UPDATE: NASA planned to start the rollout on Thursday, but now aims to start the process two days ago, Tuesday night ET. This article has been updated to reflect this change.
NASA is gearing up for its biggest launch of the year: the Artemis 1 mission, which will put an unmanned spacecraft into orbit around the moon and bring astronauts in the future Return it to Earth before the mission to the moon. Before any astronauts can launch, however, NASA needs to test its new rocket (Space Launch System) and new capsule (Orion) to make sure they’re safe and ready to carry people. Artemis I will launch from Launch Site 39B (LC-39B) at the Kennedy Space Center and fly over the Moon to collect scientific data and test new technologies. The launch window for the mission is scheduled to open on Aug. 29, and the agency will broadcast the entire launch event live. But preparations for the launch have already begun this week, when the massive 320-foot-tall Space Launch System rocket will blast off to the launch pad on the evening of Tuesday, Aug. 16.
NASA/Ben Smegelsky
To watch the rocket be transported by special crawler on a four-mile journey to launch For the solemn progress of the station, please open the video player at the top of this page or head to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center YouTube channel, the live broadcast will begin on Tuesday, August 16 at 9:00 pm ET (6:00 pm PT) The progress of the rocket. NASA is also making final preparations for launch, and the rocket is currently located at Kennedy’s Vehicle Assembly Building. This includes testing systems that can terminate a launch in an emergency, known as flight termination system testing. Once complete, the access platform that allows the crew to enter the rocket will be retracted and the rollout can begin. Editor’s suggestion The Orion spacecraft depicted in the new animation is about to Moon Voyage NASA’s Online Tool allows you to track the Artemis I lunar mission in real time
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 astronauts are about to launch
