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Live Countdown Coverage Begins for First Robotic Artemis Moon Flight – Artemis [1]

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Date: 2024-01-08

United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan rocket stands ready for a 2:18 a.m. EST liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Launch Complex 41. Watch now on NASA+, NASA TV or the agency’s website.

Onboard Vulcan is Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander, which is carrying NASA scientific instruments and other commercial payloads to the Moon as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis program. The payloads onboard the lander aim to help the agency develop capabilities needed to explore the Moon under Artemis and in advance of human missions on the lunar surface.

Weather officials with Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s 45th Weather Squadron are predicting a 85% chance of favorable weather conditions for launch, with the primary weather concerns revolving around thick cloud coverage.

Here’s a look at the ascent milestones following liftoff. All times are approximate:

LAUNCH, SEPARATION, AND POWER ON

Hr/Min/Sec Event

 Vulcan liftoff

00:01:16 Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket)

00:01:50 Solid rocket booster jettison

00:04:59 Booster Engine Cutoff (BECO)

00:05:05 Booster/Centaur separation

00:05:15 Centaur main engine start (MES-1)

00:05:23 Payload fairing jettison

00:15:45 1st stage main engine cutoff (MECO-1)

00:43:35 2nd stage engine starts (MES-2)

00:47:37 2nd stage engine cutoff (MECO-2)

00:50:26 Peregrine separates from Vulcan

00:58:27 Peregrine powers on

01:18:23 Centaur third main engine start (MES-3)

01:18:43 Centaur third main engine cutoff (MECO-3)

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[1] Url: https://blogs.nasa.gov/artemis/2024/01/08/live-countdown-coverage-begins-for-first-robotic-artemis-moon-flight/

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