A storm in the Caribbean has roiled NASA''s historic uncrewed mission to the Moon. Two launch attempts earlier this week, but a new liftoff of the Artemis 1 mission scheduled for Tuesday is in jeopardy.
The storm, which has yet to be named, is currently located south of the Dominican Republic.
The impact of the earthquake is expected to last for the next few days, but it may move north to Florida, the home of the Kennedy Space Center, from which the rocket will start.
"Our strategy A is to stay on course and to get the launch off on September 27,," NASA''s secretaries told reporters on Friday. "We also realized we also need to be really attentive and considering a plan B."
The massive Space Launch System would be taken back to the VAB Vehicle Assembly Building.
"If we were to go down to Plan B, we need a few days to pivot from our current tanking test or launch configuration to execute rollback and return to the VAB," Bolger said, adding that a decision should be made by early afternoon on Saturday.
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The orange and white SLS rocket can withstand wind gusts of up to 137 kilometers per hour on the launch pad. The current launch window, which runs until October 4, will be missed.
The next launch period for October 17 to 31 will have a one-off basis per day, except from October 24-26 and 28.
After years of delays and cost delays, an artemis 1 mission will come as a huge relief to the US space agency. Yet another setback might be a blow to NASA, as two previous launch attempts were scrapped when the rocket encountered technical difficulties, including a fuel leak.
The launch date depends on NASA receiving a special exemption to avoid having to retest batteries on an emergency flight system that is used to destroy the rocket if it reaches a designated range.
On Tuesday, the launch window will begin at 11:37 local time and will last 70 minutes.
If the rocket goes off that day, it will last 39 days before it will travel in the Pacific Ocean on November 5.
In preparation for future Moon-bound journeys, the Artemis 1 space mission hopes to test the SLS and the unmanned Orion capsule that sits atop.
astronauts are waiting for men fitted with sensors to record acceleration, vibration, and radiation levels.
The next mission, Artemis 2, will take astronauts into orbit around the Moon without landing on its surface.
At the mostearliest, Artemis 3 crew will land on the Moon in 2025.