NASA announced on Tuesday (August 30) that it would attempt to launch its new mega-rocket to the Moon on Saturday, after a first failed attempt on Monday due to a technical problem.
"We have agreed to change our take-off date to Saturday, September 3,"
said Mike Sarafin, in charge at NASA of the Artemis 1 mission, which should mark the start of the mission, at a press conference. of the American return to the moon program.
A meteorological official said he was
"optimistic"
about the weather on Saturday, although the likelihood of unfavorable conditions during the two-hour shooting window, which begins at 2:17 p.m. local time (1817 GMT), is
"high"
.
Read alsoArtemis, NASA's great return to the Moon
The launch of the rocket was canceled on Monday at the last moment due to a cooling problem in one of the four main engines, under the main stage.
These RS-25 engines need to be cooled so they don't get shocked by the ultra-cold fuel when ignited.
But one of them could not reach the desired temperature.
This temperature is reached by letting a tiny part of the cryogenic fuel escape on the engines.
This problem was due to a
"poor connection"
on an element of the craft, which has since been
"fixed"
, said John Honeycutt, in charge of the rocket program.
A leak problem when filling the fuel tanks was also observed on Monday, and even if it could be overcome, NASA teams will work to fix it by Saturday.
The Artemis 1 mission is to launch the unmanned Orion capsule into orbit around the Moon, to verify that the vehicle is safe for future astronauts - including the first woman and the first person of color to walk on the lunar surface.
