On the 53rd anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, NASA announced Wednesday that it is shooting for a late August launch of the new moon’s giant rocket. NASA will attempt the test flight over a month with three mannequins, but without astronauts, as early as August 29. There are also two launch dates in early September before NASA has to shut down for two weeks. NASA’s Jim Free noted that the test flight begins “the Artemis program to return to the moon.” The space agency’s new lunar program is named Artemis after the twin sister of Apollo in Greek mythology. The 30-story Space Launch System rocket and attached Orion capsule are currently in the Kennedy Space Center hangar following repairs resulting from last month’s countdown test. Fuel leaks and other technical problems occurred during NASA’s repeated launch tests on the pad. NASA officials assured reporters Wednesday that the problems have been resolved and that testing is nearly complete. However, they warned that the launch dates could fall, depending on the unsettled weather in Florida and problems that may arise before the rocket is supposed to return to the pad on August 18. “We’re going to be careful,” said Free, head of exploration systems development. At 322 feet (98 meters), the Orion rocket and capsule are taller than the Statue of Liberty. If Orion’s trip to the moon and back goes well, astronauts could board the craft in 2023 for a lunar loop and land for good in 2025. Astronauts last explored the moon in 1972. The first of 12 moonwalkers, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, stepped onto the dusty gray surface on July 20, 1969, while Michael Collins orbited the moon. Aldrin, 92, the sole survivor of the trio, marked the anniversary in a tweet: “Neil, Michael and I were proud to represent America as we took these giant leaps for humanity. It was a moment that united the world and America’s finest hour.” The Associated Press Health and Science Section is supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Division. AP is solely responsible for all content.
