NASA SLS rocket successfully launches the Orion spacecraft to the Moon on the first attempt.

After years, months, hours, and minutes of waiting, NASA's first Space Launch System (SLS) rocket has successfully lifted off from Kennedy Space Center. The SLS debut was renamed "Artemis I" when the Trump administration created the Artemis Program. The Artemis Program survived the election of a new president in 2020 and the SLS rocket is the program's first major mission to get off the ground. The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage was delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in November of last year.

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The first Core Stage, the central liquid rocket booster, was shipped to Mississippi in January 2020 and was delivered to Florida in April 2021. The first fully-assembled SLS rocket rolled out to Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39B (Pad 39B) and attempted its first on-pad wet dress rehearsal. The first SLS launch went perfectly, after seven months, three partially-completed WDRs, and two aborted launch attempts. SLS lit four former Space Shuttle Main Engines just before liftoff to make sure they were performing as expected. The launch computer fully committed and started both of SLS' Shuttle-derived solid rocket boosters. SLS was the second most powerful rocket after the Shuttle, thanks to the combination of its liquid engines and SRBs.

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My teaser tracking shot of the unbelievably loud SLS launch. pic.twitter.com/uaBQSQn4fw

— Coop (@Cooper_Hime) November 16, 2022

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 The Soviet Union's N1 rocket was After liftoff, both SRBs successfully separated from the Core Stage, making the first SLS rocket the most powerful rocket ever successfully launched. After eight and a half minutes after liftoff, the Core Stage shut down its four engines and deployed the ICPS and Orion. After 51 minutes after liftoff, ICPS put its lone engine into a stable Earth orbit. After about an hour and forty minutes after liftoff, ICPS ignites for a lengthy 18-minute trans-lunar injection, sending Orion on a trajectory that will intercept the Moon on November 21st. On December 11th, the capsule will splash down in the ocean after leaving lunar orbit as early as December 1st.

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 NET is expected to follow Artemis III, which will attempt to land astronauts on the Moon for the first time since 1972, with a modified version of the Starship launch vehicle. According to a reliable source with a prophetic track record, Starship and SLS might not be ready to launch Artemis III until 2028. Von Holzhausen recreated the interior of the Model S Plaid using Banb leather, which is made from bamboo. Banb Leather is a plant-based animal-free leather that von Holzhausen describes as "buttery-soft like lambskin, scratch-resistant, stain-resistant, water-resistant, and lightweight."

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