Artemis 2 Launch, New Amps, Speakers & More
- MSI DFAT
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
But first, a pop quiz💡
How far will Artemis 2 travel away from earth?
🚀🧑🚀✨
Artemis 2 Launch & Return
On April 1, 2026, MSI DFAT was honored to be invited by the Lockheed Martin Orion Program Office to attend the historic Artemis II launch at Kennedy Space Center, joining industry partners along the NASA Causeway to witness the next chapter of human spaceflight firsthand.
Beyond attending the launch, MSI DFAT plays a direct role in the Artemis program by acoustically testing Orion and related spacecraft hardware using Direct Field Acoustic Testing (DFAT), helping ensure the vehicle can survive the extreme launch and ascent environments it will experience on its journey around the Moon.
Credit: NASA.
One of the key takeaways from witnessing Space Launch System (SLS) take off was just how loud it was - and how well MSI DFAT's Noise Generation System (NGS) can replicate the sound pressure environment. Standing even a few miles from the launchpad sounded and felt exactly like the test runs that we recreated in our noise lab. It's hard to describe a rocket launch experience - it's something you not only hear, but can feel in your chest and your bones.
Estimates place the noise levels at 170-180 decibels (dB) near the launchpad. That’s well beyond the threshold of instant eardrum damage! Even at 1 mile distance, levels reached 136 dB (still dangerously loud), and at 3 miles estimated at 129 dB! The sound waves felt like a deep rolling crackle + thunder, not just a roar. The sound arrived seconds after liftoff, then built up.
Credit: MSI DFAT.
Fun fact: NASA actually dumps hundreds of thousands of gallons of water onto the pad just to dampen the sound, because otherwise the acoustic energy could literally damage the rocket itself.
Through this work, our team has collaborated closely with program partners and has had the rare opportunity to meet the entire Artemis II astronaut crew in person—connecting the critical ground testing we perform to the people who will ultimately fly the mission. We eagerly anticipate a safe return to earth in the coming days and will call the mission a true success when the crew is back on the ground of our blue marble.
It’s a full-circle moment for MSI DFAT: from testing the spacecraft, to supporting mission readiness, to standing on the causeway as Orion lifts off, and anticipating it's soon safe splash-down return. 🚀
New Amps, Speakers & Facility
New week, new warehouse, new amps, new speakers, new customers 😎🙌💯
Part of our culture at MSI DFAT is continual and incremental innovation. We continue to build upon the latest generations of loudspeakers and amplifiers with new designs and enhanced capabilities. The performance of our purpose-built Noise Generation System (NGS) far exceeds any other loudspeakers available for direct field acoustic testing.
Check out our new MS-25™ loudspeakers and our new Rattler™ amps on display🔊🔊🫨
MS-25 loudspeakers and Rattler amplifiers in the new MSI DFAT facility. Credit: Max Myers, MSI DFAT.
Fun fact: the Rattler amps were invented by Max Myers with additional collaboration from Logan Avery and Michael "Sully" Sullivan. Max started out as a test technician and has since advanced in the company, to the point of designing our newest amplifier systems!
For more information on MS-25 or Rattler test equipment, please contact info@msidfat.com
Aviation Week Spotlight on MSI DFAT
Aviation Week talked to MSI DFAT CEO Alex Carrella about the firm’s product innovations and global growth ambitions. Aviation Week is the largest multimedia information and services provider for the global aviation, aerospace, and defense industries, serving 1.2 million professionals around the world, with over 50,000 weekly readers.
As the inventor of direct field acoustic testing, MSI DFAT is the leading provider of rapid and economical direct field acoustic qualification testing equipment and engineering services for the space industry.
Watch the full interview here
Credit: Aviation Week.
Space Symposium 2026
MSI DFAT will exhibit at the 41st Space Symposium from April 13-16, 2026. Please join us at booth 415... Stop by and say hi!
Credit: Space Symposium.
A: ✅ ~500,000 miles.
On Artemis II, the crew will travel roughly 494,000 miles (about 800,000 km) from Earth at the farthest point in their trajectory—making it the farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth.
Launching humans into space? 🚀🛰️🧑🚀✨
