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posted by hubie on Tuesday October 04 2022, @12:57AM   Printer-friendly

After Ian caused the latest delay for the moon mission, NASA puts a November takeoff on the calendar:

NASA's Artemis I moon mission launch, stalled by Hurricane Ian, has a new target for takeoff. The launch window for step one of NASA's bold plan to return humans to the lunar surface now opens Nov. 12 and closes Nov. 27, the space agency said Friday.

[...] The hurricane made landfall in Florida on Wednesday, bringing with it a catastrophic storm surge, winds and flooding that left dozens of people dead, caused widespread power outages and ripped buildings from their foundations. Hurricane Ian is "likely to rank among the worst in the nation's history," US President Joe Biden said on Friday, adding that it will take "months, years, to rebuild."

Initial inspections Friday to assess potential impacts of the devastating storm to Artemis I flight hardware showed no damage, NASA said. "Facilities are in good shape with only minor water intrusion identified in a few locations," the agency said in a statement.

Next up, teams will complete post-storm recovery operations, which will include further inspections and retests of the flight termination system before a more specific launch date can be set. The new November launch window, NASA said, will also give Kennedy employees time to address what their families and homes need post-storm.


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  • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday October 04 2022, @12:08PM

    by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Tuesday October 04 2022, @12:08PM (#1274863) Journal

    It doesn't take a rocket scientist to guess that a single-use rocket that has experienced technical issues repeatedly up until now could end up failing badly on its frist launch.

    I'm in the "let it blow up on the pad" camp. Given the planned 1.5 year gap between the first and second launches, and that it's supposed to be crewed next time around, a failure could help lead to cancellation of the program. Starship reaching orbit in November would be the cherry on top.

    Things probably won't go the way I want them to. After all, it's persisted for over a decade, and the root cause of this pork feast is not solved.

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