NASA is gearing up for the Artemis II mission on February 6, marking the first crewed lunar flight in decades. Four astronauts will embark on a 10-day mission around the moon, testing the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (SLS).
On 6th February, NASA is preparing for its Artemis II mission, which is the first lunar crewed flight under the Artemis programme. Under this mission astronauts will be sent towards the moon for the first time in decades. This first crew mission will include four astronauts (Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen) who will venture around the moon before returning to the Earth.
This 10-day human lunar exploration mission is aimed at testing the Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System with humans onboard, validating critical life support, and re-entry systems in deep space. The mission will serve as a crucial stepping stone for future Artemis missions, including the planned lunar landing and NASA’s long-term exploration goals.
NASA is making final preparations and is targeting to roll out the fully stacked Space Launch System (SLS) rocket together with the Orion crew spacecraft from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center. This launch is expected no earlier than January 17, 2026.
The crawler-transporter-2 will travel four miles in up to 12 hours. However, date and time are subject to change if there are any additional requirements for technical preparations or weather.
“We are moving closer to Artemis II, with rollout just around the corner.” We have important steps remaining on our path to launch, and crew safety will remain our top priority at every turn as we near humanity’s return to the Moon.” said Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
Wet dress rehearsal, tanking
NASA will conduct a wet dress rehearsal, a prelaunch fuelling test for the rocket, by the end of January. This will help the team to check the ability to load more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellants into the rocket. This allows engineers to practise safely removing propellant from the rocket without astronauts present.
This rehearsal will include multiple “runs” to test the team’s ability to hold, resume and recycle several different times in a 10-minute countdown, which is also known as terminal count.
Engineers will keep an eye on propellant loading of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the rocket. Teams will also pay attention to the effectiveness of recently updated procedures.
