72 Lakota helicopter flies over the mountains of northern Colorado Aug. 28 during a certification run for a lander flight training course for crewed Artemis missions. The mountains and valleys in Colorado have similar visual illusions to the Moon. NASA/Michael DeMocker The patch for the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site is pictured in the cupola of the International Space Station in 2023. NASA and the Colorado Army National Guard began working together in 2021 to develop a foundational lunar lander simulated flight training course for Artemis. NASA The NASA astronauts and trained instructor pilots with the Army National Guard flew to progressively more challenging landing zones throughout the course, navigating the mountainous terrain, and working together to quickly and efficiently land the aircraft.
Teams can train year-round using the course. Depending on the season, the snowy or dusty conditions can cause visual obstruction. Lunar dust can cause similar visual impairment during future crewed missions.
“Here in Colorado, we have specifically flown to dusty areas, so we know and understand just how important dust becomes during the final descent phase,” Vande Hei said. “Dust will interact with the lander thrusters on the Moon. During our flight training, we have had to revert to our instruments – just like we would on the Moon – because astronauts may lose all their visual cues when they’re near the surface.”
During Artemis III, four astronauts inside the agency’s Orion spacecraft on top of the SLS (Space Launch System rocket) will launch to meet SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System in lunar orbit. Orion will then dock with the Starship system and two astronauts will board the lander. Astronauts will use the Starship lander to safely transport themselves from lunar orbit to the lunar surface. Following surface operations, the two astronauts will use Starship to launch from the lunar surface, back to lunar orbit, and dock with Orion to safely journey back to Earth.
The NASA-focused course has been in development since 2021. Vande Hei and Dominick are the 24th and 25th NASA astronauts to participate in and evaluate the course based on functionality and Artemis mission needs. One ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut has also participated in the course.
“This course will likely be one of the first group flight training opportunities for the Artemis III crew,” said NASA astronaut Doug Wheelock, who helped to develop the foundational training course for the agency. “While the astronauts will also participate in ground and simulation training in Ohio and Texas, the real-world flight environment in Colorado at offers astronauts an amazing simulation of the problem solving and decision making needed to control and maneuver a lunar lander across an equally dynamic landscape.”
Though the course is now certified for Artemis, teams will continue to evaluate the training based on astronaut and technical feedback to ensure mission success and crew safety.
Through the Artemis campaign, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars for the benefit of all.
For more information about Artemis visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/artemis
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Last Updated Sep 10, 2025 EditorBeth RidgewayContactCorinne M. Beckingercorinne.m.beckinger@nasa.govLocationMarshall Space Flight Center Related Terms
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Explore Webb Webb News Latest News Latest Images Webb’s Blog Awards X (offsite – login reqd) Instagram (offsite – login reqd) Facebook (offsite- login reqd) Youtube (offsite) Overview About Who is James Webb? Fact Sheet Impacts+Benefits FAQ Webb Timeline Science Overview and Goals Early Universe Galaxies Over Time Star Lifecycle Other Worlds Science Explainers Observatory Overview Launch Deployment Orbit Mirrors Sunshield Instrument: NIRCam Instrument: MIRI Instrument: NIRSpec Instrument: FGS/NIRISS Optical Telescope Element Backplane Spacecraft Bus Instrument Module Multimedia About Webb Images Images Videos What is Webb Observing? 3d Webb in 3d Solar System Podcasts Webb Image Sonifications Webb’s First Images Team International Team People Of Webb More For the Media For Scientists For Educators For Fun/Learning 5 Min Read Glittering Glimpse of Star Birth From NASA’s Webb Telescope
Webb captured this sparkling scene of star birth in Pismis 24. Full image and caption below. Credits:
Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: A. Pagan (STScI) This is a sparkling scene of star birth captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. What appears to be a craggy, starlit mountaintop kissed by wispy clouds is actually a cosmic dust-scape being eaten away by the blistering winds and radiation of nearby, massive, infant stars.
Called Pismis 24, this young star cluster resides in the core of the nearby Lobster Nebula, approximately 5,500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Scorpius. Home to a vibrant stellar nursery and one of the closest sites of massive star birth, Pismis 24 provides rare insight into large and massive stars. Its proximity makes this region one of the best places to explore the properties of hot young stars and how they evolve.
At the heart of this glittering cluster is the brilliant Pismis 24-1. It is at the center of a clump of stars above the jagged orange peaks, and the tallest spire is pointing directly toward it. Pismis 24-1 appears as a gigantic single star, and it was once thought to be the most massive known star. Scientists have since learned that it is composed of at least two stars, though they cannot be resolved in this image. At 74 and 66 solar masses, respectively, the two known stars are still among the most massive and luminous stars ever seen.
