The US space agency has announced that children using Microsoft’s game-based learning platform Minecraft can now build and launch a rocket to the Moon like the real NASA Artemis team.
Minecraft Artemis Missions was created to pique the interest of students aged 8 and up in NASA’s next chapter in human spaceflight and inspire them to picture themselves as future astronauts or scientists.
The US space agency has announced that children using Microsoft’s game-based learning platform Minecraft can now build and launch a rocket to the Moon like the real NASA Artemis team.
Minecraft Artemis Missions was created to pique the interest of students aged 8 and up in NASA’s next chapter in human spaceflight and inspire them to picture themselves as future astronauts or scientists.
NASA and Minecraft are collaborating as part of an ongoing agreement between NASA’s Office of STEM Outreach and Microsoft.
“NASA strives to reach the broadest audience and inspire the Artemis Generation to prepare them for the missions of tomorrow,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, in the statement.
Minecraft has created two new immersive landscapes based on the upcoming real-world Artemis missions, which will see astronaut crews, including the first woman and person of colour, establish a long-term human presence on the Moon.
In Minecraft’s “Artemis: Rocket Build” mission, students will learn basic rocket engineering and mechanics as they build and launch their rocket.
They’ll put their coding talents to the test in the next mission, “Return to the Moon,” as they programme the Orion spacecraft to successfully land on the Moon.
“Artemis: Rocket Build” is accessible for free on both the Minecraft Marketplace and in Minecraft Education, although “Artemis: Return to the Moon” and “Artemis: Moon Base” are only available in Minecraft Education.
Minecraft Artemis Missions are timed to reach the Artemis Generation of pupils when NASA’s Artemis period begins.
The Artemis I mission in late 2022 was the first integrated flight test of the agency’s giant Moon rocket, the Space Launch System, and the uncrewed Orion spacecraft.
During the three-week trip, Orion displayed its capabilities in deep space and completed two lunar fly-bys, paving the way for increasingly complicated and ambitious missions with astronauts.
