T-1 day! NASA's mega moon rocket set for Monday morning launch

NASA is set to launch its massive moon rocket from Kennedy Space Center at 8:33 a.m. Monday, the beginning of a two-hour launch window. The mission, dubbed Artemis I, will send an unmanned capsule on a 42-day trip around the moon and back to Earth.

The Space Launch System rocket is the most powerful booster ever launched from American soil, even more powerful than the Saturn V rocket that first sent men to the moon during the Apollo era.

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Funnel cloud: Days before launch, funnel cloud forms near NASA's Artemis I rocket at Kennedy Space Center

Here is what you need to know about the launch:

Return to  the moon

Artemis, named after Apollo's twin sister in Greek mythology, is NASA's program to return humans to the moon for the first time since 1972.

Artemis I is the first step.

Monday's launch will be the first flight of NASA's giant SLS rocket, which is years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget. It will cost taxpayers $4.1 billion every time it launches, according to NASA's internal watchdog, the Office of Inspector General.

Atop the rocket will be an Orion space capsule carrying special mannequins — Moonkin Campos, Helga and Zohar —  to collect data on the stresses the mission will place on future astronauts. About eight hours after liftoff the spacecraft will leave Earth's orbit and begin the 250,000 mile trip to the moon. If all goes well, it will orbit the moon for more than a month before returning to Earth and splashing down off the coast of San Diego.

NASA officials have emphasized that the mission is a test flight that will stress the system beyond what it was designed for.

"I want to put this in perspective," NASA Associate Administrator Bob Cabana said. "This is a test flight and not without risk. We've analyzed the risk as best we can and we have mitigated as best we can. We are stressing Orion beyond what it was originally designed for in preparation for sending it to the moon with a crew."

If the test flight is successful, Orion will be tasked with running a similar mission known as Artemis II no earlier than 2024. That one will include astronauts. Then, Artemis III is slated to put two astronauts – including the first woman – back on the lunar surface sometime after 2025.

Backup launch attempts

If for some reason, the launch doesn't go off as planned Monday, teams have two backup opportunities: Sept. 2 at 12:48 p.m. (two-hour window) and Sept. 5 at 5:12 p.m. EDT (90-minute window). If more time is needed, several opportunities are available through the end of the year but will depend on the nature of the scrub and what work needs to be done.

Massive crowds expected

Tourism and space-related officials predict anywhere from 100,000 to 500,000 spectators will descend on Brevard to watch the historic moon-rocket launch, Brevard County spokesman Don Walker said.

"It's fun to see how excited people get around big launches," said Tom Hermansen, a hotel owner in the Cocoa Beach/Cape Canaveral tourism corridor and chairman of the Brevard County Tourist Development Council.

Couple the Artemis traffic crush with Monday's typical morning rush hour across north-central Brevard. Plus, Port Canaveral officials say about 40,000 people will board and disembark five large cruise ships on Monday.

"It's going to be a zoo," Hermansen said.

Rush hour madness

If you live or work in North Central Brevard, you might want to rethink your Monday morning commute plans.

With 100,000 or more people coming to Brevard for the launch many of them will be jamming the mainland roads along the Indian River, State Road A1A beachside and the causeways looking to get a good launch view.

"We anticipate that you're going to start seeing an unusual number of cars on the road starting at 2 o'clock," Walker said of the anticipated early morning traffic.

“There's going to be gridlock in some areas. There's going to be full parking lots. There's going to be a lot of people out on the beach, especially from the central part to the northern part of the county," he said.

"So just be prepared for delays — and leave early. The earlier you can leave, the better," he said.

Brevard Public Schools will remain open but are warning students to prepare for long waits for the bus in the morning.

Where to watch

As with any liftoff from the Space Coast, Monday's launch should be visible throughout Brevard as well as from parts of Volusia, Indian River and Orange counties depending on cloud cover.

The best views, though, will be from areas closer to KSC.

The views should be great from any Brevard beach, though Playalinda Beach to the north of the space center will be closed for the launch.

Jetty Park at Port Canaveral will open its gates at 5 a.m. and will remain open until the parking lot reaches capacity. Parking at the Cove at Port Canaveral is only for Cove businesses, some of which plan to open early for the launch.

Port officials warn that parking will be extremely limited and traffic will be heavy as five cruise ships will be in port Monday with as many as 40,000 people either leaving or embarking on the ships.

Other popular viewing spots are the Max Brewer Bridge, Space View Park, Sand Point Park and Kennedy Point Park in Titusville. In Cocoa Beach, Lori Wilson, Alan Shepard and Sidney Fisher parks will be open for the launch, but their parking lots are expected to fill up quickly.

Traditionally thousands of people have just parked along the sides of U.S. 1 in Titusville or along the causeways on State Roads 520 and 528. Be forewarned, though, some people camp out early to get the best viewing spots.

If you want to avoid the crowds, you can watch live coverage of the countdown and launch, including an ongoing live chat with the FLORIDA TODAY space team at floridatoday.com beginning at 5 a.m.

Launch and then lunch?

You don't necessarily have to skip breakfast in order to watch the morning launch. Several restaurants in Titusville, Cocoa Beach and Port Canaveral plan to open early to accommodate launch crowds. And if you want to wait out the post-launch traffic you can stay for lunch.

A word of caution: Call ahead to today to see the restaurant you are interested in is taking reservations and when they will open for customers.

It'll be loud

The SLS will be the most powerful rocket ever launched from U.S. soil, so it will create a lot of noise and rumble when it launches.

"Put this down first: it's going to be loud," John Blevins, NASA's chief SLS engineer, told FLORIDA TODAY. "Nobody's going to be in danger, but it's going to be as loud as a Saturn V rocket."

But how loud and rumbly it will be for spectators depends on a variety of factors such as humidity, winds, clouds, the distance from the pad, and what buildings, trees and other objects are between the viewer and the launch.

Because of the variety of factors involved, it's hard to say what decibel level spectators can expect. But those viewing from popular sites at or near KSC will likely experience sounds north of 100 decibels – equivalent to a jackhammer.

Depending on cloud cover, folks as far away as Tampa might be able to see the launch.

What next

If SLS launches on time next week, Orion should return to Earth Oct. 10. If either of the backup dates are needed, splashdown would push to Oct. 11 and 17, respectively.

FLORIDA TODAY staffers Emre Kelly, Jamie Groh, Rick Neale and John McCarthy contributed to this report

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: NASA's Artemis 1 rocket set for Monday morning launch