After two scrubbed launch attempts and two hurricanes that pounded the Space Coast, NASA is once again trying to get its giant moon rocket off the ground.
Artemis I, the first mission in NASA’s Artemis program that will return astronauts to the moon, is scheduled to liftoff on Wednesday at 1:04 a.m. ET, with a two-hour launch window.
You can watch the launch here beginning at 12:30 a.m.
The Space Launch System is the space agency’s most powerful rocket ever built. Atop it sits the Orion spacecraft, which will one day ferry astronauts to and from the moon. The last time humans were on the moon was in December 1972.
This is an uncrewed mission, with the only passengers being three mannequins on board that are part of a few experiments, including testing a vest that will protect astronauts from lethal space radiation.
Artemis II, set to launch in 2024, will carry four astronauts — including a Canadian — who will orbit the moon and return to Earth.
Artemis III, set to launch in 2025, will see humans once again on the surface of the moon.
But trying to get the Artemis mission up and going has been quite the challenge for NASA.
Originally, the rocket was supposed to launch on Aug. 29. However,the space agency encountered several issues that day, including a delay in loading the rocket’s propellant due to stormy weather. Then the two types of propellants — liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen — weren’t loading at acceptable rates. Finally, one of the four rocket engines failed to cool down as expected, and eventually crews ran out of time in the launch window and were forced to scrub the launch.
First, it was Hurricane Ian that forced NASA to roll the rocket back to the Vehicle Assembly Building. The hurricane madelandfall from the Gulf of Mexico on Sept. 28 as a Category 4 storm and, though it did not cause extensive damage at the Kennedy Space Center, the space agency wanted to inspect the pad and allow its workers time to take care of themselves, which further delayed the launch.
Then there was Hurricane Nicole, which made landfall on Nov. 10 just south of the Kennedy Space Center as a Category 1 storm. NASA had rolled the rocket back to the launch pad on Nov. 4 for a launch on Nov. 14. Once Nicole had developed, however, it was too late to roll the 32-storey rocket back to the safety of the assembly building, so the rocket remained on the pad during the storm, and the launch date was moved to Nov. 16.
The rocket did experience some issues from being left in the storm.
One was some tearing of some thin caulking that surrounds Orion, which essentially fills in the gaps in the thicker insulation and prevents any air circulation or heating. There was concern that if more of it were to break off during launch, it could damage the rocket, potentially catastrophically.
This image shows a close-up of the area where caulk on a seam between the Orion launch abort system’s ogive and crew module adapter detached during Hurricane Nicole. (NASA)
Another concern was the tail service mast umbilical. This 10-metre tall structure lies near the bottom of the rocket and consists of several lines that feed propellant and electricity to the core stage of the rocket.Engineers were receiving “inconsistent” data, even though they had replaced one of the connectors earlier.
Ground crew can be seen at the base of NASA’s massive Space Launch Systemrocket, inspecting the tail service mast umbilical, left. In a media teleconference on Sunday, Mike Sarafin, mission manager for Artemis, said the area did ‘have a problem’ after Hurricane Nicole struck Florida last week. (Don Hladiuk)
Despite these issues, in a media teleconference on Monday evening, mission managers said they were confident that they could still fly.
“There’s no change in our plan to launch on the 16th,” said Artemis mission manager Mike Sarafin. “In terms of the two issues that we reviewed … I would say we’re comfortable flying as is.”
The reasoning is that, for the mast umbilical, there are redundant systems in place. As for the caulking, they reviewed it and believe that no more would break off, and even if it did, there would be a low chance it would be a catastrophic risk to the rocket.
Sarafin noted that the same caulking was used in flight for the original test flight of the Orion spacecraft, and they did not see any issues of it detaching.
When it comes to the possibility of yet another leak during the propellant load, Jeremy Parsons, exploration ground systems program deputy manager at the Kennedy Space Center, said they aren’t concerned they will encounter the previous issues.
“We are more confident than we’ve ever been in our loading procedures,” he said.
The hours-long tanking will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET Tuesday.
If the rocket launches Wednesday, Orion will have a 26-day mission to test multiple systems, including most importantly, a new heat shield that is designed to protect astronauts from heat as they re-enter the atmosphere at nearly 40,000 km/h.
This graphic shows the mission timeline for the uncrewed Artemis I mission. (NASA)
Overall, the feeling is positive at the space agency that they are ready to overcome any other challenges that may develop along the way. Parsons noted that the entire team has persevered through a lot trying to get Artemis to launch.
Sarafin agreed.
“Our time is coming, and we hope that is on Wednesday,” Sarafin said. “But if Wednesday is not the right day, we will take that next hurdle, that next trial and persevere through that.”
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.
Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.
She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.
Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.
“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.
It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.
Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.
“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.
He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.
Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.
Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.
Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.
The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.
The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.
It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.
Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.
Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.
Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.
Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.
Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.
The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”
VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.
Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”
Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.
“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.
B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.
Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.
Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.
Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.
“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”
Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”
“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.
Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.
“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.
