December 1, 2024

NASA Artemis I Moon Rocket Ready To Roll Out To Launch Pad

In this view searching for in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, all of the work platforms that surround the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft are fully pulled back. Credit: NASA/Glenn Benson
Engineers and technicians at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida have finished the last testing and checkouts of the Artemis I Moon rocket ahead of rolling out to Launch Pad 39B. NASA is targeting as quickly as 9 p.m. EDT (6 p.m. PDT) on Tuesday, August 16 for rollout ahead of a targeted August 29 launch.
The other day, the crawler-transporter rolled inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) and under the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. Groups are currently working to prepare the incorporated stack for rollout.
A view of Moonikin “Campos” protected in a seat inside the Artemis I Orion crew module atop the Space Launch System rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 3, 2022. Credit: NASA
Over the weekend the group finished screening of the flight termination system, which marked the final major activity prior to liquidating the rocket and withdrawing the last access platforms in the VAB.

The firm will offer a live stream of the rollout beginning at 3 p.m. EDT (12 p.m. PDT) Tuesday, August 16 on the NASA Kennedy YouTube channel.
2 manikins are set up in the guest seats inside the Artemis I Orion crew module atop the Space Launch System rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 8, 2022. As part of the Matroshka AstroRad Radiation Experiment (MARE) examination, the 2 female manikins– Helga and Zohar– are equipped with radiation detectors, while Zohar also uses a radiation protection vest, to determine the radiation risk on its way to the Moon. Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux
Artemis I is the very first incorporated test of NASAs deep space exploration systems: the Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, and the ground systems at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. It is an uncrewed flight test, the very first in a series of significantly intricate objectives to the Moon. Through Artemis, NASA will land the very first woman and the first individual of color on the Moon, leading the way for a long-lasting lunar existence and serving as a stepping stone to send out astronauts to Mars.

Two manikins are installed in the traveler seats inside the Artemis I Orion crew module atop the Space Launch System rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 8, 2022. Artemis I is the first incorporated test of NASAs deep space exploration systems: the Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, and the ground systems at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Through Artemis, NASA will land the first female and the very first individual of color on the Moon, paving the way for a long-term lunar existence and serving as a stepping stone to send astronauts to Mars.