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NASA aims for a Saturday launch of the new Artemis moon rocket

NASA Moon Rocket on the launch pad
Joel Kowsky/AP
/
NASA
The NASA moon rocket stands ready at sunrise on Pad 39B before the Artemis 1 mission to orbit the moon at the Kennedy Space Center, Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, in Cape Canaveral, Fla.

Monday's scheduled launched was scrubbed due to engine problems.

NASA will try again Saturday to launch its new moon rocket on a test flight.

The two-hour launch window is set to open at 2:17 p.m., and if successful, it will be the first capsule to fly to the moon since NASA's Apollo program 50 years ago.

The first attempt on Monday was thwarted after a cascade of last-minute problems, including unexplained trouble related to an engine.

Managers said Tuesday that they are changing fueling procedures to deal with the issue.

The 322-foot rocket remains on the pad at Florida's Kennedy Space Center, with an empty crew capsule on top.

The Space Launch System rocket — the most powerful ever built by NASA — will attempt to send the capsule around the moon and back.

No one will be aboard, just three test dummies.

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