All articles tagged with #space launch system
NASA rolled the Artemis II Space Launch System rocket from its launch pad back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for a helium-pressurization repair on the upper stage, delaying the mission around the Moon to no earlier than April 1 and prompting a diagnostic rollback to pinpoint the valve or related components.
NASA has rolled back the Artemis II rocket to the Vehicle Assembly Building after a helium-flow problem in the upper stage of the Space Launch System, delaying a March liftoff. Engineers are investigating the cause while officials consider potential April launch windows, with further testing likely. When/if it launches, Artemis II will carry four astronauts on a 10-day lunar flyby, marking the first deep-space mission since Apollo ended in 1972.
NASA plans to roll the Artemis II SLS rocket and Orion back from the Kennedy Space Center launch pad to the Vehicle Assembly Building to repair a helium‑flow issue that halted recent tests, delaying the first crewed lunar mission and threatening the April launch window while engineers diagnose the root cause.
NASA is evaluating rolling Artemis II back to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center after detecting an interrupted helium flow in the interim cryogenic propulsion stage, a finding that is likely to delay the March launch window for the four-astronaut lunar flyby and affect preparations leading to Artemis III.
NASA says a new interruption in helium flow to the Space Launch System’s upper stage could delay the March crewed lunar flight (Artemis II); engineers are weighing repairs at the hangar or at the launch pad, following earlier hydrogen-fuel-leak delays. Four astronauts remain in quarantine as NASA reviews data and scrambles to preserve the mission timeline, though the first crewed Moon landing under Artemis is still years away.
NASA carried out a second fueling test of the Space Launch System rocket for Artemis II at Kennedy Space Center, loading the giant launch vehicle with propellants as Orion sits atop the mobile launcher, marking progress toward the crewed lunar mission.
NASA is still troubleshooting persistent liquid hydrogen leaks on the Artemis II rocket during a wet dress rehearsal, delaying tests and echoing past issues from Artemis I and the Space Shuttle era. The problem stems from hydrogen’s properties and the SLS’s legacy design, a product of congressional decisions to reuse Shuttle hardware. Engineers are replacing seals and refining fueling procedures, but officials say Artemis II is an experimental vehicle, and a permanent fix would require a major redesign rather than a quick workaround.
NASA restarted the countdown for Artemis II after fixing liquid hydrogen leaks by replacing seals and a clogged filter at Kennedy Space Center. The two-day wet dress rehearsal will culminate in a fuel-fill test, with the four Artemis II astronauts monitoring remotely, and, if all tests are leak-free, could lead to a March launch window for the crewed Moon mission.
NASA is fixing a hydrogen-fuel leak on the Space Launch System before the Artemis II countdown rehearsal, after a confidence test showed reduced fuel flow and a filter replacement is planned. The safety limit for hydrogen concentrations, raised to 16% from 4% since Artemis I, remains in effect based on test data. Artemis III will seek cryoproofing and redesigned propellant-loading interfaces; if Artemis II misses March, additional launch opportunities exist in April and May.
NASA has postponed Artemis II from February to March after a hydrogen leak at the tail service mast umbilical halted a wet dress rehearsal; the countdown was stopped just before launch and engineers will conduct additional testing and repairs before the mission can launch in the March window (March 6–11). The four-astronaut crew remains in Houston during the delay.
NASA has delayed the Artemis 2 wet‑dress fueling test to no earlier than February 2 due to below‑freezing temperatures at Kennedy Space Center. The test will simulate the countdown and fueling of the Space Launch System as a final readiness check ahead of Artemis 2, the first crewed lunar mission since 1972. If the test goes smoothly, NASA will proceed toward the February launch window (Feb. 8–11), with core operations teams mobilizing about 49 hours before liftoff.
NASA’s Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket sits on Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center with a 24/7 livestream tracking prep for a February 6 target. The 10‑day crewed mission will loop four astronauts—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen—around the Moon after a wet dress rehearsal, with backup launch windows possible in February–April if needed. The streams offer continuous visibility, though views can be obscured by Atlantic fog; the mission would mark milestones including Glover as the first person of color to leave LEO, Koch as the first woman, and Hansen as the first Canadian to travel on Artemis.
NASA’s Artemis II episode of NASA’s Curious Universe previews the first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years, detailing the Orion spacecraft’s life-support, hygiene, and seating layout plus the astronauts’ crew identity “Integrity.” It also dives into the Space Launch System rocket—its powerful solid boosters, core stage engines, and onboard flight computers—and explains how NASA uses extensive simulations and human-in-the-loop testing to safeguard the four-astronaut crew (Glover, Wiseman, Koch, Hansen) as they loop around the Moon and return to Earth, building on Artemis I lessons for a sustained lunar presence.
NASA's Artemis 2 mission rocket sits on Launch Complex-39B at Kennedy Space Center with a 24/7 livestream tracking progress, as the agency readies a wet dress rehearsal and a no-earlier-than Feb. 6 launch that will carry four astronauts—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen—around the Moon to test the SLS/Orion system ahead of Artemis 3.
An International Space Station astronaut photographed NASA's Space Launch System rocket on the Kennedy Space Center launch pad as Artemis 2 readies to launch a four-astronaut lunar mission (Reid Williams, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen); the launch window targets February 6, with Artemis 3 planned for 2027–28 and Orion testing ahead of crewed lunar landings.