Zitat Ground teams at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida are working toward a simulated liftoff this evening at 8:30 p.m. EST (0130 GMT on Feb. 20), with a window that extends as late as 12:30 a.m. EST (0530 GMT) on Friday (Feb. 20). Between then and now, NASA will have to successfully load SLS with about 730,000 gallons (2.73 million liters) of LH2 and liquid oxygen (LOX). Such work is designed to demonstrate the rocket's readiness for an actual liftoff with a crew of astronauts on a mission around the moon, which, if everything goes smoothly, could launch as soon as March 6.
A "go/no-go" poll to begin tanking is expected today at around 9:50 a.m. EST (1450 GMT), with the core stage's LH2 "slow fill" beginning about an hour later. Fueling operations, including vehicle stage cool-downs, are scheduled to last from 9:50 a.m. EST (1450 GMT) until 3:30 p.m. EST (2030 GMT), when a planned countdown hold will be implemented as the LH2 and LOX lines enter a replenishing phase.
Zitat 2:14 PM The fueling test countdown is in full swing for today's wet dress rehearsal for NASA's Artemis 2 moon rocket. Read our preview of today's critical test here from our own Josh Dinner:
NASA hopes to avoid more hydrogen leaks during 2nd Artemis 2 rocket fueling test today: Watch live
As of 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT) today, ground control teams worked to configure the Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket with gaseous nitrogen needed to protect against fire hazards at the pad. "Technicians are replacing the ambient air with gaseous nitrogen, which is an inert gas that does not support combustion," NASA wrote in an update. "By replacing air – which contains highly-combustible oxygen – with nitrogen, engineers can remove the oxidizer needed to sustain fire and dramatically reduce flammability risks in a launch environment filled with high-energy systems and propellants." Today's fueling test will attempt to fill the 322-foot SLS Artemis 2 rocket with more than 700,000 pounds of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen it will need to launch 4 astronauts around the moon in early March. This is the second such fueling test.
A similar test on Feb. 2-3 revealed hydrogen leaks and other issues that prevented NASA from reaching a planned "simulated launch" time. Today's test is targeting a simulated launch time of 8:30 p.m. EST (0130 FEb. 20 GMT).
5:20 PM Fueling underway for Artemis 2 rocket, comms glitch
NASA began fueling the Artemis 2 moon rocket with its liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuel at about 10:30 am. EST (1530 GMT) today, but has hit a technical glitch that is affecting the wet dress rehearsal. By 10:43 a.m. EST (1543 GMT), the SLS team moved from a slow fueling process to a "fast-fill" approach for both the liquid oxygen and the liquid hydrogen fuel on the core stage of the Artemis 2 rocket. But by 11:11 a.m. EST (1611 GMT) launch controllers in the firing room at the Kennedy Space Center encountered a ground communications issue, forcing them to move to a backup system. That shift has prompted NASA's SLS team to continue the liquid oxygen fast fill procedure, but pause moving into liquid hydrogen while troubleshooting is underway.
5:48 PM Artemis 2 team troubleshoots glitch during fueling
The Artemis 2 stack on the pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Center during its second wet dress rehearsal on Feb. 19, 2026. A communications glitch has arisen during the fueling of NASA's Artemis 2 moon rocket. Mission team members at Kennedy Space Center "have moved to backup communication methods to maintain safe audio command and control," agency officials wrote in an update today (Feb. 19) at 11:11 a.m. EST (1611 GMT). The mission team continues to load liquid oxygen propellant into Artemis 2's Space Launch System rocket in "fast fill" mode but has delayed the initiation of liquid hydrogen fast fill while working the comms issue.
6:05 PM NASA restores full coms with Artemis 2 moon rocket
After just over a half-hour of troubleshooting, it looks like full communications has been restored between NASA's Artemis 2 moon rocket and launch controllers in the firing room at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. "Normal communications have been restored, and NASA teams have made the decision to transition to fast fill of the SLS rocket’s core stage with super-cold liquid hydrogen," NASA wrote in an update at 11:45 am ET (1645 GMT). "Core stage liquid oxygen remains in fast fill." During this core stage fueling, NASA is also watching for any leaks in the four RS-25 rocket engines. Once the fueling is complete, NASA will move on to the upper stage, called the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage.
6:53 PM Fueling underway for Artemis 2 upper stage
NASA is now fueling the upper stage of its massive Artemis 2 rocket atop Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center. Liquid hydrogen propellant is flowing into the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage. Meanwhile, chilldown operations are in work for the liquid hydrogen system on the stage. "This critical step cools the hardware ahead of loading super-cold liquid oxygen, chilled to minus 297 degrees Fahrenheit, into the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket’s upper stage tank," NASA wrote in an update at 12:43 p.m. EST (1743 GMT).
Zitat The Launch Pad 🚨 Artemis II WDR - Core Stage LH2 Reaches 100% Without Issue! NASA teams have now transitioned the SLS core stage liquid hydrogen (LH₂) tank into replenish mode, marking a major milestone for today’s wet dress rehearsal. This step was achieved without exceeding ground safety limits for hydrogen concentrations, an issue encountered during the first Artemis II rehearsal — a strong indicator the fueling system improvements are working. After fast fill and topping, replenish keeps the tank at flight-ready levels by replacing propellant naturally lost to boil-off. Liquid hydrogen slowly warms and evaporates even in insulated tanks, so small amounts of fuel are continuously added to maintain proper pressure and volume.
