NASA Prepares for New Moon Rocket Launch
2022-08-22
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1The American space agency NASA is making final preparations to launch a new rocket designed to return humans to the moon.
2NASA has described its Space Launch System, or SLS, as the most powerful rocket ever built.
3The 98-meter rocket arrived Wednesday at a launch complex at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
4It took nearly 10 hours for the rocket to make the six-and-a-half kilometer trip to the launch center.
5NASA is calling the first launch of the SLS rocket Artemis 1.
6There will be no crew on the spacecraft during the first mission.
7SLS will carry NASA's Orion spacecraft on a test mission to fly around the moon.
8SLS is the first rocket designed to carry both astronauts and supplies on a single mission.
9It is part of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the moon.
10Artemis has a goal to land American astronauts on the moon no earlier than 2025.
11It would be the first moon landing by astronauts since NASA's Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
12Currently, NASA is planning for an August 29 liftoff.
13Three mannequins will be placed inside the crew capsule at the top of the rocket.
14They will be connected to a series of sensors designed to measure radiation and movements during the mission.
15During the test mission, Orion will aim to travel 450,600 kilometers from Earth, and thousands of kilometers beyond the moon.
16NASA said this will be farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever traveled.
17The mission is expected to last four to six weeks.
18The main purpose of the SLS mission is to test the system for a future flight including astronauts.
19But the rocket will also be carrying a series of payloads to support science experiments.
20Among the payloads will be a CubeSat designed to look for water on the moon's surface.
21CubeSats are small research spacecraft also known as nanosatellites.
22They provide a low-cost way for scientists, governments and private organizations to carry out space experiments.
23NASA calls the CubeSat aboard the SLS Lunar IceCube. It is about the size of a shoe box and weighs 14 kilograms.
24While orbiting the moon, Lunar IceCube will use an instrument called a spectrometer to look for and examine lunar ice.
25A spectrometer is an instrument used to measure atomic and molecular reactions.
26NASA has said the search for ice on the moon is important because water is a necessary resource for future exploration activities.
27Astronauts could use the ice for drinking water and to cool equipment or make rocket fuel for missions deeper into the solar system.
28The space agency said in a recent statement that Lunar IceCube will be seeking data on the absorption and release of water from the regolith: the moon's rocky and dusty surface.
29"With Lunar IceCube investigating this process, NASA can map these changes as they occur on the Moon," the statement said.
30The CubeSat will also study the exosphere.
31The exosphere is the thin, outer area around a planet or satellite object, such as the moon.
32NASA says data collected by Lunar IceCube will give scientists a better understanding of how water and other substances behave on the moon.
33With this information, researchers hope to be able to predict seasonal changes affecting lunar ice that could affect its use as a resource.
34I'm Bryan Lynn.
1The American space agency NASA is making final preparations to launch a new rocket designed to return humans to the moon. 2NASA has described its Space Launch System, or SLS, as the most powerful rocket ever built. The 98-meter rocket arrived Wednesday at a launch complex at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It took nearly 10 hours for the rocket to make the six-and-a-half kilometer trip to the launch center. 3NASA is calling the first launch of the SLS rocket Artemis 1. There will be no crew on the spacecraft during the first mission. SLS will carry NASA's Orion spacecraft on a test mission to fly around the moon. 4SLS is the first rocket designed to carry both astronauts and supplies on a single mission. It is part of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the moon. 5Artemis has a goal to land American astronauts on the moon no earlier than 2025. It would be the first moon landing by astronauts since NASA's Apollo 17 mission in 1972. 6Currently, NASA is planning for an August 29 liftoff. Three mannequins will be placed inside the crew capsule at the top of the rocket. They will be connected to a series of sensors designed to measure radiation and movements during the mission. 7During the test mission, Orion will aim to travel 450,600 kilometers from Earth, and thousands of kilometers beyond the moon. NASA said this will be farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever traveled. The mission is expected to last four to six weeks. 8The main purpose of the SLS mission is to test the system for a future flight including astronauts. But the rocket will also be carrying a series of payloads to support science experiments. 9Among the payloads will be a CubeSat designed to look for water on the moon's surface. CubeSats are small research spacecraft also known as nanosatellites. They provide a low-cost way for scientists, governments and private organizations to carry out space experiments. 10NASA calls the CubeSat aboard the SLS Lunar IceCube. It is about the size of a shoe box and weighs 14 kilograms. 11While orbiting the moon, Lunar IceCube will use an instrument called a spectrometer to look for and examine lunar ice. A spectrometer is an instrument used to measure atomic and molecular reactions. 12NASA has said the search for ice on the moon is important because water is a necessary resource for future exploration activities. Astronauts could use the ice for drinking water and to cool equipment or make rocket fuel for missions deeper into the solar system. 13The space agency said in a recent statement that Lunar IceCube will be seeking data on the absorption and release of water from the regolith: the moon's rocky and dusty surface. "With Lunar IceCube investigating this process, NASA can map these changes as they occur on the Moon," the statement said. 14The CubeSat will also study the exosphere. The exosphere is the thin, outer area around a planet or satellite object, such as the moon. 15NASA says data collected by Lunar IceCube will give scientists a better understanding of how water and other substances behave on the moon. With this information, researchers hope to be able to predict seasonal changes affecting lunar ice that could affect its use as a resource. 16I'm Bryan Lynn. 17Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from NASA, The Associated Press and Reuters. 18______________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20mission - n. a flight by an aircraft or spacecraft to perform a specific task 21mannequin - n. an artificial human form 22payload - n. the load carried by a vehicle 23absorb - v. to take in or soak up something, such as water 24occur - v. to happen 25__________________________________________________________________ 26What do you think about humans exploring the moon? We want to hear from you. We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 27Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.