Artemis I is an uncrewed mission that will be the first in a series of increasingly complex missions to the Moon, eventually taking humans back to Earth’s lone satellite. During the mission, NASA will demonstrate the performance and capabilities of its most powerful launch vehicle ever, the Space Launch System (SLS), and the Orion crew capsule. During the approximately six-week-long mission, SLS and Orion will travel a distance of around 65,000 kilometres to the Moon and back.

NASA will host a live broadcast of the event which will feature celebrity appearances from Jack Black, Chris Evans, and Keke Palmer. It will also include a special performance of the American national anthem by musicians Josh Groban and Herbie Hancock. There will also be a performance of “America the Beautiful,” conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin and performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. You can watch the livestream right here and get updated about the mission as it happens.

Both the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen tanks of the core stage are filled. The launch director had signed off on a plant to troubleshoot one of the RS-25 engines which is malfunctioning. The troubleshooting plan did not work and now the hydrogen team has been asked to come up with a new plan to solve the issue. The countdown clock has been put on hold at T-40 minutes as the hydrogen team discusses options with the launch director.