'Artemis 1', the 'Goddess of the Moon', Successfully Launched... Currently on Course

Artemis 1 taking off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, around 1:48 AM on the 16th. Photo by NASA YouTube channel.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Artemis 1 at around 1:48 a.m. local time on the 16th from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The launch was originally scheduled for around 1:04 a.m., but was delayed by about 44 minutes due to a leak detected in the mobile launch platform during the liquid hydrogen fueling process.

Two boosters attached on either side of Artemis 1 successfully separated two minutes after launch, and as of 1:55 a.m. that day, all parts including the engines were operating normally.

NASA completed preparations such as fueling Artemis 1's tanks with liquid oxygen and hydrogen starting around 5 p.m. the previous day. Although some issues were identified with Artemis 1 due to the recent hurricane 'Nicole,' inspections and repairs were completed. Previously, NASA faced difficulties as leaks were detected during the final liquid hydrogen fueling process twice, on August 29 and early September, causing launch delays.

This Artemis 1 launch marks the first phase of the 'Artemis Project,' a manned lunar exploration program for the first time in over 50 years. The main goal is to verify the performance and reliability of the super heavy-lift launch vehicle SLS and the manned capsule 'Orion spacecraft' mounted on its upper stage, developed for lunar exploration. In other words, the SLS will carry the Orion spacecraft on its upper stage and place it into lunar orbit. However, instead of humans, a mannequin is onboard the Orion spacecraft, which will orbit the moon and return to Earth after 26 days.

NASA plans to launch Artemis 2 around 2024 with four crew members onboard to repeat the same process and verify safety once again. If successful, Artemis 3 will be sent around 2025 for humanity's second manned lunar landing mission. Notably, two astronauts who will land on the moon will be prioritized as women and people of color, drawing significant attention. Among the Artemis astronaut candidates currently in training is Johnny Kim, who is of Korean descent.

NASA conducted six manned lunar exploration missions from Apollo 11 in 1969 through 1972. The program was then halted due to the end of the Cold War and budget cuts. Recently, with the confirmation of water on the moon and the need to establish bases for resource development and Mars exploration, manned lunar exploration has resumed. NASA believes that water exists in the form of ice underground in permanently shadowed regions near the lunar south pole and plans to mine it for rocket fuel, base construction, and maintenance.

To this end, NASA developed the most powerful launch vehicle in human history, the SLS, at a cost of about $20 billion (28 trillion KRW). It measures a staggering 98 meters in length. Although it is more than 10 meters shorter than the Saturn V (110 meters) used during the Apollo lunar exploration program in the 1960s and 1970s, its power is much stronger, capable of producing over 15% more thrust.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.