NASA's Artemis II mission begins fuel test despite low temperatures in Florida

Miami.- NASA gave the green light this Monday to begin the 'cold test' of the Artemis II mission, which will take four crew members around the Moon, no earlier than next Sunday, despite the low and unusual temperatures in Florida. The technicians at the American space agency authorized the test, which includes the full fueling, a crucial step towards the manned mission, the first to the Moon in over 50 years. "While teams continue to monitor the cold weather that could affect launch day, no weather restrictions are being considered for Monday's fuel filling operations," NASA emphasized today.

This weekend, the winter storm battering the United States in recent weeks broke records in Florida, where Miami recorded the coldest start to February in its history and snow reached some areas of the south of the state.

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The teams at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida continue preparations this Monday for the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft, in charge of the ten-day mission. The Wet Dress Rehearsal is a pre-launch test in which the ability to load more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellants into the rocket is demonstrated, execute a complete countdown, and practice the safe discharge of fuel, all without a crew on board.

Ten Days Around the Moon

During several countdown rehearsals, the launch team's ability to stop, resume, and recycle the countdown at different points within the final 10 minutes, known as the terminal count, will be tested. After the test, NASA will evaluate the data obtained and, if necessary, could dismantle and return the SLS and the Orion spacecraft to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional work before launch. This essay will allow us to define the official launch date, whose launch window opens next Sunday, February 8th.

Artemis II will make history with a woman, an African American and a Canadian orbiting the Moon

The crew is made up of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, all Americans, along with Canadian Jeremy Hansen, from the Canadian Space Agency.

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The four crew members will carry out a mission of approximately 10 days around the Moon, with the aim of testing the systems and equipment of the spacecraft and laying the groundwork for future lunar exploration and upcoming manned missions to Mars. As preparations advance on the platform, the four astronauts remain in quarantine in Houston (Texas) since January 23rd, as part of the protocols prior to the historic launch.