Artemis 2 completed a "wet dress rehearsal" today - basically doing everything except loading the crew and firing the rocket - setting up a potential manned launch on March 6th. This will send four astronauts - three American and one Canadian - around the far side of the moon. They'll be further from earth than any humans ever and will eclipse the distance record set by Apollo 13. An actual landing is still years away once they get the landing system sorted out. You know - minor details. But a trip around the moon is still pretty cool and may be just a couple of weeks away.

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/this-is-really-getting-real-nasas-artemis-2-moon-rocket-fueling-test-went-so-well-astronauts-could-launch-march-6

Sullivan908 said:

---

Artemis 2 completed a "wet dress rehearsal" today - basically doing everything except loading the crew and firing the rocket - setting up a potential manned launch on March 6th. This will send four astronauts - three American and one Canadian - around the far side of the moon. They'll be further from earth than any humans ever and will eclipse the distance record set by Apollo 13. An actual landing is still years away once they get the landing system sorted out. You know - minor details. But a trip around the moon is still pretty cool and may be just a couple of weeks away.

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/this-is-really-getting-real-nasas-artemis-2-moon-rocket-fueling-test-went-so-well-astronauts-could-launch-march-6

---

Yup, very cool. I will be watching.

Love it. I think its great when humanity pushes the boundaries of whats possible

Astronaut Christina Koch is an N. C. State graduate and will be on the mission. She was on the Space Station in 2019 and it was going to be visible in Raleigh. State was playing Syracuse in a night game and I was hoping they were going to video link with the Space Station and have Christina be doing the wolf sign from outer space while zooming the picture of the stadium. The crowd would have gone crazy and we had the technology to do it.

I was 12 when Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon. It should never have taken this long to go back. 1972 was the last Apollo mission and I am excited to see the USA expand their horizons again!

Sullivan908 said:

---

Artemis 2 completed a "wet dress rehearsal" today - basically doing everything except loading the crew and firing the rocket - setting up a potential manned launch on March 6th. This will send four astronauts - three American and one Canadian - around the far side of the moon. They'll be further from earth than any humans ever and will eclipse the distance record set by Apollo 13. An actual landing is still years away once they get the landing system sorted out. You know - minor details. But a trip around the moon is still pretty cool and may be just a couple of weeks away.

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/this-is-really-getting-real-nasas-artemis-2-moon-rocket-fueling-test-went-so-well-astronauts-could-launch-march-6

---

I was under the impression that Artemis 3 would land in the South Pole region in 2028 IF (there's that word again) everything goes to plan.

I think that's the plan, but it depends on SpaceX getting their hardware and landing system up to speed. The fact that NASA now has Blue Origin working in parallel on a landing system makes me think it might take a while. China could possibly end up landing before us (?).

I didn't know Koch was an NC State grad. Cool!

Sullivan908 said:

---

I think that's the plan, but it depends on SpaceX getting their hardware and landing system up to speed. The fact that NASA now has Blue Origin working in parallel on a landing system makes me think it might take a while. China could possibly end up landing before us (?).

I didn't know Koch was an NC State grad. Cool!

---

Yes. It's truly Space race 2.0 with an adversary even more dangerous than the Soviets.

Well, so much for March 6. Got some kind of new issue to fix. The rocket is being rolled back to the hangar.

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/problem-pops-up-with-artemis-2-moon-rocket-this-will-almost-assuredly-impact-the-march-launch-window

Sullivan908 said:

---

Well, so much for March 6. Got some kind of new issue to fix. The rocket is being rolled back to the hangar.

https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/problem-pops-up-with-artemis-2-moon-rocket-this-will-almost-assuredly-impact-the-march-launch-window

---

I'm glad they caught it before lighting the candle.

Some good news for a change - NASA fixes the helium flow issue and plans to roll the rocket back out for an April launch.

NASA Repairs Upper Stage Helium Flow, Preps Continue Ahead of Rollout - NASA

Source: NASA
https://share.google/gG8yMZKodSjyECksm

Not linked is news that Artemis 3 will now become part of the testing sequence and Artemis 4 will put astronauts back on the moon in 2028, I think. Although, I wouldn't put too much faith in that forecast.

We're back on for next Wednesday. No more dress rehearsal s! Moon or bust. Or more delays, lol.

lets just hope for no measles.

Ha, yeah, let's hope NASA has watched Apollo 13 and that they're all vaccinated and that their backup's kids are vaccinated.

Current ETL is 6:24 PM EDT tomorrow (Wed.). So no conflict with the Gainey presser, lol. Ready to send a Wolfpacker behind the moon and back!

Sullivan908 said:

---

Current ETL is 6:24 EDT tomorrow (Wed.). So no conflict with the Gainey presser, lol. Ready to send a Wolfpacker behind the moon and back!

---

Awesomeness. USA! USA! USA!

