January 31, 2026 1:35 PM.
NASA has postponed the launch of its Artemis II mission to the Moon due to unfavourable weather conditions in Florida.
The space agency now targets February 8 as the earliest possible launch date, replacing the earlier plan of February 6.The decision follows a review of cold weather and strong winds linked to a rare Arctic outbreak affecting the region.
NASA will conduct the wet dress rehearsal on February 2, after which a final launch date will be confirmed. Artemis II is a 10-day crewed mission that will carry four astronauts on a journey around the Moon to test the Orion spacecraft and deep-space exploration systems. The mission will not involve a lunar landing.
Extreme cold for Florida forced specialists to cancel a critical fueling test of the 98-meter rocket, which was scheduled for Saturday. Currently, engineers are using special heaters to maintain the necessary temperature inside the Orion capsule and are adapting the rocket’s cleaning systems to operate in low temperatures. The dress rehearsal for the launch has now been postponed to Monday, but the further schedule depends entirely on the whims of the weather.
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