NASA moon rocket on track for launch despite lightning hits
Source: Associated Press
NASA moon rocket on track for launch despite lightning hits
By MARCIA DUNN
August 28, 2022
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s new moon rocket remained on track to blast off on a crucial test flight Monday, despite a series of lightning strikes at the launch pad.
The 322-foot (98-meter) Space Launch System rocket is the most powerful ever built by NASA. It’s poised to send an empty crew capsule into lunar orbit, a half-century after NASA’s Apollo program, which landed 12 astronauts on the moon.
Astronauts could return to the moon in a few years, if this six-week test flight goes well. NASA officials caution, however, that the risks are high and the flight could be cut short.
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Officials said Sunday that neither the rocket nor capsule suffered any damage during Saturday’s thunderstorm; ground equipment also was unaffected. Five strikes were confirmed, hitting the 600-foot (183-meter) lightning-protection towers surrounding the rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The strikes weren’t strong enough to warrant major retesting.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/moon-rocket-launch-artemis-test-flight-nasa-97db5ac49a1bbb0dde20cd5a03ed6a91
The NASA moon rocket stands ready less than 24 hours before it is scheduled to launch on Pad 39B for the Artemis 1 mission to orbit the moon at the Kennedy Space Center, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
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