Commander Victor Glover and his crew are set to become the first humans to travel to the moon since 1972, marking a significant milestone in space exploration. The 98-meter Space Launch System rocket has been positioned on the launch pad for two weeks, awaiting final preparations. NASA aims to conduct fueling tests on Monday, with a launch potentially occurring within a week if the tests proceed smoothly. The rocket’s tank requires filling with over 700,000 gallons of super-cooled fuel.
A severe cold wave recently caused delays of two days in fueling and launch preparations, shifting the earliest possible launch date to February 8. The mission involves American and Canadian astronauts aboard the Orion capsule, which will orbit the moon and return directly to the Pacific Ocean without landing, covering a duration of approximately 10 days. This mission represents NASA’s first return to lunar exploration following the Apollo program, which sent 24 astronauts to the moon between 1968 and 1972, with 12 of them walking on its surface.
