"When we tank the vehicle, the very next time, I would like it to be on a day that we could actually launch. I would like to do it on launch day. And if we are able to successfully fully tank the vehicle, I want to be able to poll 'Go to launch'."
"Every time we tank the vehicle, it takes a little bit of the life out of those tanks. This consideration about the cumulative stress on cryogenic propellant tanks from repeated filling cycles influenced the decision to eliminate additional wet dress rehearsals and proceed directly to launch day operations."
"The spacecraft will take an outbound trip of about four days and around the far side of the Moon, tracing a figure eight that will extend more than 230,000 miles from Earth before returning home, marking a first for humans since the days of Apollo."
NASA has scheduled Artemis II for launch on April 1, 2025, with April 2 as a backup and April 30 as the next opportunity if needed. The Space Launch System will roll out to the pad on March 19. NASA has decided to skip a third Wet Dress Rehearsal, instead proceeding directly to tanking the vehicle on launch day. Previous WDRs encountered a hydrogen leak and helium flow-rate fault requiring repairs. The crew will enter quarantine March 18 and arrive at Kennedy Space Center March 27. The mission will send astronauts on a lunar loop trajectory extending over 230,000 miles from Earth, circling the Moon's far side without entering orbit.
#artemis-ii-launch #space-launch-system #lunar-mission #nasa-launch-preparation #cryogenic-propellant-systems
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