# Designing a Home for Artemis II - Episode 68 Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/behind-the-wings-5485390/designing-a-home-for-artemis-ii-episode-68 Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/behind-the-wings-5485390/designing-a-home-for-artemis-ii-episode-68.md Podcast: [Behind the Wings](https://stenobird.com/podcast/behind-the-wings-5485390) Published: 2026-01-19T19:20:33+00:00 Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/12a1f8a7 Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/12a1f8a7/1ace307f.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/behind-the-wings-5485390/episodes/designing-a-home-for-artemis-ii-episode-68 Duration seconds: 2261 ## Resource Human Factors Engineer Cynthia Hudy shares what it takes to design a spacecraft around the people who fly it. We explore Cynthia’s role designing the systems inside Orion, from displays and controls to life support, radiation protection, and the everyday realities of living in deep space. We also discuss how astronaut feedback and human-in-the-loop testing are shaping Artemis II, the first crewed Orion mission to carry humans beyond low-Earth orbit since Apollo 17. From engineering for diverse crews to preparing humans for deep-space autonomy, this one is going to be cool! What You'll Hear Artemis II is NASA’s first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 This 10-day flight around the Moon is the critical proving mission before astronauts return to the lunar surface. Orion is designed like a “tiny house” in deep space Every system inside the capsule is engineered so four astronauts can live, work, sleep, eat, exercise, and respond to emergencies in an extremely confined space. Human factors engineering shapes nearly every design decision Orion is built around human physical and mental limits, treating the crew as an essential part of the spacecraft system—not an afterthought. The interior of Orion is where Artemis II differs most from earlier missions Life support, a functioning bathroom, exercise equipment, food and water systems, and crew-controlled displays are all coming online for the first time. Astronaut testing directly changed how Orion works “Human-in-the-loop” trials led to real design changes, from how doors open in microgravity to how astronauts sleep, move, and access critical systems. Artemis II is the proving ground for future Moon landings and Mars missions What Orion demonstrates about comfort, safety, autonomy, and crew well-being will… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/behind-the-wings-5485390/episodes/designing-a-home-for-artemis-ii-episode-68/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/behind-the-wings-5485390/designing-a-home-for-artemis-ii-episode-68.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.