( Update : NASA has delayed the get-go of the test to 11.05am EDT ( 4.05pm BST ) due to " data processor issues " . )
Rocket launches are pretty nerveless , right ? Sure . But what ’s also cool is screen out a full rocket booster in the middle of a desert . And that ’s exactly what NASA is going to bedoing today .
At10.05am EDT ( 3.05pm BST)11.05am EDT ( 4.05pm BST ) today , NASA will begin the test of a self-coloured rocket booster ( SRB ) for its Space Launch System ( SLS ) projectile , the gargantuan launch fomite that is specify to one day send mankind to Mars . This is the second test of the booster station ( the first was in March 2015 , and it waspretty outstanding ) , but this time it will be extend at a much lower temperature .
The test is taking spot at Orbital ATK ’s trial website in Promontory , Utah . The booster , which will be lying on its side , will be ignited , sending a huge rocket plume ( and resultant junk and sand with it ) out to the side . Last time around , the booster was run at a temperature of 32 ° C ( 90 ° F ) , the highest the propellant can be . This clock time , it ’ll be at 4 ° C ( 40 ° F ) , the cold extreme of the takeoff booster ’s operating temperature .
As mentioned , the ultimate goal of the SLS is to be used to channel human and loading to Mars . It will be the most potent rocket in cognitive operation when it makes its first flight of stairs in 2018 , more sinewy even than SpaceX ’s Falcon Heavy , although some are questioning the want for the SLS what with SpaceX announcing they want to begin missions to Mars asearly as 2018 .
At the moment , though , development of the SLS is continuing , with this being the last fourth dimension you ’ll see the takeoff rocket ignited before the first existent flight of the arugula . That mission in two years , phone Exploration Mission-1 ( EM-1 ) , will launch an remote-controlled Orion capsule to the Moon and back .
To get all the action from today , NASA will be streaming the trial run live on NASA TV , which you could watch below . The booster will fire for two moment , and base on the mental test last time around , it ’s go to be somewhat impressive . check that you tune up in .
