On 3 February, NASA concluded a wet dress rehearsal for their Space Launch System rocket ahead of the Artemis II launch. The test consisted of loading cryogenic propellant into the rocket’s tanks and safely draining it. To allow teams to review the data from this test and conduct a second wet dress rehearsal ahead of launch, NASA has decided to postpone the Artemis II mission to the next launch opportunities in March.
In local time, the opportunities run from 6 March to 11 March late in the evening. In Central European Time (CET), the potential launch windows open at the following times:
- 7 March 02:29
- 8 March 02:57
- 9 March 04:56
- 10 March 04:52
- 11 March 05:48
Artemis II will be the first crewed mission of the Artemis programme, carrying four astronauts on a journey around the Moon and back to Earth for the first time in over half a century. At the heart of this historic mission is ESA’s European Service Module, which provides the Orion spacecraft and its crew with life support, power and propulsion, enabling safe human travel beyond Earth orbit.