The Artemis 1 rocket took off Wednesday morning and is on its way to the moon. It is an important first step in the Artemis mission, which will return humans to the moon for the first time since 1972. This time, the seats in the 98-meter-tall SLS rocket launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida are still occupied by test dummies.
The first launch failed at the end of August due to technical defects, the second attempt was hampered by a fuel leak at the beginning of September. Subsequently, the US space agency NASA hoped to launch the rocket on September 27, but the flight was still postponed due to Tropical Storm Ian, which hit Florida hard.
NASA’s Artemis program consists of three scheduled flights to the moon. The Artemis 1 has three test dummies on board and would send a capsule into orbit around the moon. The second rocket launch, Artemis 2, is scheduled for 2024 and should bring people to the moon for the first time in fifty years. The four astronauts, three Americans and one Canadian, will then fly into orbit around the moon. Finally, in 2025, the Artemis 3 rocket with at least two astronauts on board will land on the moon.
Also read this interview with Nasa director Lori Garver: The story of the rocket that won’t go into space