Image A: Pismis 24 (NIRCam Image)
Webb captured this sparkling scene of star birth in Pismis 24, a young star cluster about 5,500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Scorpius. This region is one of the best places to explore the properties of hot young stars and how they evolve. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: A. Pagan (STScI) Captured in infrared light by Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), this image reveals thousands of jewel-like stars of varying sizes and colors. The largest and most brilliant ones with the six-point diffraction spikes are the most massive stars in the cluster. Hundreds to thousands of smaller members of the cluster appear as white, yellow, and red, depending on their stellar type and the amount of dust enshrouding them. Webb also shows us tens of thousands of stars behind the cluster that are part of the Milky Way galaxy.
Super-hot, infant stars –some almost 8 times the temperature of the Sun – blast out scorching radiation and punishing winds that are sculpting a cavity into the wall of the star-forming nebula. That nebula extends far beyond NIRCam’s field of view. Only small portions of it are visible at the bottom and top right of the image. Streamers of hot, ionized gas flow off the ridges of the nebula, and wispy veils of gas and dust, illuminated by starlight, float around its towering peaks.
Dramatic spires jut from the glowing wall of gas, resisting the relentless radiation and winds. They are like fingers pointing toward the hot, young stars that have sculpted them. The fierce forces shaping and compressing these spires cause new stars to form within them. The tallest spire spans about 5.4 light-years from its tip to the bottom of the image. More than 200 of our solar systems out to Neptune’s orbit could fit into the width its tip, which is 0.14 lightyears.
In this image, the color cyan indicates hot or ionized hydrogen gas being heated up by the massive young stars. Dust molecules similar to smoke here on Earth are represented in orange. Red signifies cooler, denser molecular hydrogen. The darker the red, the denser the gas. Black denotes the densest gas, which is not emitting light. The wispy white features are dust and gas that are scattering starlight.
Video A: Expedition to Star Cluster Pismis 24
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This scientific visualization takes viewers on a journey to a glittering young star cluster called Pismis 24. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured this fantastical scene in the heart of the Lobster Nebula, approximately 5,500 light-years from Earth. Video: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Leah Hustak (STScI), Christian Nieves (STScI); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI); Script Writer: Frank Summers (STScI); Narration: Frank Summers (STScI); Music: Christian Nieves (STScI); Audio: Danielle Kirshenblat (STScI); Producer: Greg Bacon (STScI); Acknowledgment: VISTA Video B: Zoom to Pismis 24
This zoom-in video shows the location of the young star cluster Pismis 24 on the sky. It begins with a ground-based photo of the constellation Scorpius by the late astrophotographer Akira Fujii. The sequence closes in on the Lobster Nebula, using views from the Digitized Sky Survey. As the video homes in on a select portion, it fades to a VISTA image in infrared light. The zoom continues in to the region around Pismis 24, where it transitions to the stunning image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in near-infrared light.
Video: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Alyssa Pagan (STScI); Narration: Frank Summers (STScI); Script Writer: Frank Summers (STScI); Music: Christian Nieves (STScI); Audio: Danielle Kirshenblat (STScI); Producer: Greg Bacon (STScI); Acknowledgment: VISTA, Akira Fujii, DSS The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
To learn more about Webb, visit:
https://science.nasa.gov/webb
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Laura Betz – laura.e.betz@nasa.gov
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Ann Jenkins – jenkins@stsci.edu
Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.
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Patricia White is a contracting officer at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, where she contributes to NASA’s Artemis program that will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars. NASA/Danny Nowlin When NASA’s Artemis II mission launches in 2026, it will inspire the world through discovery in a new Golden Age of innovation and exploration.
It will be another inspiring NASA moment Patricia White can add to her growing list.
White supports the Artemis program to send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars as a contracting officer at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
White takes special pride in the test operations contract she helped draft. The contract provides support to the Fred Haise Test Stand, which tests the RS-25 engines that will help power NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket on Artemis missions.
“I was awestruck the first time I witnessed an engine test,” White said. “I remember how small I felt in comparison to this big and fascinating world, and I wondered what that engine would see that I would never be able to see.”
Four RS-25 engines tested at NASA Stennis will help launch Artemis II with four astronauts to venture around the Moon. As the first crewed Artemis mission, it will represent another milestone for the nation’s human space exploration effort.
From Interstate Signs to NASA Career
White describes NASA Stennis as a hidden gem. Growing up in nearby Slidell, Louisiana, she had driven by the interstate signs pointing toward NASA Stennis her entire life.
When she heard about a job opportunity at the center, she immediately applied. Initially hired as a contractor with only a high school diploma in February 2008, White found her motivation among NASA’s ranks.
“I work with very inspiring people, and it only took one person to say, ‘You should go to college’ to give me the courage to go so late in life,” she said.
