NASA is looming over the next Artemis I launch attempt due to a tropical storm

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The Artemis I rocket will not launch for the third time on Tuesday as planned due to fears of Tropical Storm Ian making its way toward Cuba and Florida.

After meeting on Saturday morning, NASA’s Artemis team decided to forgo the launch opportunity on Sept. 27 and are now preparing to pull back on their massive lunar rocket.

“On Tuesday, Tropical Storm Ian is expected to move north through the eastern Gulf of Mexico as a hurricane, off the southwest coast of Florida. A cold front will also erupt across northern Florida toward the south,” CNN meteorologist Haley Brink said.

“The combination of these weather factors will allow for increased chances of rain over most of the Florida peninsula on Tuesday, including Cape Canaveral. Rain and thunderstorms are expected to be numerous and widespread throughout the region. Tropical storm winds can also arrive Coming from Ian early Tuesday night through central Florida.”

Meanwhile, the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft continue to sit on the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Team members continue to monitor the weather as they decide when to return the missile assembly to the Kennedy Vehicle Assembly Building. NASA will receive information from the US Space Force, the National Hurricane Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to inform their decision.

Engineers postponed their final decision on when to fall back while they collect additional data and analytics. If the team decides to push the missile back into the building, that process will begin late Sunday night or early Monday.

The preparations could shorten the normally three-day process, which it takes to get the spacecraft back inside. And once the car is moving in the slow crawler carriage, it can take 10 hours or more.

The missile stack can remain in the platform and withstand winds of up to 85 miles per hour (74.1 knots). If the stack needs to be retracted back into the building, it can handle sustained winds of less than 46 mph (40 knots).

On Friday, Team Artemis said October 2 was a backup launch date. But it is unlikely that a new release date will be set until the decision to back down is made.

“The agency is taking a tiered approach in its decision-making process to allow the agency to protect its employees by completing a safe and timely record for them to meet the needs of their families while protecting the option of moving forward with others the opportunity to launch in the current window if weather forecasts improve,” according to the NASA release.

Concerns about the composition of the Caribbean weather system have led to weather conditions being only 20% favorable for the launch, according to Forecasts issued by the US Space Force Friday.

The restrictions in place require that the Artemis I mission not fly through any precipitation. The launch restrictions are designed to avoid natural and missile lightning strikes on missiles in flight, which can cause damage to the missile and endanger public safety, according to the Space Force.

Rocket lightning forms when a large rocket flies through an electric field strong enough in the atmosphere, so a cloud that doesn’t produce normal lightning can cause rocket lightning, according to the Space Force.