NASA's Artemis II crew conducts launch day demonstration to prep for a ride to space

Artemis II, NASA's first crewed Artemis mission to the Moon, will see four astronauts venturing around the Moon in late 2024. To prepare for their ride to space, the Artemis II crew - NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Hammock Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen - and teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program conducted the first in a series of integrated ground system tests to practice the procedures they will undergo on launch day.

The demonstration was conducted at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in preparation for their mission around the Moon. After putting on test versions of the Orion crew survival system spacesuits, the four astronauts departed in the agency's new Artemis crew transportation fleet to take them to Launch Pad 39B.

Upon arrival at the pad, the crew headed onto the mobile launcher and proceeded up the tower to the white room inside the crew access arm. Thereafter, the astronauts will have access to enter and exit the Orion spacecraft – only for this test, there was no Orion spacecraft or the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

"When we walked out that crew access arm, I just had images of all those Apollo launches and shuttle launches that I saw as a kid and it was unreal. I actually had to stop and just stay in the moment to really let it all sink in," Glover said.

Suit Up! Today, the #Artemis II crew and @NASAGroundSys successfully conducted a launch day demonstration. The demo included test spacesuits, a ride to Launch Complex 39B, and going up the mobile launcher to the crew access arm white room.https://t.co/vHl28fVSYR pic.twitter.com/7ed1hGvvy4

— NASA's Kennedy Space Center (@NASAKennedy) September 20, 2023

Artemis II will test and check out all of Orion's systems needed for future crewed missions and will pave the way for the agency to establish a long-term scientific and human presence on the lunar surface.