On Tuesday (16/8/2022), NASA finished preparing the massive rocket Space Launch System (SLS) for its first voyage to the moon. The original Artemis is being honored with this mission’s name.
It took up to 11 hours on Tuesday night at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, to install the 98-meter-tall rocket on the launch pad.
The rocket has not yet carried a person, but on August 29 it is scheduled to launch with a passenger capsule.
The rocket launch was a critical part of NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return men to the Moon before sending the first manned expedition to Mars.
Boeing, a world leader in aerospace, created the SLS rocket. The astronauts’ Orion capsule sits at the very tip of the rocket. The American firm Lockheed Martin, which also produces satellites, airplanes, and telecommunications equipment, is responsible for this capsule’s construction.
Once the rocket has reached orbit, the capsule will be able to break free from it. For this assignment, he will be responsible for sending humans to the lunar surface.
The Orion capsule will be used on the August 29 test flight, codenamed Artemis 1, but no crew or astronauts will be aboard. When the capsule reaches orbit, it will separate from the rocket and circle the moon before making a return trip to Earth and splashing down in the ocean.
