NASA to Discuss Early Results of Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal

Following a refueling test of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket on the launch pad of the Artemis II Moon mission, leaders will discuss initial results at a press conference at 12 p.m. EST on Tuesday, February 3.

The agency’s SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft arrived Jan. 17 at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Since then, engineers have carried out various tests before launch. A wet dress rehearsal is underway, which requires filling the rocket with 700,000 gallons of propellant. Calls to stations began Jan. 31 and teams are counting down until a simulated launch window opens at 9 p.m. Monday. If additional work is needed, NASA could move SLS and Orion back to the Vehicle Assembly Building after the wet dress rehearsal.

The agency will broadcast the press conference live on its YouTube channel. A live stream of the rocket remains online 24/7, as well as a separate feed for coverage of the wet dress rehearsal. Find individual streams for these events to watch on YouTube. Learn how to distribute NASA content through various online platforms, including social media.

Press conference participants include:

• Amit Kshatriya, NASA Associate Administrator
• Lori Glaze, Acting Associate Administrator for the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate
• John Honeycutt, chairman of the Artemis II mission management team
• Representative, Ground Exploration Systems Program

After a successful dress rehearsal, NASA leaders will make a final call to send the Artemis II astronauts to Kennedy. The four crew members have been in quarantine in Houston since January 21. If teams need more time to work on the Artemis II hardware, the crew can stay in Houston or exit quarantine.

If the crew members are sent to Kennedy, they are expected to fly aboard NASA T-38s to Florida and arrive at the center around 3 p.m. on February 3. They will participate in a media briefing immediately after landing. Their group will also be streamed live on NASA’s YouTube channel.

Participants include all four members of the Artemis II crew:

• Reid Wiseman, Commander, NASA Astronaut
• Victor Glover, pilot, NASA astronaut
• Christina Koch, mission specialist, NASA astronaut
• Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist, CSA astronaut (Canadian Space Agency)

Media previously accredited for the launch can join these events in person. To participate virtually in the press conference, media must RSVP no later than two hours before the start of the call to Lauren Low in the Office of Communications at: lauren.e.low@nasa.gov. NASA’s Media Accreditation Policy is online.

As part of a golden age of innovation and exploration, Artemis will pave the way for new U.S.-crewed missions to the lunar surface to send the first astronauts to Mars.

To learn more about the Artemis campaign, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis

-END-

Cheryl Warner / Rachel Kraft
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov / rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov

Tiffany Fairley
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-747-8306
tiffany.l.fairley@nasa.gov