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NASA test-fires its SLS megarocket booster for future moon missions

In preparation of the future Artemis missions to the Moon, NASA has completed a full-scale booster test

Sentinel Digital Desk

In preparation of the future Artemis missions to the Moon, NASA has completed a full-scale booster test for the agency's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. NASA and Northrop Grumman, the SLS booster lead contractor, will use data from the test, successfully conducted on Wednesday, to evaluate the motor's performance using potential new materials and processes that can be incorporated into future boosters, the US space agency said. "Landing the first woman and the next man on the Moon is just the beginning of NASA's Artemis Programme," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, said in a statement."The SLS flight support booster firing is a crucial part of sustaining missions to the Moon. NASA's goal is to take what we learn living and working on the Moon and use it to send humans on the first missions to Mars." The SLS boosters are the largest, most powerful boosters ever built for flight, according to NASA. The two boosters on the rocket provide more than 75 per cent of the thrust needed to launch NASA's future deep space missions through Artemis lunar programme. (IANS)