Nasa moon mission "Artemis" under pressure again - now a tropical storm is imminent

Created: 09/26/2022, 11:15 am

By: Martina Lippl

NASA wants to go back to the moon.

The test rocket for the "Artemis" mission is ready (archive photo).

© Joe Burbank/imgo

With the "Artemis" moon mission, NASA wanted to make a historic start.

Now there are massive weather problems.

Cape Canaveral - The US space agency Nasa is not giving up - not yet.

For the start of the moon mission "Artemis" there is currently a time window until October 4th.

But it's going to be tight.

The weather forecast is also miserable.

Tropical Storm "Ian" is heading for the US state of Florida and could develop into a hurricane.

Moon mission “Artemis”: Nasa under time pressure due to tropical storm

The planned launch for Tuesday (September 27) for the unmanned “Mega Moon Rocket” from the Cape Canaveral spaceport has already been cancelled.

Now another important decision has to be made.

Does the moon rocket have to go back to the hangar now?

The moon rocket, the so-called Space Launch System (SLS) is 98 meters high, with the space capsule "Orion" at the top, is still on the launch pad.

A transport, the so-called rollback, to the hangar serves to ensure the safety of employees and equipment, according to NASA.

But the maneuver costs valuable time and puts the US space agency under further pressure.

The decision regarding the storm forecast is expected to be made on Monday.

Nasa moon mission: New date has already been set

However, NASA has taken precautions.

Another possible launch date for the rocket is between October 17th and 31st.

Then the moon rocket could take off from the Cape Canaveral spaceport in Florida.

If the weather cooperates and there are no further technical problems.

Nasa moon mission "Artemis" struggles with problems

Back to the moon, that was NASA's motto.

After 50 years, people are supposed to set foot on the moon again.

They are ambitious plans.

However, several attempts to start had to be aborted.

Because of a leak in the hydrogen tank, Nasa canceled the first original launch of the Artemis moon mission on August 29, 2022.

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The same leak prevented a September 3 launch.

As a result, the Artemis lunar mission was indefinitely postponed.

During another tank test (September 21), NASA encountered another leak and, according to the engineers, was able to evaluate important data in order to better understand tank problems and errors.

The space agency then planned a new launch date (September 27).

However, the weather on Earth is thwarting NASA's moon plans.

Nasa moon mission: This is what the spaceship Orion looks like.

The lower part is the service module from Germany.

© NASA

NASA Artemis Mission: Return to the Moon 

The first flight of the "Artemis" mission has no crew on board.

In 2025, however, people are expected to land on the moon again.

No human has set foot on the moon since the Apollo mission in 1972.

With the "Artemis" mission, NASA now wants to build on the success.

The choice of name underlines the project: in Greek mythology, Artemis is the goddess of the hunt and the moon and the twin sister of Apollo.