WASHINGTON, 20th February, 2026 (WAM) — The second step towards a crewed mission to the Moon just cleared a massive hurdle at Nasa’s Kennedy Space Centre. On February 20, Nasa successfully completed the wet dress rehearsal for the Artemis II mission, a critical test that proves the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft are ready for their historic journey.
While the four-member crew was not on board for this rehearsal, the mission teams treated the countdown exactly like the real thing. This 72-hour operation involved loading over 7,00,000 gallons of super-cold liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen into the massive orange core stage and the upper stage of the rocket.
The 10-day mission will be the first time humans have left Earth’s orbit since 1972.
