the status by queen victoria. good afternoon. nasa is to launch a new era of moon exploration. later today the most powerful rocket it s ever built will blast off from the kennedy space center in florida. the artemis test flight will orbit the moon and it s hoped will help pave the way for a crewed mission to the lunar surface in three years. our science editor, rebecca morelle reports. it s almost time. standing on launch pad 39b, the same one used by the apollo missions, the most powerful rocket nasa has ever built is ready for liftoff. the rocket is simply enormous. and it s only when you re standing here that you really get a sense of its size. and this is the last chance we ll see it up close. the launch pad is closing and fuelling is about to begin. because in just a few hours time, this will be blasting off. the first step in our return to the moon for 50 years. we talk about moonshots as things that humans can do when we put our differences aside and we focus on the
years and years, decades worth of space exploration. that is why it is so exciting. space exploration. that is why it is so exciting- so exciting. talk us through the si . hts so exciting. talk us through the sights and so exciting. talk us through the sights and sound so exciting. talk us through the sights and sound and so exciting. talk us through the sights and sound and feels - so exciting. talk us through the sights and sound and feels of l so exciting. talk us through the sights and sound and feels of a | sights and sound and feels of a rocket launch. one person said it is notjust hearing it, it washes over you physically. notjust hearing it, it washes over you physically- you physically. absolutely. it is more that you physically. absolutely. it is more that visceral you physically. absolutely. it is more that visceral feeling, - you physically. absolutely. it is l more that visceral feeling, rather than the audio, because it is just an enormous amount of thrust. t