NASA High-risk fueling testing will soon be conducted on Artemis II Rocket, a test pilot that must succeed before four astronauts can fly around space moon.
US space Agency inch 11 million pounds Space launch system And a mobile launcher to the launch pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Saturday, January 17. The slow procession of the 322-foot rocket rises above… Orion Spaceship, took 12 hours to age Crawler conveyor To complete.
This four-mile journey could mark the first leg of Artemis II, a 10-day journey around the moon and back that will put the spaceship through its paces. The lunar mission will be NASA’s first with astronauts – Victor Glover, Christina Koch, Reid WisemanAnd Canadian Jeremy Hansen – In 53 years Since Apollo 17.
The so-called “wet dress rehearsal” will be charged. Giant moon rocket With 700,000 gallons of cryogenic liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen fuel, then count down 29 seconds before liftoff. How this test is conducted will shape the flight schedule and determine whether the chances of a February launch will still exist.
“We need to move beyond wet clothes, and we need to know what lessons we learn as a result, and that will ultimately determine our path to launch,” Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell Thompson He said. “With a wet dress without major problems, if everything goes as planned, there are certainly opportunities to be achieved during February.”
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NASA’s massive moon rocket emerges from its massive warehouse at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 17, 2026.
Credit: NASA/Joel Kofsky
When is the wet dress rehearsal?
The 322-foot rocket, taller than the Statue of Liberty, passes past the firing chamber on its way to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 17, 2026.
Image credit: NASA/Aubrey Jimnian
During testing, teams will fill the rocket and practice each key step of fueling it on launch day. The controllers will run through all countdown actions, including the Final Count, and then intentionally stop at T‑29 seconds. NASA is targeting February 2 for the crucial exercise, although that could change depending on preparations.
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“We’ll review the data, and then we’ll prepare for the launch attempt,” Blackwell-Thompson said.
The results will determine whether NASA reaches its closest launch window, which opens on February 6.
NASA’s crawler carrier carries the 11-million-pound rocket assembly and mobile launcher to the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center on Jan. 17, 2026.
Image credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
Artemis II builds on lessons learned from the first unmanned flight in 2022, which needed several attempts to complete refueling. Engineers modified how to load liquid oxygen after noticing temperature problems and modified the devices after discovering a hydrogen leak in the connection between ground systems and the missile. They have also been changed and cryogenically tested The main valve that caused the trouble During the final unmanned countdown.
since Artemis IKennedy Space Center revised procedures and upgraded hardware as part of the Artemis II plan.
The massive moon rocket travels 4 miles to the launch pad for a wet rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 17, 2026.
Credit: NASA/Ben Smigelsky
From left, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, Canadian astronauts Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, pilot Victor Glover, and Artemis II commander Reed Wiseman take questions from reporters as the massive moon rocket rolls behind them to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Jan. 17, 2026.
Credit: NASA/Kim Shifflett
When will Artemis II be released?
After 12 hours of crawling, the rocket arrived at Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, just after 6 p.m. ET on January 17, 2026.
Credit: NASA/Brandon Hancock
Once the exercises are over, engineers will study the performance of the rocket, Orion spacecraft and ground systems. Only if the data looks clean will mission managers move on to setting a specific launch date.
NASA officials rejected any description that the team was suffering from “launch fever” or whatever Preparations were accelerated.
“I have one job, and that is the safe return of Reed, Victor, Christina and Jeremy,” said John Honeycutt, head of the mission management team. “I regard that as a duty and a trust.” “We’ll fly when we’re ready.”