Braving uncommon sub-freezing temperatures, Kennedy Area Heart employees pressed forward with a dress-rehearsal countdown Sunday, readying NASA’s enormous Area Launch System (SLS) rocket for a essential fueling take a look at Monday to clear the way in which for launch on a flight to ship 4 astronauts on a flight across the moon.
The countdown started Saturday night and can proceed via the beginning of a simulated launch window opening at 9 p.m. EST Monday. The take a look at began two days late due to predicted arctic climate alongside Florida’s Area Coast. The delay, in flip, pushed the launch of the Artemis II mission from Feb. 6 to no sooner than the night time of Feb. 8 — which is Tremendous Bowl Sunday.
NASA 
Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen are in pre-flight medical quarantine on the Johnson Area Heart in Houston. Assuming the fueling take a look at goes nicely, they’re anticipated to fly to the Florida spaceport later this week to organize for takeoff.
Within the meantime, the launch crew deliberate to pump greater than 750,000 gallons of supercold liquid oxygen and hydrogen gas into the Area Launch System rocket’s two phases on Monday to rehearse loading procedures whereas ensuring the booster’s tanks and propellant system plumbing are leak-free.
“This take a look at will run the launch crew … via a full vary of operations, together with loading cryogenic liquid propellant into the SLS rocket’s tanks, conducting a launch countdown, demonstrating the flexibility to recycle the countdown clock, and draining the tanks to apply scrub procedures,” NASA stated in a weblog put up. “These steps make sure the crew is totally ready for launch day.”
Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo /AFP through Getty Photographs 
In the course of the ramp-up to the SLS rocket’s maiden flight in 2022, a number of leaks and different points pressured repeated delays. However launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson stated enhancements and upgrades based mostly on classes discovered gave the crew shot at getting via the fueling operation Monday with none main issues.
The “moist gown” countdown known as for propellants to start flowing into the SLS rocket simply after 11 a.m. Monday. If all goes nicely, the tanks within the 177-foot-tall core stage and the 45-foot-tall Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, or ICPS, shall be totally loaded and in “replenish” mode by round 4:30 p.m.
In a traditional launch countdown, the crew would head for the pad shortly after gas loading to strap in, examine their stress fits and confirm good communications with the launch crew. However nobody shall be on board for Monday’s train. As a substitute, engineers plan to work via a wide range of procedures that may be wanted to deal with surprising issues on launch day.
“This course of simulates real-world situations, together with situations the place a launch may be scrubbed on account of technical or climate points,” NASA stated in its weblog put up. “On the finish of the take a look at, the crew will drain the propellant and evaluate all knowledge earlier than setting an official goal launch date.”
Due to the always altering positions of the Earth and moon relative to one another, together with lighting situations and different elements, NASA solely has 5 launch alternatives in February. The primary two, Feb. 6 and seven, are now not out there, largely due to the fueling take a look at delay.
The final three out there launch days are Feb. 8, 10 and 11. If technical points or the climate maintain the SLS on the bottom previous Feb. 11, the Artemis II mission will slip to a contemporary set of launch alternatives between March 3 and 11.