NASA just notched another major milestone in its Artemis 2 wet dress rehearsal (WDR): Teams have brought all of the cryogenic propellant tanks in the mission's Space Launch System rocket to "replenish" mode, keeping them full and topped off. "With all stages in replenish, the Artemis 2 wet dress rehearsal is now in its final fueling configuration, bringing this test wet dress rehearsal operations closer to terminal count," NASA officials wrote in an update today (Feb. 19). The WDR — a two-day-long practice run of prelaunch procedures — appears to remain on target to hit a simulated launch window opening at 8:50 p.m. EST today (0150 GMT on Feb. 20). If things continue to go well today, an actual launch could occur as soon as March 6.
9:42 PM Artemis 2 rocket planned 1-hour hold in fueling test
NASA's Artemis 2 moon rocket team has officially begun a planned 1-hour, 10-minute hold for today's ongoing fueling test of the Space Launch System megarocket. "NASA’s pad rescue and closeout crew teams are moving to their staging area before heading to Launch Complex 39B," NASA said in an update at 3:32 p.m. EST (2032 GMT). These teams ensure safety and readiness during the critical fueling operations and play a vital role in protecting personnel and hardware throughout the countdown."
10:43 PM Artemis 2 rocket close out crew heads to pad
The Artemis 2 close out crew, a team of engineers who work to close out the rocket and its Orion crew before launch, is now headed to Launch Pad 39B for today's test, NASA reports. "This specialized team is responsible for securing the Orion spacecraft and ensuring all access points are properly configured before simulated crew ingress operations," the agency wrote in an update at 3:55 p.m. ET (2055 GMT). The close out crew is destined for the so-called White Room, an environmentally controlled room on the gantry where the close out team prepares astronauts to enter the Orion spacecraft for launch. "During the wet dress rehearsal, the closeout crew will close the spacecrafts’ hatches, verify hatch seals, check environmental conditions, and confirm all systems are ready for the next steps in the countdown," NASA wrote. As part of today's test, the "pad rescue team," emergency personnel trained to respond to emergencies to assist the Artemis 2 crew, will also be on site to assist in any crew team evacuation.
Zitat Moon mission fueling test concludes with no major problems
NASA and contractor engineers pumped more than 750,000 gallons of supercold propellants into the agency’s huge Space Launch System rocket Thursday without any signs of hydrogen leaks or any other significant problems in a major step toward launching four astronauts on a flight around the moon as early as March 6.
The practice countdown began Tuesday night, kicking off a carefully choreographed series of steps to ready the world’s most powerful operational rocket for what amounted to a simulated launch Thursday at 8:42 p.m. EST. Controllers then carried out additional tests to make sure the team can recycle, hold and restart an actual launch countdown as needed to handle unexpected problems.
The initial stages of the rehearsal countdown went well and at 9:35 a.m. Thursday, Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson gave her “go” to begin the multi-hour process of pumping 196,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and 537,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen fuel into the SLS rocket’s first stage. The second stage was loaded with another 22,500 gallons of oxygen and hydrogen propellants.
Unlike the rocket’s first fueling test earlier this month, when hydrogen leaks forced the team to call off the countdown, sensors detected no significant leaks the second time around and the rocket’s tanks were topped off without incident.
Die NASA hat sich zwar noch nicht geäußert, aber ich nehme an, das bedeutet eine Freigabe für den Startversuch während der kommenden drei Startfenster, vom 6. (für uns am 7., ab 02:29) bis zum 11. März 2026.
"Les hommes seront toujours fous; et ceux qui croient les guérir sont les plus fous de la bande." - Voltaire
Zitat The Launch Pad 🚨BREAKING! NASA TARGETS MARCH 6th FOR ARTEMIS II LAUNCH! NASA has confirmed they are targeting March 6th, 2026 for the launch of Artemis II following yesterdays successful Wet Dress Rehearsal 🕘Launch T-0: March 6, 2026 at 8:29pm EST 📅Launch Window: 8:29PM - 10:29PM EST 🔁Additional opportunities through March and April We are getting closer to humanity’s return to deep space and this time we are going back together!
Zitat 20 February 2026, 16:51 GMT - Updated 52 minutes ago
Nasa has announced that the earliest possible date for the Artemis II launch will now be 6 March - which will be 7 March in the UK. The mission will see four astronauts take part in a 10-day fly around the far side of the Moon and back to Earth again. It comes after a successful dress rehearsal - known as a wet rehearsal - for the rocket launch, took place on Thursday. It was the Artemis team's second attempt at a practice run, after a hydrogen leak was detected at the launch pad earlier this month.
Zitat NASA could launch four astronauts on a mission to fly around the moon as soon as March 6th. That's the launch date that the space agency is now working towards following a successful test fueling of its big, 322-foot-tall moon rocket, which is standing on a launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. "This is really getting real," says Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator of NASA's exploration systems development mission directorate. "It's time to get serious and start getting excited." But she cautioned that there's still some pending work that remains to be done out at the launch pad, and officials will have to conduct a multi-day flight readiness review late next week to make sure that every aspect of the mission is truly ready to go.
Zitat The second time is the charm, apparently. NASA successfully completed a major test of its upcoming moon mission, Artemis II, on Thursday. On Friday Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, said that, with the test done, the agency is now targeting a March 6 launch date for Artemis II.
At a press conference on Friday, NASA’s Artemis launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson said the agency is confident it has fixed the leaks and that none arose during Thursday’s fueling and mock launch countdown.
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