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Updated July 21st, 2022 at 14:59 IST

NASA targets launch of first uncrewed Artemis mission to the Moon for August 29

NASA's Artemis I is being targeted for launch on August 29 with possible launch windows on September 2 and September 6. Read to know more.

Reported by: Harsh Vardhan
NASA
Image: NASA | Image:self
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NASA’s first mission of the Artemis Program could take off for the Moon as early as August 29 this year. In a press conference held on July 20, NASA Associate Administrator for Explorations Systems Department, Jim Free stated that the agency has planned three placeholder dates for Artemis 1– August 29, September 2 and September 5 (September 6 as per IST). 

Artemis 1 would see NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in its debut launch. The rocket would be mounted with the uncrewed Orion spacecraft which would carry three mannequins to measure the effects of spaceflight and use the data to prepare astronauts. 

Artemis I launch and timing

During the media teleconference, Jim Free revealed that the launch window on August 29 opens at 6:30 pm IST. The planned duration of the mission is 42 days and the Orion is scheduled to return on October 10. On September 2, the launch window opens at 10:18 pm and the 39-day-long mission would end on October 11. Finally, the launch window on September 6 opens at 2:42 am and the mission would conclude on October 17 after 42 days. 

There's a fair bit of work to do: Jim Free

In a Twitter post late July 20, Jim Free stated that there is still a lot of work left before the SLS lifts off for the Moon. "The team is focused as we continue to learn through first-time operations to prepare for the first flight test of SLS and Orion", Free wrote in his tweet. 

"Orion has flown before, but this is a different ball game. This flight test sets us up to carry crew to the Moon and back", He wrote in a follow-up tweet. "We’re confident in our systems and every ounce of work we've put in. We're excited to continue to learn, and we can't wait to fly". Earlier in June, NASA completed the crucial pre-launch tests of the 322-foot-tall SLS rocket to confirm its readiness for a lunar mission. 

The Artemis I would mark the beginning of the Artemis Program, which almost five decades after the Apollo Program would try to put astronauts on the Moon. Artemis I would be followed by Artemis II where astronauts would launch to the Moon, orbit it without landing and head back to Earth. It is during the third Artemis mission when humans would step foot on the lunar surface again but it is expected to launch no earlier than 2025.

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Published July 21st, 2022 at 14:59 IST

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