The US space agency had said that, the first mission in NASA’s program to take humans back to the Moon has been delayed until spring at the earliest. US space agency said, it needed more time to complete safety checks.
The Artemis I launch was scheduled for late 2021. It postponed twice more and will now happen no earlier than April.
Artemis I will be an uncrewed flight test. It will signal the real start of the program. This could eventually see the first woman and the first person of colour to step foot on the Moon.
Artemis I will be the first flight of the massive Space Launch System rocket. It will carry the Orion capsule to the Moon. There it will be put into orbit before returning to Earth.
The testing of the SLS system is now expected to take place at Kennedy Space Centre in Florida in March.
The rocket will be moved to the launch pad for the test. Then it will be fuelled up and the launch sequence initiated.
This test will help the US space agency set an actual launch date.
There is no “specific” issue that sparked the additional delays. Government audit indicated that Artemis I would likely take place in the summer of 2022.
