Do we have a Go, No-Go for Launch? Artemis I - Moon Rocket

Day 44-46 – Nov 13-15

Weather – Cooling down, cloudy

VEHICAL ASSEMBLY BUILDING 

I’m writing this after very little sleep last night – I think maybe 4hrs. We made the decision yesterday to head down the coast to see the Artemis 1 Launch live from across the water near Kennedy Space Centre in Titusville. I had found out that the 4^th attempt at the launch was happening in the early hours of Wednesday 16^th, so I had started scoping out some options to view the launch. Artemis is NASA’s moon rocket that it is planned will take astronauts back to the moon. It is currently the most powerful rocket in operation – although SpaceX’s spaceship will overtake that soon. I have seen two rocket launches from New Smyrna Beach – one night time and one day time launch. The Night time one was quite impressive, however the day time one wasn’t much of a show. It’s about 50kms – 60kms from our Condo to the Launch pads (Depending on which pad is used) – so I was looking at options for better viewing of the Artemis Launch. I could head down the road a bit to a Bethune Beach – which would get me 10kms closer, and considering it was a 1am opening for the launch window, this is would be a safe option. However, on this occasion I wanted to get even closer to the action. We decided to Drive down to Titusville, which is the main town opposite the Kennedy Space Centre on Cape Canaveral and just have a look around. It’s about an hour’s drive down US1 (Dixie Fwy), and you drive through some nice little country towns. We got there about brunch time, so we stopped for some food at a local diner. Again – diners are the way to go if you want cheap, honest food, and lots of it. Not the place to go if you want heathy food. I ordered the fired pork chops and eggs, with hashbrowns and bacon. A side of sausage gravy rounded out the plate(s). Katie went for French toast and Lucy went for pancakes. Man was there a lot of food – and the whole bill was very cheap. 

We rolled out of the dinner and continued down the main road – A1A, looking for possible view spots. We drove past a likely looking park – the William J Manzo Memorial Park – located almost directly opposite launch pad 39b. You get an unobstructed view across Indian river, to the launch pad and the rocket – there’s also toilets and a playground. 

Unlike a few other spots we had driven past, there were not people camped out in RV’s or caravans, so this seemed like the leader in the club house. We continued to drive around and head down into the Kennedy Space centre to visit the information booth and gift shop. 

Last time I was here would have been at least 8 years ago – pre Lucy. A lot seems to have changed, including a huge Blue Origin compound just before you drive in – over the last 10 years, a lot of the progress has been through private enterprises like SpaceX owned by Elon Musk, and Blue Origin, owned by Jeff Bezos. Seems like space might just be the new railroads? We didn’t go in for a tour, just into the gift shop to buy some space ice-cream and a NASA t-shirt for Lucy. Katie had to work again from 2pm so we headed back home up I-95, which took less than an hour. For most of the day I monitored the live stream for Artemis to determine whether our mission would be a go or a no-go. We even roped in Chi to come with us, however by 9pm there were a series of problems that threatened the launch. Firstly there was a leak that required a red team to be sent to torque some bolts. Then there was an ethernet switch problem that threatened the radar. We decided to make the trip anyway, and monitored the live streams in case we needed to go for a mission abort. Katie had done some research about watching launches and we were forewarned about traffic. However, we were pleasantly surprised, as we really didn’t have any issues until we were into the town itself. Our preselected viewing area’s parking area was totally full, however we were able to snag a park right at the end of the row just off the road on the grass strip – there were about 30 cars parked there, so we felt it unlikely we’d get into trouble. Walking down to the water, there were a bunch of people who had set up cameras and camp chairs, however the view was still unobstructed and we could clearly see the Artemis I all lit up on the pad. For the next couple of hours we sat in the car and dozed while monitoring the various NASA live streams for up dates. It was touch and go, and the countdown was paused at T-10m for about 30mins. Until we got to the mission control go, no-go poll. It was a go, and the countdown began again. Adrenaline pumping we ran down to the water line with about 100 other people, Lucy was excitedly munching on the space ice-cream I had handed out to mark the occasion – Chi was not so sure about the ice cream… There was a palpable buzz in the air as everyone excitedly monitored the various NASA updates and listened to the countdown. And then as we got through the various thresholds, some one yelled out it was going to go. Then, 10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 

Boom (Although no noise) Intense light, almost blinding, was it a success or an explosion – well it’s both, as really it’s just a controlled explosion. Then when it became apparent the rocket was moving, cheers, and excited yells. We watched on in awe, the bright light of the rocket increasing in speed, and then about 50seconds in to the launch the rumble came, a loud deep rumble. Truly an amazing experience. On a high we returned to the car and Katie managed to ride the adrenaline all the way home. Until we got in side and then collapsed on to the bed. A bucket list experience that’s for sure!

We have been doing other things over the last few days – hanging out with Rusty, Chi and Wiley, outlet mall shopping, going out to eat etc… We’ve got another week here in New Smyrna Beach and then it’s Thanks Giving in Deland. Hopefully I’ll have a few more updates before then.

Katie will post the video of the Launch as her clip was the best.