NASA communications officials Derrol Nail has reported that launch team technicians are currently troubleshooting an issue with a battery on board the rocket which had a temperature ‘out of range.’

‘Although it’s not a constraint for launch right now, it would be when that temperature is checked in side of T-minus six minutes,’ Nail said.

Currently, NASA workers are not sure if the issue is a problem with the battery itself or with the sensor which monitors its temperature.

The countdown is continuing while technicians work to determine the cause of the problem and correct it before launch time at 6.24pm ET.

American Christian singer Anne Wilson will perform the National Anthem for the Artemis II launch.

‘As America prepares to send astronauts around the Moon for the first time in over 50 years, her voice will help open this historic moment,’ NASA wrote on X.

NASA weather officer Mark Burger reported that the weather at the Kennedy Space Center has improved, giving Wednesday’s launch of Artemis II a 90 percent chance of an on-time launch.

Previously, Burger had said there was an 80 percent chance of the launch window avoiding any rain that was forecasted to be in the area around Florida.

Astronauts on the International Space Station posted on social media that they are watching the Artemis II launch.

‘Godspeed, Artemis II!’ astronaut Jessica Meir wrote on X.

The door of the Orion spacecraft is closed, marking the completion of one of the most critical steps for the Artemis II crew.

Inside the White Room at Launch Complex 39B, the controlled-access point where the astronauts entered the spacecraft, the closeout crew inspected seals, secured fasteners and verified that the hatch was airtight.

This process ensures Orion is fully pressurized and ready for flight. Once the hatch is closed and locked, the astronauts are officially sealed inside their spacecraft, marking a major milestone on the path to liftoff.

NASA revealed that a problem with the flight terminiation system has been fixed after technicians scrambled to use gear from the now decommissioned space shuttles to correct an issue with Artemis II.

NASA communications official Derrol Nail said: ‘The range is go.’

‘You combine that with the fact that the rocket and ground systems here are also working, no constraints, clear board here is great news.’

With the potentially critical systems problem corrected. Launch of Artemis II is still on track for 6.24pm ET.

Lucas Ye’s design for the zero gravity indicators was picked from over 2,600 submissions and also won him a trip to watch the Artemis II launch from Kennedy Space Center.

The 8-year-old from California told NASA the plushie’s designed was inspired by the iconic Earthrise photo taken during Apollo 8.

He said he was, ‘Really, really, really, really, really, really, really surprised and very happy’ to win and be here.

The 32–story Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is set to blast off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida with a two-hour launch window beginning at 6.24pm ET.

The mission is set to last 10 days, and the four astronauts on board will reside in the Orion capsule atop the rocket.

After liftoff, the astronauts will spend the first 25 hours circling Earth in a high, lopsided orbit. They’ll use the separated upper stage as a target, steering their Orion capsule around it as docking practice for future moonshots.

If all goes as planned, Orion’s main engine will hurl the crew to the moon some 244,000 miles away.

On flight day six, Orion will reach its farthest point from Earth as it sails 5,000 miles beyond the moon.

After emerging from behind the moon, the crew will head straight home with a splashdown on flight day 10.

Less than two hours prior to the launch of Artemis II, NASA reported that the flight termination system is currently a ‘no-go,’ meaning the problem will need to be corrected before the rocket can safely launch Wednesday night.

Officials at Kennedy Space Center revealed that the ‘range is working,’ meaning that technicians were looking into an issue at the launch site, even though no other issues with the rocket were causing the launch countdown to stop.

NASA communications officials Derrol Nail: ‘Every rocket has a flight termination system. It’s the system that the eastern range here uses in order to, send a destruct signal to a rocket in case it veers off path.’

‘So it’s a very critical importance safety component, in terms of how the range keeps the public safe here, we understand that the flight termination system, they’re working in an issue.’

‘The bottom line of all this is at this moment, the range is no go up. But that is not stopping us from moving forward in the countdown.’

‘We can continue to, process and work the countdown. The closeout crew will continue to do their work, and and the launch team will continue to do their work as well.’

This is a breaking story. More details to follow.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman sat down with the Daily Mail to talk about President Donald Trump’s plan to return to the moon.