NASA conducts second rocket fuelling test that will decide when Artemis astronauts head to moon

Cape Canaveral: NASA took another crack at fuelling its giant moon rocket Thursday after leaks halted the initial dress rehearsal and delayed the first lunar trip by astronauts in more than half a century.

For the second time this month, launch teams pumped more than 700,000 gallons (2.6 million liters) of supercold fuel into the rocket atop its launch pad.

They counted all the way down to the half-minute mark as planned, then turned back the clocks to run through the final 10 minutes again.

NASA completed the test late at night and said there was minimal hydrogen leakage, well within safety limits.

It was the most critical and challenging part of the two-day practice countdown.

Engineers were analysing the data, with the outcome determining whether a March launch is possible for the Artemis II moon mission with four astronauts.