NASA says March 6 earliest date for Artemis 2 lunar launch
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NASA's Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft are seen in the distance at Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
PHOTO: AFP
WASHINGTON - NASA on Feb 20 set March 6 as the earliest possible launch date for Artemis 2, the first crewed flyby mission to the Moon in more than 50 years.
Dr Lori Glaze, a senior official with the US space agency, cautioned that pad work, a flight readiness review and a dress rehearsal analysis needed to be completed in order to meet that date.
“We need to successfully navigate all of those but assuming that happens, it puts us in a very good position to target March 6,” Dr Glaze said.
NASA rehearsed the launch of its massive SLS rocket on Feb 19.
Technical problems in early February cut short an earlier so-called wet dress rehearsal
But on Feb 19, the US space agency reported that things proceeded as planned, concluding at “T-29 seconds” in the countdown.
The wet dress rehearsal is conducted under real conditions – with full rocket tanks and technical checks – at Cape Canaveral in Florida, with engineers practicing the maneuvers needed to carry out an actual launch.
The setback in February, which included a liquid hydrogen leak, dashed hopes of a lift-off this month.
Three American astronauts and one Canadian make up the Artemis 2 crew. AFP
