The rocket is expected to propel the brand-new Orion spacecraft to the moon this spring.

NASA’s new launch vehicle – the Space Launch System – is ready for its last major test, NASA announced yesterday. This week, the rocket – carrying the also brand new Orion space capsule – will move to the launch pad for a so-called wet dress rehearsal to undergo. It is the last major test before the real work starts: an unmanned test flight around the moon.

Vehicle Assembly Building

At present, the massive launch vehicle — the most powerful rocket NASA has ever built — is still in the VAB (Vehicle Assembly Building) on the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket was first assembled there last year, after which spacecraft Orion could also be placed on top of the launcher in October. Together, the launcher and Orion form an almost 100 meters high colossus.

Move

And that colossus will therefore have to be moved in its entirety this week. It uses the so-called Crawler Transporter-2† This is a kind of wheeled platform that will soon slide under the rocket to make it Space Launch System and then move Orion to Launch Complex 39B.

In recent months, the Vehicle Assembly Building has been working hard on the integration of the launch vehicle and space capsule. To make that a bit easier, there are no fewer than twenty platforms that can be placed against the rocket; technicians can do their work from those platforms. Before the huge rocket – with Orion on it – can be driven out of the building, all those platforms have to be removed. They have been working on that for the past few weeks. On the left you see that two have been removed. On the right, another 16 have been retracted, leaving the missile surrounded by only two platforms. Images: NASA.

Wet dress rehearsal

Once at launch complex 39B, a so-called wet dress rehearsal take place. This is the last major test for SLS and Orion, prior to the very first test flight. During such a wet dress rehearsal the fuel tanks of the launcher are filled, after which all actions that must take place prior to a real launch – up to the countdown – are completed. Launched during such a wet dress rehearsal not yet. As it stands, the Space Launch System and the Orion mounted on it – if the wet dress rehearsal going according to plan – going on a real test flight sometime in May. During that mission – called Artemis I – Orion will remain unmanned and orbit the moon.

Artemis II & III

If that test flight is also successful, NASA will prepare for Artemis II. During this mission, Orion – manned by about four astronauts – will circle the moon again. Then comes the long-awaited Artemis III mission. During this mission, astronauts will fly to the moon in an Orion capsule, transfer to a lunar lander near the moon, and then set foot on the moon’s south pole. It is the first manned mission to the lunar surface since 1972. And for the first time during this mission, a female astronaut and non-white astronaut would have to set foot on the moon.

Delay

Initially, the Artemis III mission was planned for 2024. But it is now clear that that is not feasible; according to recent reports, it could be 2026 before American astronauts return to the moon. This is partly because the development of suitable spacesuits has suffered some delay. In addition, work on the lunar lander came to a standstill for some time because Blue Origin – which wanted to build the lunar lander – did not agree that the order went to SpaceX and therefore sued NASA.

Powerful missile

SLS and Orion can be seen as the successors of the American space shuttle that was last used in 2011. However, while the Space Shuttle was developed to transport astronauts and supplies to and from the fairly nearby International Space Station, SLS and Orion were designed with much greater ambitions in mind. With SLS, NASA has a very powerful rocket that can take supplies and astronauts much deeper into space. And so the moon comes within range.

Prelude to more

The manned Artemis III mission is of course an absolute highlight. But at the same time, the mission is still just the prelude to more. Ultimately, NASA — in conjunction with other governmental space agencies and private space companies — wants to create a permanently inhabited lunar base. Work is also underway on a space station in orbit around the moon – the so-called Lunar Gateway. The space station can serve as a sort of way station on the journey from Earth to the moon. For example, astronauts can transfer from Orion to a lunar lander here.

And at a later stage, the Lunar Gateway can also be used to send astronauts much deeper into space, for example to Mars. NASA has never made it a secret to eventually aspire to a manned mission to Mars. The knowledge and skills gained during the Artemis missions and the construction and maintenance of a self-sufficient lunar colony will be very useful, because Mars travelers – much more powerful than the moon settlers – will be left to their own devices.