Will Weather Allow Artemis II To Launch?

In just a few days, four astronauts could be heading to the moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

Liftoff for the Artemis II mission is tentatively scheduled for 6:24 p.m. Wednesday.

An Orion capsule will fly NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch with Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency on a 10-day trip to the moon and back.

“Things are certainly starting to feel real,” Koch said during a news conference Sunday.

(MORE: NASA Wants Humans Living On The Moon By 2028)

The astronauts won't land on the moon this time. That's planned for the Artemis III mission in early 2028.

“We can safely say the crew’s ready,” said Shawn Quinn, program manager for NASA's Exploration Ground Systems. “Rocket’s ready. Spaceship’s ready. Ground systems are ready, and we only need to have the weather cooperate.”

Weather Forecast

The 45th Weather Squadron is responsible for providing weather forecasts for rocket launches at Cape Canaveral, Florida. They post their latest forecasts here every morning. Right now there is a 20% probability of violating weather constraints, meaning there is an 80% chance the weather will cooperate for a successful launch.

The primary concerns are the violation of the Cumulus Cloud Rule and ground winds.

Our forecast for the Kennedy Space Center has a mix of sun and clouds, temperatures in the 70s and an easterly wind between 10 and 15 mph.

Isolated storms will be possible across the state, but the coverage will be isolated at best, so here's to hoping any activity stays far away from the launch pad.