NASA begins assembling Artemis rocket for 2021 launch



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30th Anniversary of Apollo 11 Moon Landing (9 of 20): Lunar Module Pilot Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. is pictured walking near the Lunar Module during Apollo 11 extravehicular activity . (Photo by Nasa / Getty Images)

To the press room
UPDATE 3:34 p.m. PT – Sunday November 29, 2020

NASA begins preparing the launch system for the “Artemis” lunar mission next year.

On Tuesday, NASA announced the start of assembly of the rocket, which will be used to take the first woman to the moon. The launch is scheduled for 2021.

The first booster engine was completed at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to prepare for the unmanned maiden voyage of the “Artemis” program.

The trip will serve as a test for the technology that is expected to be outside of the manned rocket “Artemis”.

“The Artemis program is therefore our lunar exploration program,” said astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor. “We will arrive at the south pole of the moon by 2024, landing the first woman and the next man.”

This is the first of 10 test engines to be assembled as part of the new space launch system, which NASA hopes can be used for future trips to Mars and other space missions. distant.

In 2021, officials are expected to conduct an unmanned test flight around the moon before the second mission in 2023. All this in preparation for the final mission, “Artemis three”, which will perform the lunar landing in 2024.

Since 1969, the United States has made only six crewed trips to the Moon. The last one took place in 1972.

In 2019, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said the agency would use the next trip to assess his ability to travel sustainably and stay on the moon.

“We’re going to take the lead, and we’re going to take a coalition of nations, to go to the moon, this time to stay,” Bridenstine said. “It’s a significant difference between what we do today and what we did from 1969 to 1972.”

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