WET DRESS REHEARSAL FOR ARTEMIS II, Jan 31, 2026, KSC

NASA announced on January 26, 2026 that the Wet Dress Rehearsal in preparation for the launch of Artemis II could take place “as early as” January 31. Earlier the agency said the WDR was targeted for no later than February 2.

The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft were rolled out to Launch Complex-39B at Kennedy Space Center on January 17. During the WDR, the rocket will be filled with propellant just as it would be for an actual launch and a practice countdown will be conducted down to as close as T-29 seconds according to Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson (although NASA’s statement today says T-30 seconds).

According to NASA: During several “runs,” the wet dress rehearsal will test the launch team’s ability to hold, resume, and recycle to several different times in the final 10 minutes of the countdown, known as terminal count. The rehearsal will count down to a simulated launch at 9 p.m. EST, but could run to approximately 1 a.m. if needed.

The first run will begin approximately 49 hours before launch when launch teams are called to their stations, to 1 minute 30 seconds before launch, followed by a planned three-minute hold and then countdown resumption to 33 seconds before launch – the point at which the rocket’s automatic launch sequencer will control the final seconds of the countdown. Teams then will recycle back to T-10 minutes and hold, then resume down to 30 seconds before launch as part of a second run.

The actual date to launch four astronauts to travel around the Moon for the first time since the Apollo era will not be announced until after the test, but the earliest is February 6.