NASA aims to launch its new mammoth Moon rocket early Wednesday from Florida, little than a week after the enormous equipment survived a storm.

“Our time is coming. And we hope that that is on Wednesday,” said Mike Sarafin, the mission’s leader, at NASA headquarters.

The Artemis 1 mission, a test trip without people, is the first stage in the US space agency’s ambition to establish a permanent presence on the moon and learn from it in preparation for a future expedition to Mars.

The new space mission, named after Apollo’s sister in Greek mythology, arrives 50 years after humans first set foot on lunar land.

The maiden flight of NASA’s most powerful rocket, the Space Launch System, is scheduled for Wednesday at 1:04 a.m. Local time (2:04 p.m. in Manila), with a 2-hour launch window.

The countdown has already begun at the famous Kennedy Space Center, where the orange and white monster will take to the skies for the first time.

The launch is set less than a week after Hurricane Nicole, which the rocket experienced outside on its launch pad. For the time being, authorities are assessing the danger of storm damage to RTV, a thin strip of caulk-like material that encircles the Orion space craft atop the rocket and makes it more aerodynamic.

Teams are investigating if the RTV may become loose during launch and cause complications. If necessary, two backup dates are available on November 19 and 25.