Artemis I Progress Continues in NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building

As part of the preparations for the Artemis I mission, the crew access arm of the Orion spacecraft was tested for functionality by retracting and extending it, ensuring it’s ready for the scheduled wet dress rehearsal.

On January 11, engineers and technicians with Exploration Ground Systems retracted and extended the Orion spacecraft crew access arm as part of ongoing work leading up to the Artemis I wet dress rehearsal targeted for late February.

The arm rotates from its retracted position and interfaces with the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket at the Orion crew hatch location to provide entry and exit for the Orion crew module during operations in the Vehicle Assembly Building and at the launch pad. On crewed Artemis missions, the access arm also provides entry and exit for astronauts. The arm retracts from the Orion spacecraft before launch.

The team continues to complete final testing and closeouts of SLS and Orion.