NASA Targets March 6th for Artemis II Crewed Lunar Mission Launch
According to the Economic Desk of Webangang News Agency, the highly anticipated Artemis II mission is scheduled for launch in just two weeks, provided all systems proceed according to plan, setting the stage for the first human voyage beyond low Earth orbit since December 1972, when the Apollo 17 crew returned from the Moon.
Lori Glaze, the acting director of NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, expressed palpable excitement during a recent press conference. “The anticipation for Artemis II is genuinely building,” Glaze stated. “Every night I look at the Moon, I see it, and I truly feel electrified because I can sense it calling us. We are ready.”
This official announcement followed the successful completion of the Artemis II wet dress rehearsal (WDR) on Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This was the second WDR attempt for the mission.
The first attempt, held on February 2nd, was terminated prematurely due to an observation of liquid hydrogen leakage during the fueling of the mission’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. This identical issue had previously hampered the launch of Artemis I, leading to significant delays; the uncrewed Artemis I was initially slated for a Spring 2022 launch but ultimately lifted off in November of that year.
NASA officials confirmed that lessons learned from Artemis I were clearly applied during the second WDR. Following the initial fueling attempt, the team replaced two seals. They subsequently rectified the issue on February 12th by partially filling the SLS liquid hydrogen tanks, and the new seals held firm during that test, repeating their success on Thursday.
The Artemis II crew is set to embark on an approximately ten-day voyage orbiting the Moon and returning to Earth. The crew consists of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, alongside Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
Glaze detailed the pre-flight safety protocols, confirming that all four crew members will enter quarantine at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. They will return to Kennedy Space Center approximately five days prior to launch and will remain in quarantine at the launch site leading up to the mission.
The immediate launch window for Artemis II opens from March 6th through March 9th, with a potential backup date on March 10th. Should NASA be unable to meet these dates, the agency will need to wait several weeks for the subsequent window, which includes potential launch opportunities on April 1st, 3rd, 6th, and a final option on April 30th.
