NASA prepares wet dress rehearsal to fuel Artemis II at Kennedy Space Center

Teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida are preparing the SLS rocket, Orion spacecraft, and ground infrastructure for a wet dress rehearsal ahead of the Artemis II test flight, with a simulated launch possible as early as Saturday, Jan. 31. The wet dress rehearsal is a prelaunch test to fuel the rocket, during which teams will demonstrate loading more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellants, conduct a launch countdown, and practice safely removing propellant without astronauts aboard.

The rehearsal will include several runs to test the launch team’s ability to hold, resume, and recycle to various times in the final 10 minutes of the countdown (the terminal count). It is scheduled to count down to a simulated launch at 9 p.m. EST and could run to approximately 1 a.m.

if needed. The first run will begin about 49 hours before launch, proceed to 1 minute 30 seconds before launch, include a planned three-minute hold, then resume to 33 seconds when the rocket’s automatic launch sequencer takes control; teams will then recycle to T‑10 minutes for a hold and resume down to 30 seconds as part of a second run.

Recent work over the weekend included servicing the SLS boosters and loading hydrazine into booster aft skirts.

Key Topics

Science, Artemis Ii, Kennedy Space Center, Wet Dress Rehearsal, Space Launch System, Orion Spacecraft