Close to 3 years back, NASA officially announced its Artemis II project, which has been termed ‘historic’ by many. Mainly because it’s the very first time since 1972, over 50 years ago, that the human race is going back to the Moon. Though their journey hasn’t been the smoothest, there have been a few events since then, due to which the project has been delayed a bit. But the latest reports released by NASA suggest that they are planning on sending the rocket to the launchpad and have even given the approximate launch timeline. Let’s take a deep dive into when the rocket could be launched into outer space.
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When would Artemis II launch?
In the official blog released by NASA, they suggested that the Artemis II and Orion spacecraft, slated to send four astronauts around the Moon, have begun rolling to Launch Pad 39B on Friday, March 20. NASA stated that the travel time to the pad is expected to take up to 12 hours. Since the rocket is extremely heavy, transporting it becomes a time-consuming job.
Furthermore, the officials hope for the rocket to launch between April 1 and April 6. Speaking about the launch timeline, during one of the recent news conferences, a NASA official said, “While I am comfortable and the agency is comfortable with targeting April 1st as our first opportunity. Just keep in mind we still have work to go. There are still things that need to be done within the VAB and out at the pad. And as always, we’ll always be guided by what the hardware is telling us, and we will launch when we’re ready.”
Why was the launch delayed?
Speaking of which, many have been wondering why the launch of the rocket was delayed initially. While the rocket was actually sent out to the launch pad before, it was later recalled. That’s because the engineers found a problem related to helium, and they had to bring back the rocket to fix it and make sure everything was perfect.
Not only that, but a few days after that, the rollout operations at the agency’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida were delayed earlier in the day due to high winds in the area. But now that it’s normal, they are moving it back out.
Why is the Artemis II launch important?
For those wondering why the launch is important in the first place, you have to understand that this is the first mission to the Moon in over 50 years. As per experts, this is a pivotal step in establishing a long-term human presence on the lunar surface and preparing for future missions. That’s because not only will it test the SLS rocket, but it will also test the Orion capsule with humans on board.
