{"id":17334,"date":"2022-11-16T18:53:44","date_gmt":"2022-11-16T10:53:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/third-times-the-charm-nasa-launches-sls-mega-rocket-on-artemis-1-moon-trip\/"},"modified":"2022-11-16T18:53:44","modified_gmt":"2022-11-16T10:53:44","slug":"third-times-the-charm-nasa-launches-sls-mega-rocket-on-artemis-1-moon-trip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/third-times-the-charm-nasa-launches-sls-mega-rocket-on-artemis-1-moon-trip\/","title":{"rendered":"Third time\u2019s the charm: NASA launches SLS mega rocket on Artemis 1 moon trip"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4-630x392.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-736588\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4-630x392.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4-1260x783.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4-768x477.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4-1536x955.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/221115-sls4.jpg 2029w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"wp-element-caption\">NASA\u2019s Space Launch System rises from its Kennedy Space Center launch pad. (NASA Photo \/ Joel Kowsky)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>NASA succeeded spectacularly in the third attempt to launch its Space Launch System rocket on an uncrewed round-the-moon mission that\u2019s meant to blaze a trail for future Artemis lunar landings.<\/p>\n<p>Artemis 1\u2019s liftoff from Launch Complex 39B at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida came at 1:47 a.m. ET Nov. 16 (10:47 p.m. PT Nov. 15).<\/p>\n<p>The 322-foot-tall, 5.5 million-pound SLS is the most powerful rocket ever built for NASA, surpassing the power of the Apollo era\u2019s Saturn V rocket. The SLS evoked the legacy of Saturn V as it rose on a bright pillar of flame and disappeared into the night sky.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou guys have worked hard as a team for this moment. This is your moment,\u201d launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson told her teammates in the control room after liftoff. \u201cYou have earned your place in history. You are part of a first. It doesn\u2019t come along very often \u2014 once in a career, maybe. But we are part of something very special: the first launch of Artemis. The first step in returning our country to the moon, and on to Mars.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At one point during the countdown, NASA detected hydrogen leaking from a valve inside the rocket\u2019s mobile launcher, and sent a three-person \u201cred team\u201d to the pad to troubleshoot the issue. The red team tightened down several bolts, remedying that problem. Engineers also had to swap out with a bad Ethernet switch for one of the radar  monitoring the range. Yet another concern involved a loose sensor on the Orion capsule sitting atop the rocket.<\/p>\n<p>The time required to address all those concerns delayed liftoff by 43 minutes, but Blackwell-Thompson didn\u2019t dwell on the delay. \u201cThe harder the climb, the better the view,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Nearly two hours after launch, the SLS\u2019 upper stage executed the key engine burn to send Orion beyond Earth orbit. The capsule is due to make a weeks-long, looping trip that will come as near as 60 miles to the lunar surface but also range 40,000 miles beyond the moon\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n<p>Instead of living, breathing astronauts, the capsule\u2019s seats are filled by three sensor-laden mannequins that will register what kind of ride future crews might experience. There\u2019s also a modified version of Amazon\u2019s Alexa voice assistant on board. Amazon collaborated with Lockheed Martin and Cisco to create the AI agent, which is known as Callisto and could serve as an information resource during future missions to the moon and Mars.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Artemis I launch\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/W0d4wOIXi5o?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Artemis 1 was initially scheduled for liftoff in August, but problems encountered during fueling spoiled the first attempt. Days later, the second attempt was scrubbed because of a pesky hydrogen leak. Plans for the third attempt were further delayed by lingering technical concerns as well as worries about the weather \u2014 including two hurricanes that swept over Florida\u2019s Space Coast.<\/p>\n<p>The SLS was rolled back to safety in its Vehicle Assembly Building for Hurricane Ian in September. But after weighing the risks, NASA opted to leave the rocket on the launch pad last week when Hurricane Nicole passed through.<\/p>\n<p>One of the components on an electrical connector sustained damage, and some of the caulking on a seam in the area around the Orion capsule came loose in the storm. The launch team reported that a sensor in the caulking material appeared to be loose and might come off during launch, but mission managers decided to go ahead anyway. <\/p>\n<p>Artemis 1 marks the start of a lunar exploration campaign that\u2019s been&nbsp;more than a decade and billions of dollars in the making. The current plan calls for a 26-day mission, ending on Dec. 11 with a Pacific Ocean splashdown. One of the most crucial tests will come during Orion\u2019s descent \u2014 when the capsule\u2019s heat shield will be tested to an extent that\u2019s impossible to replicate on Earth.<\/p>\n<p>If this uncrewed mission is successful, that would set the stage for a crewed round-the-moon mission known as Artemis 2 in 2024 or so. NASA plans to have Artemis 3\u2019s astronauts touch down on the lunar surface in the 2025, although that date is almost certain to slip. Whenever it happens, Artemis 3 would mark the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972 that humans set foot on the moon \u2014 and would potentially set the stage for trips to Mars in the 2030s.<\/p>\n<p>NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said the Artemis program \u2014 which is named after Apollo\u2019s sister in Greek mythology \u2014 would build on Apollo\u2019s lunar legacy. \u201cThis time, we\u2019re going back, and we\u2019re going to learn a lot of what we have to, and then we\u2019re going to Mars with humans,\u201d Nelson said.<\/p>\n<p>Nelson said the fact that Artemis 3 aims to put the first woman and the first person of color on the moon is part of the program\u2019s appeal. \u201cIt\u2019s also going to bring about a new generation of engineers and mathematicians and technologists and scientists,\u201d he said. \u201cAll the benefits of that additional activity and education coming out of the Artemis generation \u2014 look what that\u2019s going to do for our country and our economy, as well as for our international partners.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>This report was updated multiple times before and after launch.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NASA\u2019s Space Launch System rises from its Kennedy Space Center launch pad. (NASA Photo \/ Joel Kowsky) NASA succeeded spectacularly in the third attempt to launch its Space Launch System rocket on an uncrewed round-the-moon mission that\u2019s meant to blaze a trail for future Artemis lunar landings. Artemis 1\u2019s liftoff from Launch Complex 39B at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[304,625,190,640,4370,787],"class_list":["post-17334","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-artemis","tag-moon","tag-nasa","tag-orion","tag-sls-rocket","tag-space-launch-system"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17334"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17334"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17334\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}