Initial checks suggest the damage is 'very minor.'
Sensors at Pad 39B recorded peak wind gusts of 82 mph at an altitude of 60 feet during Nicole's passage, Free said.
Those wind speeds are"within the rocket's capability," he noted."We anticipate clearing the vehicle for those conditions shortly." Indeed, SLS is designed to handle winds up to 85 mph at the 60-foot level"with structural margin," NASA officials said in aArtemis 1 will send Orion on an uncrewed trip to lunar orbit and back. NASA is gearing up to launch the mission as soon as Wednesday . It's unclear if Nicole has changed that calculus; Free's Twitter post didn't mention the schedule or any possible changes to it.
Weather has already kept Artemis 1 on the ground longer than originally planned. The mission was supposed to fly in late September, but NASA rolled SLS and Orion off Pad 39B and back to KSC's cavernous Vehicle Assembly BuildingArtemis 1 rolled back out to the pad on Nov. 4. Nicole's approach caused NASA to push the planned launch back by two days,.
"With the unexpected change to the forecast, returning to the Vehicle Assembly Building was deemed to be too risky in high winds, and the team decided the launch pad was the safest place for the rocket to weather the storm," Free said.
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