Hard But Worth It
White began college classes in her 40s and finished at 50. She balanced a marriage, full-time job, academic studies, and household responsibilities. When she started her educational journey, her children were either toddlers or newborns. They were growing up as she stayed in school for nine years while meeting life’s challenges.
“It was hard, but it was so worth it,” she said. “I love my job and what I do, and even though it is crazy busy, I look forward to working at NASA every single day.”
She joined NASA officially in 2013, going from contractor to civil servant.
Setting an Example
White’s proudest work moment came when she brought home the NASA Early Career Achievement award and medal. It served as a tangible symbol of her success she could share with her family.
“It was a long road from being hired as an intern, and we all made extraordinary sacrifices,” she said. “I wanted to share it with them and set a good example for my children.”
As Artemis II prepares to carry humans back to lunar orbit for the first time in over 50 years, White takes pride knowing her work helps power humanity’s return to deep space exploration. Her work is proof that sometimes the most important journeys begin right in one’s own backyard.
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By NASA
Advancing Single-Photon Sensing Image Sensors to Enable the Search for Life Beyond Earth
A NASA-sponsored team is advancing single-photon sensing Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) detector technology that will enable future NASA astrophysics space missions to search for life on other planets. As part of their detector maturation program, the team is characterizing sensors before, during, and after high-energy radiation exposure; developing novel readout modes to mitigate radiation-induced damage; and simulating a near-infrared CMOS pixel prototype capable of detecting individual photons.
Single-photon sensing and photon-number resolving CMOS image sensors: a 9.4 Mpixel sensor (left) and a 16.7 Mpixel sensor (right). Credit: CfD, RIT Are we alone in the universe? This age-old question has inspired scientific exploration for centuries. If life on other planets evolves similarly to life on Earth, it can imprint its presence in atmospheric spectral features known asbiosignatures. They include absorption and emission lines in the spectrum produced by oxygen, carbon dioxide, methane, and other molecules that could indicate conditions which can support life. A future NASA astrophysics mission, the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO), will seek to find biosignatures in the ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared (NIR) spectra of exoplanet atmospheres to look for evidence that life may exist elsewhere in the universe.
HWO will need highly sensitive detector technology to detect these faint biosignatures on distant exoplanets. The Single-Photon Sensing Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (SPSCMOS) image sensor is a promising technology for this application. These silicon-based sensors can detect and resolve individual optical-wavelength photons using a low-capacitance, high-gain floating diffusion sense node. They operate effectively over a broad temperature range, including at room temperature. They have near-zero read noise, are tolerant to radiation, and generate very little unwanted signal—such as dark current. When cooled to 250 K, the dark current drops to just one electron every half-hour. If either the read noise or dark current is too high, the sensor will fail to detect the faint signals that biosignatures produce.
A research team at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Center for Detectors (CfD) is accelerating the readiness of these SPSCMOS sensors for use in space missions through detector technology maturation programs funded by NASA’s Strategic Astrophysics Technology and Early Stage Innovations solicitations. These development programs include several key goals:
Characterize critical detector performance metrics like dark current, quantum efficiency, and read noise before, during, and after exposure to high-energy radiation Develop new readout modes for these sensors to mitigate effects from short-term and long-term radiation damage Design a new NIR version of the sensor using Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) software SPSCMOS sensors operate similarly to traditional CMOS image sensors but are optimized to detect individual photons—an essential capability for ultra-sensitive space-based observations, such as measuring the gases in the atmospheres of exoplanets. Incoming photons enter the sensor and generate free charges (electrons) in the sensor material. These charges collect in a pixel’s storage well and eventually transfer to a low-capacitance component called the floating diffusion (FD) sense node where each free charge causes a large and resolved voltage shift. This voltage shift is then digitized to read the signal.
Experiments that measure sensor performance in a space relevant environment use a vacuum Dewar and a thermally-controlled mount to allow precise tuning of the sensors temperature. The Dewar enables testing at conditions that match the expected thermal environment of the HWO instrument, and can even cool the sensor and its on-chip circuits to temperatures colder than any prior testing reported for this detector family. These tests are critical for revealing performance limitations with respect to detector metrics like dark current, quantum efficiency, and read noise. As temperatures change, the electrical properties of on-chip circuits can also change, which affects the read out of charge in a pixel.
