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[b]Kennedy Space Center Hurricane Update[/b] Kennedy Space Center (KSC) entered Hurcon IV this morning (50 knot winds expected within 72 hours) and our Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) team is working our preparations in line with our hurricane plans. Our preparations are all on schedule at this time. We are readying shutters, gassing up government vehicles, and notifying employees to begin making preparations at home for a hurricane. KSC is scheduled to close at 6 p.m. on Saturday (Aug. 31) with the current forecast track. That could change if the storm slows. A Ride Out Team between 100-120 people will stay behind at the Launch Control Center (LCC) where our emergency operations center is housed to monitor the storms effects and conduct an initial safety inspection after the storm passes. This building is certified to handle a Category 5 hurricane. After careful evaluation of the latest storm track and projected intensity, the Exploration Ground Systems program made the decision to roll the mobile launcher (Artemis ground support equipment) back from Pad 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). First motion is expected early Friday morning. We will continue to monitor the weather throughout the preparations and roll operations and should there be a significant change, our team will be poised to adjust. In its final phases of development, the mobile launcher stands nearly 400 feet tall and is needed to assemble, process and launch NASA's powerful Space Launch Rocket and Orion spacecraft on missions to the Moon and Mars. The VAB can withstand winds around 125 miles per hour. We have data that shows with the past two storms (Matthew and Irma), it saw 100-110mph+ gusts and had minor, if any, damage.
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