A dawn view of the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 21, 2022. The SLS and Orion atop the mobile launcher were transported to the pad on crawler-transporter 2 for a prelaunch test called a wet gown rehearsal. Artemis I will be the very first integrated test of the SLS and Orion spacecraft. In later on missions, NASA will land the very first woman and the first person of color on the surface area of the Moon, paving the method for a long-lasting lunar presence and working as a stepping stone on the way to Mars. Credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky
At roughly 5 p.m. EDT today (April 12, 2022), the launch team showed up at their stations inside the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The countdown will start 30 minutes later on at 5:30 p.m. or L-45 hours, 10 minutes before the preliminary target T-0 for the wet dress wedding rehearsal test for NASAs Artemis I objective. Teams are proceeding with a customized test, mainly focused on tanking the core stage and very little propellant operations on the interim cryogenic propulsion phase (ICPS) with the ground systems at Kennedy. Tanking operations are scheduled to happen on Thursday, April 14.
Meteorologists with the U.S. Space Force 45th Space Wing predict favorable weather condition for propellant filling operations. Weather condition restraints specify there must be less than a 20% chance lightning within 5 nautical miles of pad during the very first hour of tanking. Winds also need to not be above 37.5 knots and the temperature can not be below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.
Overnight, groups will power up Orion and the Space Launch System core stage, charge core stage battery, and prepare the 4 RS-25 engines, which will not be lit during the test.
Throughout the test, the timing for some occasions on account of numerous planned functional presentations connected to specific capabilities and test objectives may differ from the day of launch countdown. These presentations include tests on the cryogenic systems and an around three-minute hold inside the terminal count, which would not usually occur on launch day. If needed, the test team might also hold as essential to confirm conditions before resuming the countdown, or utilize the test window or extend beyond it, if resources and consumables enable them to finish test goals.
In addition to updates on this blog site, NASA will provide live updates on the Exploration Ground Systems Twitter account. NASA is likewise streaming live video of the rocket and spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B on the Kennedy Newsroom YouTube channel. Activity at the launch pad will likely not show up throughout the majority of the countdown, however some venting might be seen throughout tanking on April 14.
The next operational update will be published the morning of April 13.
Throughout the test, the timing for some events on account of numerous organized functional presentations tied to particular abilities and test objectives might vary from the day of launch countdown. These presentations include tests on the cryogenic systems and an around three-minute hold inside the terminal count, which would not typically happen on launch day. If needed, the test group might also hold as essential to validate conditions prior to resuming the countdown, or use the test window or extend beyond it, if resources and consumables enable them to complete test goals.