NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft reached the Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday following a 4-mile, 12-hour crawl from the Vehicle Assembly Building.
The rocket is being prepped for the Artemis II mission, which will carry three Americans and one Canadian on a voyage around the moon, taking humans further from Earth than ever before.
NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Reid Wiseman, along with CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen, have been in training for the much-anticipated mission ever since when they were announced as part of the crew in 2023.
The space agency is currently targeting no earlier than February 6 for the launch of the 10-day flight, though it could lift off as late as April depending on how the final preparations proceed.
NASA’s team of engineers and technicians will now set about preparing the Artemis II rocket for the wet dress rehearsal, a key procedure that tests fueling operations and countdown procedures.
“Targeted for no later than February 2, the team will load the rocket with cryogenic, or super-cold, propellants, run through the countdown, and practice safely draining the propellants from the rocket,” NASA said in a release.
It added that additional wet dress rehearsals may be needed to make sure that the rocket is ready for flight.
Depending on how the final preparations proceed, NASA could even return the SLS and Orion to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional work prior to launch.
Artemis II will pave the way for the Artemis III mission, an even bolder endeavor that will return humans to the lunar surface after an absence of more than five decades. That mission is currently set for no earlier than 2027.
The first Artemis mission took place in 2022 and involved the maiden flight of the SLS rocket, which sent an empty Orion spacecraft on a voyage around the moon.
Beyond Artemis III, NASA is planning to build a permanent base on the lunar surface where astronauts will be able to live and work, similar to how they currently operate on the International Space Station. The moon base will also serve as a stepping stone for the first crewed mission to Mars.
Commenting on the Artemis II mission just recently, crew member Reid Wiseman said, “We definitely feel the pressure.”