NASA continues to advance the Artemis II wet dress rehearsal countdown, a refueling test for the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket.

Early this morning, around 3 a.m. ET, the team powered up the rocket. core stagemore than 700,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen will be loaded during the tank-filling phase of the countdown. This occurs over a series of different propellant loading milestones to fill, refill, and replenish the tank. The intermediate cryogenic propulsion stage was also powered up during the night.

At around 11:00 a.m., or L-33:30 minutes into the countdown, operators began charging Orion’s flight batteries. Core stage battery charging is scheduled to begin this afternoon. Later today, engineers will make final preparations for the umbilical arm and perform a walkdown on the launch pad.

Open all year round live stream Rocket action on the pad continues online. NASA will provide a separate feed during refueling operations, as well as real-time blog post updates about the refueling day test.

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