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Updated May 31st, 2022 at 00:26 IST

NASA to roll out its SLS rocket on June 6 for crucial tests ahead of Artemis 1 mission

NASA said that the Artemis 1 rocket will be rolled out of the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center at midnight on June 6.

Reported by: Harsh Vardhan
NASA
Image: Twitter/@NASAGroundSys | Image:self
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The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket will be brought back to the launchpad for crucial tests ahead of the Artemis 1 mission on June 6, NASA revealed in an update. The agency said that the rocket will be rolled out from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to the launch pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center at midnight [around 9:30 am (IST)], however, tanking of the rocket will take place no earlier than June 19. This would be the fourth time when NASA will attempt these tests which would prove the SLS rocket’s readiness for a mission to the Moon. 

Why is it called "wet dress rehearsals"?

These tests are being carried out to test the SLS rocket, the Orion spacecraft and the Exploration Ground Systems to prepare for the lunar launch during Artemis 1. NASA has named it "wet dress rehearsals" because supercooled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen will be loaded into the SLS rocket's tanks just as they will be on the actual launch day. During the tanking, engineers will measure the effects of super-cold propellants on SLS and the mobile launcher, and the data gathered by the teams of the Launch Control Center will help practise countdown procedures and other launch activities. 

NASA says that the rocket's tanks will be filled with 7,00,000 gallons of cryogenic propellant during the rehearsals. The rehearsals are basically an eight-step procedure that begins with the rocket being rolled out from the VAB. During the tests, the launch team, after powering on the Orion and SLS, will count down to T-33 seconds after a series of pre-planned holds. In the next step, they would recycle the clock to T-10 min to demonstrate procedures for scrubbing the launch for weather or technical issues. Then at T-9.34 seconds to launch, the team will end the countdown to stimulate scrubbing of the launch.

When will Artemis 1 launch?

The 5.75 million-pound, 322-foot-tall integrated SLS rocket is set to crawl out of the VAB although its launch under Artemis 1 is targeted no earlier than August this year. Recently, NASA released the full schedule of available launch windows this year starting from July 26 and extending till December 23. Check out the schedule here

Image: Twitter/@NASAGroundSys

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Published May 31st, 2022 at 00:26 IST

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