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The Senate Launch System has achieved liftoff!


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I woke up early to watch this, only to see the launch scrubbed.  But that's ok!  I'd rather the mission be a complete success than cause a RUD.  NASA has spent more than $20 billion on the SLS and Orion programs to get to this point, so if they need to take a few extra days to troubleshoot, I'm fine with that.

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Some further information on the scrubbed launch:

 

Artemis-I-Aug-19-2022-8968-760x380.jpg
ARSTECHNICA.COM

"I am very proud of this launch team."

 

Quote

 

Despite all of the hard work by its engineers and technicians, NASA did not really get close to firing up the massive Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on Monday.

 

The rocket experienced several issues during the countdown early on Monday before running into a technical problem the launch team could not solve: an RS-25 rocket engine that did not properly chill down prior to ignition. Even if the engine problem had been resolved, weather along the Florida coast on Monday morning proved dicier than anticipated.

 

Space is hard, certainly. But Monday's attempt—which NASA had promoted heavily by inviting celebrities to the launch and which included a visit by Vice President Kamala Harris—was perhaps a bit rushed. Why? Because NASA rolled a rocket out to launch without accounting for all of the things that could go wrong.

 

To their credit, the launch controllers successfully worked through a host of issues on Monday prior to the scrub. For example, fueling operations started nearly two hours late due to lightning in proximity to the launch pad. This forced the team to push hard through a compressed timeline ahead of a launch window that opened at 8:33 am ET (12:33 UTC).

 

Once the launch team got into propellant loading, work to fill the large liquid hydrogen tank was stymied by a leak at an 8-inch inlet leading into the tank. This problem was ultimately resolved by stopping the process and then restarting propellant loading—yes, NASA resolved the problem by essentially turning off the SLS and turning it back on again.

 

After this, the countdown proceeded reasonably smoothly for about an hour until a problem with one of the rocket's four main engines. As part of the pre-launch process, cryogenic propellant is "bled" from the fuel tanks into the engines to chill them to about 5° Celsius prior to flight. (In responding to a question about the engine temperature, Artemis I Mission Manager Mike Sarafin actually gave the temperature as "500 Rankine.")

 

In troubleshooting this engine issue, launch controllers could not find a way to address what appears to have been a problem on the core stage side of the vehicle. So the launch attempt was scrubbed.

 

 

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  • Commissar SFLUFAN changed the title to NASA heading back to the moon today, update: further information from Ars Technica about Monday's scrubbed launch
5 hours ago, Jwheel86 said:

Given that the lander is a version of Starship that'll be going back and forth between LEO and the Moon to refuel, I don't see the advantage of SLS anymore. Use Dragon to transfer the crew to the lander while in LEO.

Starship HLS goes unmanned to the Lunar Gateway. Artemis 3 takes the crew to and from the Lunar Gateway. The HLS is only used to land on the moon and return to the Gateway. The HLS I believe never returns to LEO and even if it did return it would only be for refueling unmanned. 

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3 hours ago, Remarkableriots said:

Starship HLS goes unmanned to the Lunar Gateway. Artemis 3 takes the crew to and from the Lunar Gateway. The HLS is only used to land on the moon and return to the Gateway. The HLS I believe never returns to LEO and even if it did return it would only be for refueling unmanned. 

 

I believe the plan is for HLS to return to LEO to be refueled for multiple uses. 

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  • 2 months later...
  • Jason changed the title to The Senate Launch System has achieved liftoff!
Artemis-1-Nov-16-2022-0262-3-760x380.jpg
ARSTECHNICA.COM

The US space agency had not launched an orbital rocket since 2011.

 

Quote

 

The skies were auspicious during the wee hours of Wednesday morning, as the Artemis I mission ticked down its final seconds until liftoff.

 

Ten, nine, eight seconds ...

 

Shining brightly, near the southern horizon, was the constellation Orion, namesake to

NASA's new deep space vehicle.

 

Seven, six, five ...

 

Hanging almost directly overhead the launch tower was a half Moon, the destination of the Artemis I mission.

 

Four, three, two and one ...

 

Suddenly, the night lights came not from the stars pricking the night sky, nor the fat Moon overhead. Rather, the rocket roared to life, its massive solid rocket boosters pushing it upward. As the rocket ascended, it left in its wake a tremendous pillar of exhaust, evocative of Jack's giant beanstalk. Several seconds after liftoff, the sound and fury and acoustic energy of the Space Launch System thundered outward.

 

For a moment, it was deafening. And then, it was gone.

 

But the rocket pushed onward and upward, sending its payload, the Orion spacecraft and its service module, toward the Moon. For the first time in more than half a century, a spacecraft capable of carrying humans is on its way back to the Moon. The next time it flies, four astronauts will be on board.

 

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