NASA to try one more time Artemis I pre-launch test

NASA and Microsoft are now in charge of astronaut safety 1:27

(CNN) --

A third attempt at a crucial pre-launch test for NASA's Artemis I lunar mission will take place this Sunday, after the previous two attempts were called off, the agency said in a statement.

The general fuel test, which simulates all stages of the launch without the rocket leaving the pad, will begin at 5 pm ET on Sunday and is expected to last until 2:40 pm ET on Monday, according to the statement.

The test is an important step in the first phase of NASA's Artemis program, which is expected to return humans to the Moon and host the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface by 2025.

• It's time for the big test of NASA's Artemis I lunar mission

The general test with fuel was scheduled for last Sunday, but was suspended before loading the propellant.

This was due to problems with two fans used to provide pressure to the mobile launcher, the mobile tower on which the rocket sits before taking off.

The next day, NASA said it was able to resolve the malfunction of the fans, which are needed to pressurize the enclosed areas inside the launcher and keep dangerous gases out.

The test was attempted again Monday but was stopped before completion due to a problem with a panel on the mobile launcher that controls the core stage vent valve, said Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director for the NASA's Earth Exploration Systems program.

The valve releases pressure from the rocket's core stage while the fuel tank is being filled, according to NASA.

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The results of the overall fuel test will determine when Artemis I will be launched on a mission that goes beyond the Moon and back to Earth.

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During the flight, the unmanned Orion spacecraft will launch atop the SLS rocket to reach the Moon and travel thousands of miles beyond it, farther than any spacecraft intended to carry humans has ever traveled.

This mission is expected to last a few weeks and end with Orion's splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

Artemis I will be Orion's last testing ground before the spacecraft takes astronauts to the Moon, 1,000 times farther from Earth than the International Space Station.

Following the uncrewed flight of Artemis I, Artemis II will be a manned flight to the Moon, and Artemis III will return astronauts to the lunar surface.

The launch schedule for the following missions depends on the results of the Artemis I mission.

-- CNN's Katie Hunt and Ashley Strickland contributed to this report.

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