NASA begins maintenance of Moon rocket before announcing new Artemis 1 launch date

NASA engineers have initiated the inspection and maintenance of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to allow the agency finalise a launch date for uncrewed Artemis 1 in November. The SLS rocket was rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center last month after NASA decided to forego the launch opportunities in October due to Hurricane Ian. Mission teams are now inspecting the health of the $4 billion rocket and the Orion spacecraft before rolling them out to the launch pad again. 

“Exterior inspections will note any foam or cork from the thermal protection system on the rocket or spacecraft that might need to be repaired”, NASA said in an official statement. “Teams will replace the flight batteries for the interim cryogenic propulsion stage and the boosters, as well as the batteries for the flight termination system in the boosters and core stage”. 

During the inspections, the teams will also recharge the ten CubeSats that are equipped with the Orion Stage Adapter and will be released into space for various science experiments during Artemis 1. They will also make sure to recharge the batteries associated with the crew seat accelerometers and space radiation experiments in order to refresh the payload.

“While teams inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) complete check-outs, managers are coordinating with the U.S. Space Force to reserve launch dates on the Eastern Range and working with other parts of the agency to evaluate any potential constraints before NASA sets a target date for the next launch attempt,” NASA further said. 

The aforementioned servicing of the rocket is necessary because it has been configurated with the Orion spacecraft much longer than planned. Artemis 1, which is the first lunar mission of the Artemis Program, is being delayed since August 29 as the rocket has been hit by multiple anomalies including fuel leaks. 

According to the calendar, there are 12 launch opportunities between November 12 and 27, except the dates 20, 21, and 26 and NASA would target launching its Moon mission during the said launch window. If not in November, December would offer 11 launch opportunities between December 9 and 23 barring the dates 10, 14, 18, and 23.