{"id":366629,"date":"2026-03-30T23:49:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T23:49:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/366629\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T23:49:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T23:49:08","slug":"nasas-artemis-ii-launch-mission-countdown-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/366629\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA’s Artemis II Launch Mission Countdown Begins"},"content":{"rendered":"

The countdown\u00a0for\u00a0NASA\u2019s Artemis II test flight\u00a0is underway\u00a0at the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with members of the launch team arriving at their consoles inside the Rocco Petrone Launch Control Center. The\u00a0onsite countdown clock started\u00a0ticking down\u00a0at 4:44 p.m. EDT\u00a0to a targeted launch time of 6:24 p.m.\u00a0on\u00a0Wednesday, April 1. Artemis II is the first crewed\u00a0launch of\u00a0NASA\u2019s\u00a0SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

With\u00a0countdown officially underway, engineers\u00a0are\u00a0powering up flight hardware, checking communication links, and preparing the rocket\u2019s cryogenic systems for the precise fueling sequence required to load hundreds of thousands of gallons of super-cooled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. At Launch Pad 39B, teams will begin filling the sound suppression system\u2019s massive tank\u00a0with water, which will unleash a protective deluge at liftoff to shield the vehicle from the roar of its own engines.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Artemis II crew, NASA astronauts\u00a0Reid Wiseman<\/a>,\u00a0Victor Glover<\/a>, and\u00a0Christina Koch<\/a>, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut\u00a0Jeremy Hansen<\/a>,\u00a0remains\u00a0in Astronaut Crew Quarters inside NASA Kennedy\u2019s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building. The crewmates\u00a0have\u00a0spent the\u00a0final countdown phase focused on readiness and technical verification,\u00a0remaining\u00a0in quarantine under strict health monitoring\u00a0and\u00a0completing medical checks to ensure fitness for launch.\u00a0They\u00a0have been\u00a0following\u00a0a controlled sleep schedule and nutrition plan to\u00a0maintain\u00a0energy and hydration for launch, while\u00a0continuing to\u00a0receive regular updates on the rocket\u2019s configuration and weather conditions\u00a0from\u00a0crew quarters.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

NASA and weather officers with the U.S. Space Force\u2019s Space Launch Delta 45 continue to pay close attention to\u00a0weather conditions<\/a>\u00a0ahead of tanking operations.\u00a0The weather forecast for launch day shows an 80% chance of favorable weather conditions with primary concerns being cloud coverage and the potential for high winds in the area. Teams will continue to\u00a0monitor\u00a0the weather in the coming days.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Broadcast coverage\u00a0begins\u00a0with\u00a0live views and audio commentary of tanking operations beginning at\u00a07:45 a.m.\u00a0on April 1, on\u00a0NASA\u2019s YouTube channel<\/a>,\u00a0as teams\u00a0load propellant into\u00a0the\u00a0SLS\u00a0rocket.\u00a0Full coverage on NASA+<\/a>\u00a0begins\u00a0at\u00a012:50 p.m.\u00a0Learn how to watch<\/a> NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media.\u202f\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Monday, NASA leadership hosted a status update briefing to discuss the latest mission preparations. Watch an instant replay below:\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

March 30, 2026 6:13PM<\/p>\n

More from Missions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The countdown\u00a0for\u00a0NASA\u2019s Artemis II test flight\u00a0is underway\u00a0at the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with members of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":366630,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[6353,6552,111197,20920,111198,85,46,6355,9142,141,145,9143,111199],"class_list":["post-366629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-artemis","tag-artemis-2","tag-christina-h-koch","tag-exploration-ground-systems","tag-g-reid-wiseman","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-kennedy-space-center","tag-orion-multi-purpose-crew-vehicle","tag-science","tag-space","tag-space-launch-system-sls","tag-victor-j-glover"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/366629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=366629"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/366629\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/366630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=366629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=366629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=366629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}