The Artemis Rocket is only Slightly Damaged by the Hurricane

While the Artemis I rocket sustained minor damage while on the launch pad during Hurricane Nicole, NASA said Friday that some of that damage has already been repaired – or will be repaired – and should not affect next week’s launch at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center.

According to preliminary visual inspections, NASA’s new mega moon rocket suffered no major damage after Hurricane Nicole hit Florida on Thursday. However, employees must conduct additional checks on site as soon as possible to confirm the initial assessment, according to Jim Free, associate administrator at NASA.

Wind sensors detected gusts of up to 82 miles (132 kilometers) per hour along the rocket’s body, which Free said is “within the rocket’s capability.”

NASA teams using cameras on the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center discovered “very minor damage such as loose caulk and tears in weather coverings,” according to Free. Nicole made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on Florida’s Atlantic Coast on night.

Wind sensors detected gusts of up to 82 miles (132 kilometers) per hour along the rocket’s body, which Free said is “within the rocket’s capability.”

The unmanned Artemis 1 mission, which is now scheduled to launch on November 16, will be the first flight of a highly anticipated US program to return to the moon. If all goes well, NASA hopes to use an Artemis rocket to send astronauts to the lunar surface as early as 2025. This would be the first time humans have walked on the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.

During the call, however, Free admitted that if NASA could have rolled the entire rocket back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) before Hurricane Nicole arrived – a process that would have taken hours – they would have done so, but they did not have enough time.

Several tests, including tracking wind speeds, were carried out during Hurricane Nicole, he said, and none exceeded their limits or certifications.