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As Hurricane Dorian heads to Florida, NASA is working to secure the key launch infrastructure at the Kennedy Space Center.
In a video tweeted on Thursday, the space agency said its status was HURCON VI – Hurricane Condition 4. This means that in 72 hours, or about three days, we expect winds of up to 50 knots. For those who are not aboard a boat, it's about 58 miles an hour, "said a manager in the video. "Our current process is to protect our assets and infrastructure from potential damage, including the mobile launcher, which will be located inside the vehicle assembly building to be guarded.
"If we get the HURCON I status, that means Dorian is here and we're ready for an impact," he added.
The mobile launcher is the key to the future of the American space. It will launch the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and NASA's Orion spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center launch pad 39B for future Artemis Moon missions.
NASA REVEALS ITS VISION FOR ARTEMIS MOON LANDER, WHICH WILL BRING US ASTRONAUTS TO THE SURFACE LUNAR
The Artemis program aims to resurrect American astronauts on the Moon by 2024 and to establish a sustainable human presence on Earth's natural satellite. Artemis will also make history by landing the first woman on the moon.
Thunderstorms flank the Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly building earlier this month.
(Joe Burbank / Orlando Sentinel / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
In 2017, NASA said the Kennedy Space Center had suffered "various damage" as a result of Hurricane Irma.
A year earlier, NASA had reported limited damage to the Kennedy Space Center caused by Hurricane Matthew.
Four days before the planned arrival of the system, forecasts indicate that Dorian could touch virtually anywhere in Florida, meteorologists said. On Thursday, the National Hurricane Center had virtually engulfed all of eastern Florida in a cone of uncertainty, meaning the entire region was in danger.
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The official hurricane season in Florida extends from June 1 to November 30 and usually peaks in mid-August.
Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers
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