Monday 26 September 2022 04:29 PM NASA rolls back Artemis I rocket as Florida braces for its worst hurricane in ... trends now
NASA is rolling the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion capsule back to the Vehicle Assembly Building tonight, as Florida braces for Hurricane Ian that will be the worst to hit in 100 years- and the move leaves the historic moon mission in limbo.
The roll back means the historic Artemis I mission will launch during the launch window that ends on October 4.
Tuesday's moon mission was canceled over the weekend, but the American space agency was still deciding whether to bring Artemis I back to the assembly site.
SLS is set to make the return journey at 11pm ET when it will travel about one-mile-per-hour back to the building, which will take multiple days to complete.
NASA is rolling the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion capsule back to the Vehicle Assembly Building tonight. Pictured is the rocket currently standing on the launch pad
NASA announced its decision Monday at 10:07am ET, detailing that this also 'allows time for employees to address the needs of their families and protect the integrated rocket and spacecraft system,' reads a post from the agency.
Artemis I is the first of the three phases that aims to put human boots back on the moon - the last time was in 1972.
However, the first phase has yet to get off the ground due to several technical glitches that scrubbed two previous attempts - Tuesday marks the third scrubbed mission.
Tropical Storm Ian is about to undergo explosive intensification into a major hurricane on its way up to Florida from Grand Cayman
Artemis 1, NASA's rocket that aims to bring astronauts back to the moon after a 50-year hiatus, has been postponed again due to the impending Tropical Storm Ian
A line of shoppers are seen outside a retail warehouse as Floridians rush to prepare for the storm, which is predicted to be a strong hurricane
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared an emergency across the entire state and its 67 counties on Saturday afternoon, leading to stores full of panicked shoppers
The rocket's first launch failed at the end of August due to technical glitches, while the second attempt in September was stopped by a fuel leak.
However, when Orion soars into space, cameras will capture every moment of the 42-day trip, including what is said to be an epic picture of the spacecraft with the moon and Earth in the background.
Artemis I is designed to show that the SLS rocket and Orion capsule are ready to carry astronauts for Artemis II, and ultimately the Artemis III mission to return humans to
