Caribou native sets sights on the moon

CARIBOU, Maine (WABI) - NASA is set to launch its Artemis rocket Saturday after scrubbing a launch earlier this week.

The agency says they’ve changed fueling procedures to fix problems with engine chilling.

Artemis could eventually take astronauts back to the moon.

We spoke with Caribou native Jessica Meir, one of the astronauts on the Artemis team, about Saturdays launch.

”It is a very exciting time. We’re here, lots of international, European and Canadian astronauts are here as well, sharing in this excitement, our NASA Administrator - we even had the Vice President of the United States here on Monday for that first attempt. So, people are paying attention, and for good reason because this is really a big moment for all of us,” said Meir.

The launch window opens Saturday afternoon and hundreds of thousands of people are expected to gather near the Kennedy space center to witness this historic return to space.

You can join the Versant Power Astronomy Center for the launch.

They’re holding a free watch party starting at 1:30 p.m. at the planetarium in Orono.

For more information, visit https://astro.umaine.edu/

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