Artemis II Moon Mission Delayed by Florida Freeze; New Launch Date Set

• NASA's Artemis II Moon mission faces delays for its pre-launch fueling test and liftoff due to an Arctic cold wave hitting Florida.
• Freezing temperatures and strong winds at Kennedy Space Center necessitate protecting the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft.
• The unusual cold snap poses risks to flight hardware, requiring specialized heaters and environmental control systems for Orion.
• The critical wet dress rehearsal, involving loading 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellants, was postponed due to safety concerns.
• The rehearsal is now rescheduled for February 2, pushing the earliest possible launch date for Artemis II to February 8.

Why It Matters: Artemis II Moon mission delayed to February 8 due to freezing weather in Florida impacting pre-launch tests.