US EditionArtemis II Moonshot Enters Final Hours Before Launch with NASA Engineers Optimistic
NASA says cloud cover and high winds are the main concerns as forecasters weigh strict launch rules for Artemis II.
- On Wednesday, April 1, NASA will launch the Artemis II mission from Kennedy Space Center, marking the first crewed flight around the moon since the Apollo program.
- Meteorologists forecast an "80% chance of favorable weather," though strict rules prohibit launching through rain, lightning, or specific clouds; Launch Weather Officer Mark Berger stated, "There is nothing here screaming 'no go' for any of these attempts."
- Engineers plan to load nearly 760,000 gallons of super-cold fuel into the 322-foot-tall Space Launch System rocket starting Wednesday morning, and NASA managers confirmed the vehicle and team are ready to fly.
- NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G2 geomagnetic storm watch for launch day, but officials confirmed the recent solar flare is not expected to stall the launch.
- "Everybody understands the significance of this mission," said Jeff Spaulding, senior test director for the Artemis II program at Kennedy Space Center, highlighting NASA's historic return to lunar exploration after more than 50 years.
19 Articles
19 Articles
Artemis II launch: How the US Space Force forecasts weather for rocket launches
FPREN | By Andrew Wulfeck The countdown is underway for NASA’s first crewed mission of its Artemis program, with meteorologists giving Wednesday’s launch attempt an 80% chance of favorable weather. According to the latest guidance from United States Space Force, forecasters will be playing close attention to clouds and gusty winds, but the majority of potentially hazardous weather will be well south of the Cape, located along a weakening frontal…
Artemis II launch forecast
Artemis II is set to launch on Wednesday, April 1 with the launch window opening at 5:24 pm CDT. As of Tuesday evening, there's an 80 percent chance of launch with a 20 percent chance of violating weather constraints. The weather constraints that NASA is monitoring are the "cumulus cloud rule" and "ground winds." The [...]
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