The second wet dress rehearsal for the Artemis II mission continues as teams power up the Space Launch System rocket’s core stage and charge the Orion spacecraft’s flight batteries. Core stage battery charging is scheduled to begin this afternoon. Later today, engineers will conduct final preparations of the umbilical arms and perform a walkdown at the launch pad. Teams will conduct the fueling portion of the prelaunch test on Feb. 19. Image description: The Moon is seen shining over the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, atop the mobile launcher on January 29, 2026. The rocket is currently at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The sky is blue in the background. A partial view of the Moon can be seen in the top right part of the image. The Orion spacecraft is white and has the NASA logo painted on the side. The crew access arm connects the spacecraft to the trussed structure of the mobile launcher. A lightning tower stands to the right of the sp...