Space News from SpaceDaily.com
NASA conducts second rehearsal of Artemis 2 lunar launch
Washington, United States, Feb 19 (AFP) Feb 19, 2026
NASA on Thursday was conducting a new rehearsal of the launch of its massive SLS rocket, which will send astronauts around the Moon for the first time in over 50 years as part of the Artemis 2 mission.

Technical problems in early February cut short an initial so-called wet dress rehearsal.

The setback, which included a liquid hydrogen leak, dashed hopes of a lift-off this month, pushing the earliest possible launch date back to March 6.

If Thursday's tests are successful, NASA will then set a firm date for the mission.

The wet dress rehearsal is conducted under real conditions -- with full rocket tanks and technical checks -- at Cape Canaveral in Florida, with engineers practicing the maneuvers needed to carry out an actual launch.

The Artemis 2 mission will be the first crewed mission to fly past the Moon in more than 50 years, with three Americans and one Canadian taking part.

cha/eml/sla/des

X


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Study revisits chances of detecting alien technosignatures
Hypersonica completes milestone hypersonic missile flight test in Norway
NASA teams set for second Artemis II wet dress rehearsal

24/7 Energy News Coverage
US renews threat to leave IEA
Environmental groups sue Trump administration over scrapped climate rule
Turkey fires up coal pollution even as it hosts COP31

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
Facing US warnings, Iran defends right to nuclear enrichment
Airbus says will back two new European fighter jets 'if clients request'
US to withdraw all troops from Syria: reports

24/7 News Coverage
'Unprecedented' emissions maps will hone mitigation
Sudan's historic acacia forest devastated as war fuels logging
Deadly Indonesia floods force a deforestation reckoning


All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.