The space agency aims for a wet dress rehearsal of Artemis II after addressing equipment issues. This test determines readiness for a potential March launch.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA is targeting Thursday, Feb. 19, for a critical wet dress rehearsal of its Artemis II mission, following successful repairs to ground support equipment over the weekend.
Teams replaced a filter suspected of restricting liquid hydrogen flow during a partial fueling test on Feb. 12. Despite being cut short, the test provided sufficient data for engineers to proceed with planning a full wet dress rehearsal this week. The line has been reconnected with the new filter, and proper environmental conditions are being reestablished.
Comprehensive Launch Simulation
The wet dress rehearsal will put launch teams through their paces with a complete range of operations. This includes loading cryogenic liquid propellant into the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket’s tanks, conducting a launch countdown, demonstrating countdown clock recycling capabilities, and draining the tanks to practice scrub procedures.
Launch controllers are scheduled to take their positions at consoles in the Launch Control Center at 6:40 p.m. EST on Feb. 17, kicking off a nearly 50-hour countdown sequence. The simulated launch window opens at 8:30 p.m. on Feb. 19 and extends for four hours.
While the Artemis II crew will not participate in the rehearsal, a team will travel to the launch pad to practice Orion closeout operations, including closing the spacecraft’s hatches.
Terminal Countdown Practice
The rehearsal features a detailed countdown sequence with particular attention to the critical final minutes before launch. Operators will conduct two runs of the terminal count — the last ten minutes of the countdown.
The sequence will pause at T-minus 1 minute and 30 seconds for up to three minutes, then resume until T-minus 33 seconds before pausing again. Teams will then recycle the clock back to T-minus 10 minutes and execute a second terminal countdown to just inside T-minus 30 seconds before concluding the test. This process mirrors real-world conditions, including scenarios where launches might be scrubbed due to technical or weather constraints.
Launch Date Considerations
NASA will not establish a formal launch date until after a successful rehearsal and thorough data reviews. However, the agency has been evaluating additional launch opportunities in recent weeks and identified an extra window in early March.
Agency managers have determined that March 6 represents the earliest possible launch opportunity. This timeline allows for completion of the second wet dress rehearsal, adequate time for data review, and necessary preparations to transition the launch pad, rocket, and spacecraft to launch operations.
Public Viewing
A 24/7 live stream of the rocket at the pad continues to be available online. During the upcoming wet dress rehearsal, NASA will provide a separate feed with additional camera views on the day of fueling. Updates will also be shared through the agency’s Artemis blog.
FOX54+ will simulcast the wet dress rehearsal when it happens.