The NASA mission carrying a Canadian to the moon won’t blast off as planned
What’s a little wait when you’re well-versed in space-time?
Last week, NASA was saying “any day now” about the launch of Artemis II. The 10-day mission aboard the Orion spacecraft will mark the first time astronauts—including Jeremy Hansen of London, Ontario—have visited the moon in more than fifty years.
The launch was expected as early as February 8. Now, like so many travellers during the recent snow-pocalypse, the four-person crew has found their travel plans delayed. “NASA will now target March as the earliest possible launch opportunity,” the space org said in a post on X. The postponement comes after a “wet dress rehearsal” was called off at T-5:15 minutes, when a sensor detected leaking hydrogen.
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Just what is a wet dress rehearsal, you ask? The term just means a run-through of all pre-launch procedures with the launch vehicles fully fuelled. The step comes after a successful dry rehearsal (where the tanks are empty) but before the astronauts board the vessel—Hansen and his American pals remain quarantined in Houston.
This kind of delay doesn’t tend to inspire confidence, but it probably should. The whole point of these extra steps is to ensure that any kinks get worked out before blast-off. And just to be clear: if this had been the IRL launch, sensors would have detected the leak (as they did in the simulation) and the mission would have been aborted.
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What guarantees are there that the launch will happen in March? None. Weather can be unpredictable, and that’s just one of endless variables. But, when it does happen, it will be a big deal: a sign of renewed zeal and funding for space exploration and the potential to mark the farthest distance any human has ever travelled from Earth.
For Canada, it’s the first time one of our astronauts will travel to lunar orbit—in your ’stache, Chris Hadfield! Plus, with earthly Canada–US relations at long-time low, it will be heartening to see our two nations playing nice in space.
In the meantime, let’s hope Jeremy Hansen has a Netflix subscription.
Courtney Shea is a freelance journalist in Toronto. She started her career as an intern at Toronto Life and continues to contribute frequently to the publication, including her 2022 National Magazine Award–winning feature, “The Death Cheaters,” her regular Q&As and her recent investigation into whether Taylor Swift hung out at a Toronto dive bar (she did not). Courtney was a producer and writer on the 2022 documentary The Talented Mr. Rosenberg, based on her 2014 Toronto Life magazine feature “The Yorkville Swindler.”
