The traditional NASA "worm" logo has been painted atop NASA's new Space Launch System rocket boosters ahead of a vital engine test.
The space agency plans to roll out the rocket for the first time at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Kennedy Space Center to conduct integrated testing on it and the Orion spacecraft.
Experts will use the rocket for NASA's Artemis I mission, the first uncrewed SLS flight around the Moon.
NASA Adds Vintage Worm Logo on SLS Mega Rocket
In preparation for the Artemis I mission to the Moon, the space agency recently revealed that it has completed painting its trademark worm logo on its SLS solid rocket boosters.
According to a CNET report, the Orion capsule would also carry NASA's worm logo into space.
Painting of the NASA worm logo is complete on the Space Launch System (SLS) solid rocket boosters for the Artemis I mission. While painters added parts of the iconic logo before the segments were stacked, they had to wait until the boosters were fully assembled to finish the job. The tracks of cable lining each of the dual sets of the five segments have been installed, enabling teams to finish the last bit of painting ahead of the Moon rocket rolling to the pad on March 17 for the wet dress rehearsal test.
NASA said the artists who painted the distinctive emblem on the SLS' rocket boosters did so when engineers stacked the booster's parts on the mobile launcher in preparation for the Artemis I launch.
According to Space Flight Now, the paint job on the SLS' rocket boosters began in 2020, when NASA resumed development on the SLS after the COVID-19 epidemic caused halts and delays.
However, experts didn't finish the paint job until March 15 to let workers properly assemble the boosters.
According to NASA, engineers fully integrated the rocket boosters due to the insertion of wire lining tracks in each of the rocket's twin sets of five segments, which allowed painters to complete NASA's worm emblem.
In another report, the space agency said that NASA's Orion capsule will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry and maintain crew members in space while also offering emergency abort capabilities and safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.
The Artemis I mission, the first of three Artemis missions that would prepare the first woman and first person of color to step foot on the Moon, will utilize both Orion and the SLS.
SLS Rocket Mock Countdown
If all goes according to plan, Florida Today said NASA will fuel the 322-foot rocket at pad 39B as engineers conduct a practice countdown. It will next spend around a month on the pad for preparation, testing, and post-testing, before returning to the VAB for final processing.
Tom Whitmeyer, deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development at NASA, said per Click Orlando: "There's no one specific thing. We just have a lot of things that we need to close out. It's a big vehicle. It's a lot of instrumentation that needs to be finished and prepared for the final closeout activities."
The Artemis program is NASA's long-awaited mission to return Americans to the Moon and possibly Mars.
If the first mission is successful, NASA will launch a crewed test trip to orbit the Moon. Artemis III's objective will be to land on the Moon if that mission is successful.
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