NASA begins countdown for Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal: What we know so far

The countdown for the rehearsal for NASA's much-awaited Moon mission has begun. The US space agency will soon be conducting the "Wet Dress Rehearsal" for its Artemis II programme.

NASA plans to fuel the Artemis II Moon rocket on Monday, February 2, at Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The agency said the countdown clock began at 8:13 pm EST, 40 minutes before the opening of a simulated launch window at 9 pm on Monday, February 2.

"The countdown for the Artemis II wet dress rehearsal is underway at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida," NASA said in a statement released on Saturday, January 31.

The test is expected to last until approximately 1 AM on February 3.

The rocket's tank will be filled with more than 700,000 gallons of super-cold fuel, stopping a half-minute short of when the engines would light.

This test will run the launch team, as well as supporting teams in the Mission Control Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and other supporting NASA centers.

The full range of operations include loading cryogenic liquid propellant into the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket’s tanks, conducting a launch countdown, demonstrating the ability to recycle the countdown clock, and draining the tanks to practice scrub procedures.

At the end of the test, the team will drain the propellant and review all data before setting an official target launch date.

This process simulates real-world conditions, including scenarios where a launch might be scrubbed due to technical or weather issues.

These steps ensure the team is fully prepared for launch day.

Already in quarantine to avoid germs, Commander Reid Wiseman and his crew will be the first people to launch to the moon since 1972.

They will monitor the dress rehearsal from their Houston base before flying to Kennedy Space Center once the rocket is cleared for flight.

The 322-foot (98-meter) Space Launch System rocket moved out to the pad two weeks ago.

If Monday's fueling test goes well, NASA could try to launch within a week.

A bitter cold spell delayed the fueling demo, and the launch, by two days. February 8 is now the earliest the rocket could blast off.

Riding in the Orion capsule on top of the rocket, the U.S. and Canadian astronauts will hurtle around the moon and then straight back without stopping until splashdown in the Pacific. The mission will last nearly 10 days.

NASA sent 24 astronauts to the moon during the Apollo program, from 1968 to 1972. Twelve of them walked on the surface.