On Thursday, after another fueling and countdown test of its moon rocket, NASA said that, after some repairs, its SLS rocket will be ready for its first launch attempt.
In The Washington Post, Christian Davenport wrote that there were still some problems exposed by the test this week, “fully fueling the Space Launch System rocket’s two stages with more than 700,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. But the simulated countdown was cut short with 29 seconds to go because of a hydrogen leak.”
However, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the Artemis launch director, told reporters after the test: “It was a very successful day, and we accomplished a majority of the objectives that we had not completed in the prior [tests].” (The Artemis missions are named after the god Apollo’s goddess sister, Artemis. In the 1960s, NASA’s several Apollo missions were the first to achieve manned moon landings.)
In late August, technicians will repair a hydrogen leak before the SLS makes its first launch attempt.
After the test, NASA was unsure whether the upcoming launch attempt would happen as scheduled. They reviewed data from the test, and on Thursday a NASA spokesperson said that those data are positive enough to support the SLS rocket’s first-ever launch attempt. The first launch window will come between August 23 and September 6 of this year.
Artemis I—as this mission is named—will not be sending any astronauts to the moon. However, the SLS rocket’s Orion capsule will orbit the moon without people inside. Perhaps in 2024, Artemis II will carry the Orion capsule with four astronauts inside it. The astronauts will orbit the moon aboard Orion, but they will not land on the moon. The first Artemis moon landing may happen in 2025. This will depend on the success of prior missions and the availability of space vehicles.
In The Washington Post, Christian Davenport wrote that there were still some problems exposed by the test this week, “fully fueling the Space Launch System rocket’s two stages with more than 700,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. But the simulated countdown was cut short with 29 seconds to go because of a hydrogen leak.”
However, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the Artemis launch director, told reporters after the test: “It was a very successful day, and we accomplished a majority of the objectives that we had not completed in the prior [tests].” (The Artemis missions are named after the god Apollo’s goddess sister, Artemis. In the 1960s, NASA’s several Apollo missions were the first to achieve manned moon landings.)
In late August, technicians will repair a hydrogen leak before the SLS makes its first launch attempt.
After the test, NASA was unsure whether the upcoming launch attempt would happen as scheduled. They reviewed data from the test, and on Thursday a NASA spokesperson said that those data are positive enough to support the SLS rocket’s first-ever launch attempt. The first launch window will come between August 23 and September 6 of this year.
Artemis I—as this mission is named—will not be sending any astronauts to the moon. However, the SLS rocket’s Orion capsule will orbit the moon without people inside. Perhaps in 2024, Artemis II will carry the Orion capsule with four astronauts inside it. The astronauts will orbit the moon aboard Orion, but they will not land on the moon. The first Artemis moon landing may happen in 2025. This will depend on the success of prior missions and the availability of space vehicles.
