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NASA has started to assemble the Artemis space launch system, marking a milestone ahead of future missions to the moon.
“At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, engineers lowered the first of 10 segments into place on November 21 for the two solid rocket boosters that will power the first flight of the agency’s new distant space rocket,” he said. NASA said in a statement. “Artemis I will be an unmanned flight to test the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft as an integrated system before crewed flights to the Moon with the Artemis program.
The space agency said the thruster segments arrived by train in June from the Northrop Grumman manufacturing facility in Utah.
“Stacking operations began on November 19 with engineers transporting a thruster segment from the rotation, processing and surge facility to the 525-foot-high vehicle assembly building,” he said. declared.
NASA TESTS A ROCKET FOR FUTURE ARTEMIS MISSIONS TO THE MOON
The Artemis I mission is scheduled for 2021.
“Stacking the first piece of the SLS rocket on the mobile launcher marks a significant milestone for the Artemis program,” said Andrew Shroble, an integrated operations flow manager at civil engineering firm Jacobs. “It shows that the mission is really taking shape and will be heading to the launch pad soon.”
Rear Segments of the Space Launch System Solid Rocket Boosters for the Artemis I Mission Prepare to Pass from Large Bay 4 inside the NASA Vehicle Assembly (VAB) building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida to be stacked on the mobile launcher inside the large bay 3.
(NASA / Kim Shiflett)
NASA’s Artemis program aims to bring astronauts back to the moon in 2024. However, a recent report from NASA’s Office of the Inspector General described the 2024 schedule as too ambitious.
Earlier this year, NASA tested the booster rocket technology that will be used to propel future Artemis missions to the moon.
NASA ASTRONAUTS BECOME LAST SPACE STATION RESIDENTS IN HISTORIC SPACEX CREW DRAGON MISSION
Last year, NASA revealed details of its vision of the Artemis Moon Lander that will bring astronauts back to the lunar surface.
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The United States is the only country to have placed astronauts on the moon, having last done so in December 1972 during the Apollo 17 mission. Only 12 men, all Americans, set foot on the moon .
Chris Ciaccia and Fox News’ Associated Press contributed to this article.
Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers
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