Artemis: Nasa readies giant Moon rocket for maiden flight

bbc ^ | 08/17/2022 | Jonathan Amos

[BenLurkin]

Known as the Space Launch System (SLS), the vehicle was moved to Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of the expected lift-off on 29 August.

The debut outing is a test with no crew aboard, but future missions will send astronauts back to the lunar surface for the first time in over 50 years.

The near 100m-tall (328ft) SLS rode an immense tractor to the pad.

It started moving from its assembly building at Kennedy just before 22:00 on Tuesday, local time, and had completed the 6.7km (4.2 miles) journey by just after sunrise on Wednesday morning.

[BenLurkin]

“Three possible launch opportunities exist at the end of the month, starting with Monday 29 August.

“If technical issues or inclement weather prevent the rocket from getting off Earth on this date, a further attempt can be made on Friday 2 September, and, failing that, on Monday 5 September.”

[WMarshal]

The Artemis Space Launch System (SLS) is a jobs program for government nerds. I expect another inexplicable delay. After all it is government work.

[OHPatriot]

Are these the same nerds who have the Saturn V boosters and can’t figure out how to make them work. The most powerful engines ever and from the ‘60s and today’s nerds are clueless. I heard they were trying to test the engines, but had issues.

[butlerweave]

The government is delaying Starship so they can be first with this Orange Turkey

[SaveFerris]

They managed to lose all the blueprints over the years, as I understand it.

So the Rocketdyne F-1 rocket 🚀 engine is now a mystery.

[telescope115]

From what I understand, they were exploring the possibility of rebuilding the Saturn V , but the original plans are lost.

[SaveFerris]

(maiden flight)

Would maiden Liz Cheney be going?

Abraham Lincoln on the Moon and all that...

😜

[Telepathic Intruder]

It’s the space shuttle program and the ISS that set us back about 30 years in terms of human space exploration. None of it matters if humans can’t get into space.

[butlerweave]

Space Launch System (SLS) is so diverse that every company on the planet build a piece ,LOL

[Maudeen]

ARTEMIS . . .Do we have to dance with the devil in everything this country does?

In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified with Selene, the Moon, and Hecate, another moon goddess, and was thus regarded as one of the most prominent lunar deities in mythology, alongside the aforementioned two

[pas]

Trump stole them and the FBI was trying to get them back. /s

[odawg]

“...they were exploring the possibility of rebuilding the Saturn V , but the original plans are lost.”

Probably, Bill Clinton gave them to the CCP in exchange for campaign cash.

[wally_bert]

Harbor Freight will sell a knock off some day.

It might work once.

[wally_bert]

I prefer Ross Martin’s version.

[Phlyer]

The Artemis Space Launch System (SLS) is a jobs program for government nerds.

Back in the late 80's NASA decided to develop a Crew Recovery Vehicle for emergency return from the ISS. The idea was that they could put more astronauts (and cosmonauts) on the ISS if they could get more of them off in a hurry - without waiting for whenever the next Shuttle launch was scheduled.

Instead of doing like they had done on Apollo and having aerospace companies do the designs, within NASA requirements, NASA decided to do the requirements, design, fabrication, and test itself.

It never went anywhere. (Actually, I saw an incomplete prototype structural shell about half built.) NASA had already - back then - become a bloated bureaucracy that couldn't make a decision in the first place, nor stick to a decision that somehow happened to be made in spite of them.

SLS is another case of the same sort of thing - way too much involvement in the actual nuts and bolts decisions by "nerd" NASA engineers, and not enough "get out of the way" of aerospace companies that actually know how to run a hardware program.

That's not to say that the contractors are always perfect in either design or execution, but somewhere in their ranks are going to be managers that feel a real pressure to make a schedule (since contracts usually have a hefty incentive to do so), as opposed to NASA engineers who are feeding at a government trough without any real limits.

[wally_bert]

Bob Denver and Chick McCann didn’t help either.

https://youtu.be/jYL1a4BDPmo

[Jim Noble]

They managed to lose all the blueprints over the years, as I understand it... but the original plans are lost

I've been spreading that falsehood for years, but I finally got corrected.

The issue is that the Saturn V had many unique parts, and the correct manufacture was known only to men who are no longer with us.

[Jim Noble]

That they went back to SRBs is almost unbelievable.

[Maudeen]

ArteMUS