Cape Canaveral, Florida, July 21 (BUS): On the 53rd anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, NASA announced that it will launch a new giant rocket onto the lunar surface in late August.
NASA will attempt a lunar test flight that will take more than a month with three models, but no astronauts, as early as August 29. There are also two launch dates in early September, before NASA has a two-week hiatus, AP reports.
NASA’s Jim Free noted that the test flight begins “our Artemis program to return to the moon.” The space agency’s Artemis new moon program is named after Apollo’s twin sister in Greek mythology.
The 30-story Space Launch System rocket and its attached Orion capsule are currently in the hangar at the Kennedy Space Center, following repairs caused by a countdown test last month. Fuel leaks and other technical problems surfaced during NASA’s frequent launch exercises on the platform.
NASA officials confirmed to reporters Wednesday that the problems had been resolved and that testing was nearing completion. But they cautioned that launch dates could be delayed, depending on the fluctuating Florida weather and issues that may arise before the rocket returns to the platform on August 18.
“We’re going to be careful,” said Frey, head of exploration systems development.
The rocket and Orion capsule are 322 feet (98 meters) taller than the Statue of Liberty.
If Orion’s journey to the moon and back goes well, astronauts can board in 2023 for a lunar orbit and land already in 2025.
Astronauts last explored the moon in 1972. The first of them, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, climbed onto the dusty gray surface on July 20, 1969, while Michael Collins was orbiting the moon.
92-year-old Aldrin, the only survivor of the three, noted the anniversary in a tweet: “Neil, Michael and I are proud to represent America as we make these giant leaps for mankind. It was a moment that united the world and the most amazing hour in America.”