So much is riding on the massive Artemis 1 mission ... it's the first launch of the massive, most powerful rocket ever ... it's an unmanned flight that will circle the moon and forge a path for astronauts to revisit the astronomical body in 2024 or 2025.

The flight was postponed due to an offshore thunderstorm, but then a fuel leak and other problems dogged mission control at the Kennedy Space Center.

There have been problems with the rollup to the launch all weekend ... 5 lightning bolts struck towers near the rocket, although the rocket was never hit or affected.

The endgame is to build and send up a space station near the moon, where astronauts can live and regularly visit the satellite planet. Eventually, the space station will be a stopping off point for missions to Mars.

The first set of astronauts to visit space will include the first woman ever to step foot on the moon.

Monday's mission had 2 mannequins in the Orion capsule -- Helga and Zohar -- which contained fake female organs ... designed to test the effects of space radiation on women.