For final testing, the Artemis 1 mission rocket is currently on launch pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Two days of testing will take place. The tanks will need to be refueled, their countdown clock reset multiple times, and then the fuel tank will be empty. Launch of the unmanned mission has been scheduled for May/June.
At 111 meters tall and 130 tons in weight, the largest rocket ever built left Kennedy Space Center’s Vehicle Assembly Building yesterday on a caterpillar. It traveled 6.7 kilometers from the hangar to launch ramp at a speed of 1.6 km per hour. At 9:15 AM, the transfer was completed.
Artemisa 1 consists of the Space Launch System, (SLS), and the Orion capsule. It can hold four astronauts and has a European-made service module. NASA says the SLS is composed of a main rocket and two boosters. It will launch the Orion spacecraft towards Moon at 39,400 km/h. This mission will mark the first joint test of thrusters and space capsule. It will return to the Pacific Ocean.
This weekend’s tests will be conducted by staff from the Florida Launch Control Center and Mission Control Center in Houston (Texas), the Space Force East Test Range, and the Space Force Engineering Support Center. SLS Huntsville, Alabama. The system’s tanks will contain 2.7 million liters liquid hydrogen and oxygen. Launch day will see the countdown. Briefings and validation checks will be performed as part of the countdown.
After the launch time has been reached, controllers will reset the clock to T-10 minutes (10 minutes prior to liftoff) and restart the countdown. The countdown will be stopped 10 seconds before the engine starts to demonstrate that extremes are possible. The system will then return to the vehicle assembly facility, where it will be taken out of service. After that, the spacecraft and sensors will be removed. New tests will be conducted before Artemisa 1 is officially transferred to the launch pad.
Artemis 1 will be in principle the first of three missions for the new program of manned flights towards the Moon. Orion’s capsule, which will remain empty during this mission, will orbit the satellite, and will reach within 100 km of its surface. This mission will last between four to six weeks. Artemisa 2 will be launched in May 2024. It will be similar to Artemisa 1, but will last ten days, and have four astronauts. NASA’s most optimistic predictions suggest that the first woman will set foot on the Moon in 2025. This will be accomplished by the Artemis 3 mission. A SpaceX lunar descent vehicle and SLS spacecraft will be added. By Elon Musk