The two figures show results for SPSCMOS devices. The figure on the left shows a photon counting histogram with peaks that correspond to photon number. The figure on the right shows the dark current for a SPSCMOS device before and after exposure to 50 krad of 60 MeV protons. Credit: CfD, RIT The radiation-rich environment for HWO will cause temporary and permanent effects in the sensor. These effects can corrupt the signal measured in a pixel, interrupt sensor clocking and digital logic, and can cause cumulative damage that gradually degrades sensor performance. To mitigate the loss of detector sensitivity throughout a mission lifetime, the RIT team is developing new readout modes that are not available in commercial CMOS sensors. These custom modes sample the signal over time (a “ramp” acquisition) to enable the detection and removal of cosmic ray artifacts. In one mode, when the system identifies an artifact, it segments the signal ramp and selectively averages the segments to reconstruct the original signal—preserving scientific data that would otherwise be lost. In addition, a real-time data acquisition system monitors the detector’s power consumption, which may change from the accumulation of damage throughout a mission. The acquisition system records these shifts and communicates with the detector electronics to adjust voltages and maintain nominal operation. These radiation damage mitigation strategies will be evaluated during a number of test programs at ground-based radiation facilities. The tests will help identify unique failure mechanisms that impact SPSCMOS technology when it is exposed to radiation equivalent to the dose expected for HWO.
Custom acquisition electronics (left) that will control the sensors during radiation tests, and an image captured using this system (right). Credit: CfD, RIT While existing SPSCMOS sensors are limited to detecting visible light due to their silicon-based design, the RIT team is developing the world’s first NIR single-photon photodiode based on the architecture used in the optical sensors. The photodiode design starts as a simulation in TCAD software to model the optical and electrical properties of the low-capacitance CMOS architecture. The model simulates light-sensitive circuits using both silicon and Mercury Cadmium Telluride (HgCdTe or MCT) material to determine how well the pixel would measure photo-generated charge if a semiconductor foundry physically fabricated it. It has 2D and 3D device structures that convert light into electrical charge, and circuits to control charge transfer and signal readout with virtual probes that can measure current flow and electric potential. These simulations help to evaluate the key mechanisms like the conversion of light into electrons, storing and transferring the electrons, and the output voltage of the photodiode sampling circuit.
In addition to laboratory testing, the project includes performance evaluations at a ground-based telescope. These tests allow the sensor to observe astronomical targets that cannot be fully replicated in lab. Star fields and diffuse nebulae challenge the detector’s full signal chain under real sky backgrounds with faint flux levels, field-dependent aberrations, and varying seeing conditions. These observations help identify performance limitations that may not be apparent in controlled laboratory measurements.
In January 2025, a team of researchers led by PhD student Edwin Alexani used an SPSCMOS-based camera at the C.E.K. Mees Observatory in Ontario County, New York. They observed star cluster M36 to evaluate the sensor’s photometric precision, and the Bubble Nebula in a narrow-band H-alpha filter. The measured dark current and read noise were consistent with laboratory results.
The team observed photometric reference stars to estimate the quantum efficiency (QE) or the ability for the detector to convert photons into signal. The calculated QE agreed with laboratory measurements, despite differences in calibration methods.
The team also observed the satellite STARLINK-32727 as it passed through the telescope’s field of view and measured negligible persistent charge—residual signal that can remain in detector pixels after exposure to a bright source. Although the satellite briefly produced a bright streak across several pixels due to reflected sunlight, the average latent charge in affected pixels was only 0.03 e–/pix – well below both the sky-background and sensor’s read noise.
Images captured at the C.E.K. Mees Observatory. Left: The color image shows M36 in the Johnson color filters B (blue), V (green), and R (red) bands (left). Right: Edwin Alexani and the SPSCMOS camera (right). Credit: : CfD, RIT As NASA advances and matures the HWO mission, SPSCMOS technology promises to be a game-changer for exoplanet and general astrophysics research. These sensors will enhance our ability to detect and analyze distant worlds, bringing us one step closer to answering one of humanity’s most profound questions: are we alone?
For additional details, see the entry for this project on NASA TechPort.
Project Lead(s): Dr. Donald F. Figer, Future Photon Initiative and Center for Detectors, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), supported by engineer Justin Gallagher and a team of students.
Sponsoring Organization(s): NASA Astrophysics Division, Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) Program and NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), Early Stage Innovations (ESI) Program
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Last Updated Sep 02, 2025 Related Terms
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Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center; Music Credit: “History in Motion” by Fred Dubois [SACEM], Koka Media [SACEM], Universal Publishing Production Music France [SACEM], and Universal Production Music. On Aug. 7 and 8, NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope team assessed the observatory’s solar panels and a visor-like sunshade called the deployable aperture cover — two components that will be stowed for launch and unfold in space. Engineers confirmed their successful operation during a closely monitored sequence in simulated space-like conditions. On the first day, Roman’s four outer solar panels were deployed one at a time, each unfolding over 30 seconds with 30-second pauses between them. The visor followed in a separate test the next day. These assessments help ensure Roman will perform as expected in space. Roman is slated to launch no later than May 2027, with the team working toward a potential early launch as soon as fall 2026.
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Last Updated Aug 26, 2025 EditorAshley BalzerContactAshley Balzerashley.m.balzer@nasa.gov Related Terms
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