Sullivan908 said:

---

Current ETL is 6:24 PM EDT tomorrow (Wed.). So no conflict with the Gainey presser, lol. Ready to send a Wolfpacker behind the moon and back!

---

Any word on whether that X-class coronal mass ejection will affect the launch schedule?

Great question! No, I hadn't even put those things together. I don't know.

Edit: Google AI says no. "A powerful coronal mass ejection (CME) on March 29, 2026, prompted concern but is expected to dissipate and will not affect the planned April 1 Artemis II launch."

April Fools!

"we're going to the moon"

Did I hear right that a State grad is on this flight?

Thanks for sharing. I would love to see one of these rockets take off. Has to be a great experience.

ncsupack1 said:

---

Thanks for sharing. I would love to see one of these rockets take off. Has to be a great experience.

---

I did get to see a Space Shuttle launch in person in 2008. It was magnificent!

I've never seen a live launch but would love to do that someday. Closest I've come is seeing a SpaceX plume in the eastern NC sky. GP, you should go down and see for yourself!

DrummerboyWolf said:

---

I am excited about the launch this evening. Here is a prayer that the weather holds and the crew is safe. This is very dangerous mission, but it has been done before.

I am old enough to remember when we did go to the moon. I was 12 when Apollo 11 landed on the surface. My oldest brother went the Florida Institute of Technology(Now Florida Tech) in Melbourne, Florida and he saw several Apollo launches live.

It's been way too long to get back, but glad I am still alive to see and experience it again(hopefully I will make it through the day).

I knew that Christina Koch and mentioned her being an N. C. State grad. What I did not know, was that she grew up and went to high school in Jacksonville, NC where I also grew up. She went to White Oak and I went to Jacksonville, but apparently either one or both of her parents were Marines or connected to the military.

God's speed to the 4 Astronauts. Safe travels and a safe return!

---

Great post

Best of luck to these astronauts. ABC has really good coverage.

That was something.

Just an awesome launch. Brought back the Apollo launches for me. Just the start of a very long mission, but they have surpassed one of the most dangerous parts of the mission.

Continued good luck to the crew and all the other team members involved. You all made it happen!!

cdaud said:

---

ncsupack1 said:

---

Did I hear right that a State grad is on this flight?

---

Christina Koch. So proud to have a Wolfpack alum serving as a role model for millions of young girls.

Light the bell tower red!

---

No problem with that.

Beautiful view from Tampa Florida 120 miles away. Can you imagine sitting on that firecracker? Rumbling sound heard 120 miles away.....what a show

cdaud said:

---

ncsupack1 said:

---

Did I hear right that a State grad is on this flight?

---

Christina Koch. So proud to have a Wolfpack alum serving as a role model for millions of young girls.

Light the bell tower red!

---

Yup. Suck it cheats, takes more than a sheepskin in applied Marxism to make it into space.

That couldn't have gone much better! I still have some Challenger memories in me, so it was a little nerve wracking until they got to booster separation. Pretty exciting!

The Everyday Astronaut broadcast we were watching said Koch was a Michigan native, and maybe she was born there, but I wish they'd given a *little* more background than that because clearly she grew up around here. Also, SpaceX has us spoiled with the continuous StarLink coverage of every second and every angle of their flights.

Here's hoping the rest of the ten day trip is just as smooth, all the way to splashdown off the California coast.

President John F. Kennedy 'Moonshot' speech from the podium at Rice University. Such a gifted orator.
https://rumble.com/v77wprw-reflecting-on-president-kennedys-moonshot-speech-we-choose-to-go-to-the-moo.html

Sullivan908 said:

---

GP, you should go down and see for yourself!

---

He could literally "stick his fingers into the nail holes" and still say it was fake...

DrummerboyWolf said:

---

Just an awesome launch. Brought back the Apollo launches for me. Just the start of a very long mission, but they have surpassed one of the most dangerous parts of the mission.

Continued good luck to the crew and all the other team members involved. You all made it happen!!

---

The wildest part for me is how quickly as humans that things become "normalized" to us. We landed men on the moon six different times during the Apollo days - first in July 1969, but then we were completely finished before the end of 1972, and other than Apollo 13, by the time it was over, it was just like it had become "old hat". That was only less than a 3 1/2 year span from start to finish. *Apollo 11 & 12, then Apollo 14 through 17 missions.

Same thing with the Space Shuttle launches until of course the Challenger explosion (my last year at State) and then much later in 2003 (I think) the Columbia burn up upon re-entry.

It's mind-boggling to me that it has been over 50 years now since we have last done this. Did actually catch the lift-off live on TV yesterday and really enjoyed watching it. Hope the mission goes well.

Note: saw that this mission will last 10 days and immediately thought "that seems like a long time", so I went back to look at Apollo 11 and saw that had a duration of 8 days - so obviously, it's pretty much in line with our previous missions.