NASA moved its moon rocket to the launchpad Friday, aiming for a lunar fly-around mission with four astronauts as early as April 1st from Kennedy Space Center. The Artemis II crew is currently in quarantine in Houston.
The 322-foot rocket began its 4-mile journey atop a massive crawler, a process delayed several hours by high winds. This marks the second time this year the rocket has been moved to the pad.
The mission, the first crewed flyby of the moon in over 50 years, faced previous delays due to hydrogen fuel leaks and clogged helium lines, requiring repairs both at the pad and back in the Vehicle Assembly Building. The program precedes a planned lunar landing in 2028.
Three Americans and one Canadian astronaut are slated for the mission, which will involve orbiting the moon and returning to Earth without landing. The last time astronauts traveled to the moon was during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.