Dhe US space agency Nasa wants to make a new attempt to launch its new moon rocket on Saturday. This was announced by NASA representative Mike Sarafin, who is responsible for the Artemis 1 unmanned mission, at a press conference on Tuesday. A two-hour window will open from 2:17 p.m. local time (8:17 p.m. CEST). Originally, NASA named Friday and Monday as starting alternatives.
NASA had to call off the first test flight, which was actually planned for Monday, shortly before take-off from the Cape Canaveral spaceport in Florida due to technical problems: one of the four main engines of the SLS rocket could not be cooled down to the required temperature. As the next possible start dates, Nasa initially named next Friday and Monday next week. Now Sarafin said the start should take place on Saturday.
Does the weather cooperate?
This start could also be canceled due to the weather, it said. One meteorologist was “optimistic” even though there is an “increased” risk of adverse weather conditions.
After the problems on Monday, the team decided to change the fuel loading process. Now the engines are to be cooled down earlier in the starting process.
NASA has set itself an ambitious goal: 50 years after the last moon landing, it wants to send a rocket to the moon again. The task of the 42-day Artemis 1 mission is to test the most powerful launch vehicle to date and the Orion capsule at the top under real conditions.
The follow-up mission Artemis 2 is to bring astronauts into a lunar orbit, with Artemis 3 a moon landing should succeed at the earliest in 2025. The long-term goal is a manned mission to Mars.
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