NASA managers have ruled out a third attempt to launch the Artemis 1 moon rocket Tuesday.
Faced with stormy weather ahead of , which is expected to become a hurricane, NASA managers on Saturday ruled out a third attempt to launch the Artemis 1 moon rocket Tuesday but held open the option of making a run at blastoff on October 2, the current backup date.
That would require leaving the $4.1 billion 330-foot-tall Space Launch System rocket exposed to the elements atop pad 39B, assuming assurance from forecasters winds would not exceed 74 knots, the certified safety limit.
NASA Artemis 1 management team deferred making a decision on whether to haul the moon rocket back to the protection of the Vehicle Assembly Building in hopes of a more favorable forecast that would allow it to ride out the weather at the launch pad.
A decision is expected Sunday. If a rollback is ordered, the 4.2-mile-trip from pad 39B to the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building would begin late Sunday or early Monday.
That would allow the agency «to protect its employees by completing a safe roll in time for them to address the needs of their families while also protecting for the option to press ahead with another launch opportunity in the current window if weather predictions improve,» NASA said in a blog post.
