The fourth attempt of the final pre-launch test began on Saturday, and rocket refueling is expected to begin on Monday morning.
The critical test, known as wet suit training, simulated each stage of the launch without the rocket leaving the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
This process includes loading the ultra-cold propellant, performing a complete countdown simulating launch, resetting the countdown clock, and draining the missile tank.
The results of the wetsuit training will determine when Artemis I will embark on a mission beyond the moon and return to Earth. The mission will launch NASA’s Artemis program, which is expected to return humans to the moon and land the first woman and first person of color on the moon by 2025.
Three previous attempts at the drill in April were unsuccessful, and ended before the missiles could be fully refueled due to various leaks. NASA says this error has been fixed.
A NASA team launches a 322-foot (98 m) stack of Artemis I rockets, including the Space Launch System and the Orion spacecraft, onto a launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 6.
Wet Workout: What to Expect
Practice begins at 5 p.m. ET on Saturday with a “Call to the Station”—when all of the mission-related teams arrive on their consoles and report that they’re ready to begin testing and the two-day countdown begins.
Preparations over the weekend will see the Artemis team begin loading propellant into the rocket’s core and upper stages.
The tank was suspended Monday morning due to an identified problem with the supply of gas nitrogen reserves. The launch team replaced the valve that was causing the problem. To ensure that the backup supply is functioning as expected, it has been replaced as the main supply for today’s test.
Comments were withdrawn at 9:28 a.m. ET. The liquid oxygen is cooled to minus 297 degrees Fahrenheit (182 degrees Celsius), and the liquid hydrogen will fill the tank. Ventilation may be visible when the tank is full.
A two-hour testing window will begin later, with Artemis eyeing the first countdown at 4:38 p.m. ET. due to tank delay.
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First, team members It will count down to 33 seconds before launch, then stop the cycle. The clock will be reset; Then the countdown will resume again and last until about 10 seconds before the launch occurs.
According to an update on NASA’s website, “During testing, the team may maintain the countdown as necessary to check conditions before resuming the countdown, or beyond the test window, if necessary and resources permit.”
Previous efforts at wet weather training have accomplished many of the goals of preparing the rocket for launch, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch manager for NASA’s Earth Exploration Systems Program, said during a press conference Wednesday.
“Hopefully this time we can complete it and complete the cryogenic loadings and the final count,” he said. “Our team is ready to go, and we look forward to returning to this test.”
After the Artemis rocket group finished its training, it would return to the Space Center Vehicle Assembly Building to await launch day.
There’s a long history behind grueling testing of new systems before launch, and the Artemis team faced a similar experience to the Apollo team and the space shuttle era, including several test attempts and delays.
“No one on the team shies away from the responsibility that we and our contractors have to manage and provide, and provide, the means that fulfill the purpose of this test flight for (Artemis I), and fulfill the objectives of Artemis I,” said Jim Frey, associate director. NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, During a press conference held last week.
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