Humans have been trying to get back to the moon for a long time. NASA’s Artemis 1 mission, launching tomorrow, Wednesday 16 November, will hopefully help us get there.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration‘s (NASA) mission to the moon has already been pushed back four times this year. Twice due to technical problems including a fuel leak in September this year. A tropical storm in the same month caused the project to be delayed further. The most recent delay was due to a hurricane approaching earlier in November. We’re all hoping the thing finally launches this week.
Read More: South Africa to host one of NASA’s Artemis-tracking ground stations in the Karoo
Artemis 1 is scheduled to launch on 16 November, and a livestream from NASA already has a few hundreds waiting to see the historical journey.
WATCH: Artemis I Launch to the Moon (Official NASA Broadcast) – Nov. 16, 2022
NASA says the countdown, which began on Monday is progressing smoothly and “elements of the rocket and spacecraft are powered up” for Wednesday’s launch.
“Engineers examined detailed analysis of caulk on a seam between an ogive on Orion’s launch abort system and the crew module adapter and potential risks if it were to detach during launch,” says NASA.
#Artemis I is launching to the Moon!
Nov. 15:
3:30pm ET (2030 UTC): Tanking coverage
10:30pm ET (0330 UTC): Launch broadcastNov. 16:
8:30am ET (1330 UTC): Trajectory burn
10am ET (1500 UTC): Earth views from @NASA_OrionStay tuned: https://t.co/sQWu67xTPq pic.twitter.com/srAEMfTQ63
— NASA (@NASA) November 14, 2022
“Artemis 1 will be the first in a series of increasingly complex missions to build a long-term human presence at the Moon for decades to come,” says NASA.
The mission will also see the first woman and first person of colour walk on the surface of the Moon.
Read More: NASA selects 13 possible lunar landing areas for its manned Artemis III mission
Here are Artemis 1 Mission Facts from NASA.
- Launch date: Nov. 16, 2022
- Mission duration: 25 days, 11 hours, 36 minutes
- Total distance travelled: 1.3 million miles
- Re-entry speed: 24,500 mph (Mach 32)
- Splashdown: Dec. 11, 2022
