Tag: Artemis II
-
In their own words: The Artemis II crew on the frenetic first hours of their flight
How calm, cool, and utterly chill is the crew of NASA’s first Moon mission in more than half a century? Let’s start with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. “You know me, personally, I hope to take a very short nap on the pad,” he said. “There’s enough time built in there to have a nap. I’ve…
-
Artemis II astronauts discuss mission status ahead of in-capsule training
Scheduled to launch in February 2026, the Artemis II Orion capsule and Space Launch System (SLS) rocket are currently at Kennedy Space Center in Florida for final integration and stacking. The Artemis II astronauts — comprised of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — recently spoke…
-
Artemis II stacking and preparations underway even as SLS faces budget cuts
The SLS program continues with preparations for the first human spaceflight to the Moon’s vicinity since 1972. Currently scheduled for April 2026, the mission’s date could be moved up to as early as February if no major issues arise. Meanwhile, the program’s future faces uncertainties as the proposed NASA budget for Fiscal Year 2026 aims…
-
Rocket Report: Rocket Lab to demo cargo delivery; America’s new ICBM in trouble
Welcome to Edition 7.43 of the Rocket Report! There’s been a lot of recent news in hypersonic testing. We cover some of that in this week’s newsletter, which is just a taste of the US military’s appetite for fielding its own hypersonic weapons, and conversely, the Pentagon’s emphasis on the detection and destruction of an…
-
Rocket Report: Rocket Lab to demo cargo delivery; America’s new ICBM in trouble
Welcome to Edition 7.43 of the Rocket Report! There’s been a lot of recent news in hypersonic testing. We cover some of that in this week’s newsletter, which is just a taste of the US military’s appetite for fielding its own hypersonic weapons, and conversely, the Pentagon’s emphasis on the detection and destruction of an…
-
NASA just swapped a 10-year-old Artemis II engine with one nearly twice its age
A couple of weeks ago, ground teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida removed one of the four main engines from the Space Launch System rocket slated to send four astronauts on a voyage around the Moon next year. NASA officials ordered the removal of one of the massive rocket’s RS-25 main engines after…
-
Rocket Report: Stoke is stoked; sovereignty is the buzzword in Europe
Welcome to Edition 7.37 of the Rocket Report! It’s been interesting to watch how quickly European officials have embraced ensuring they have a space launch capability independent of other countries. A few years ago, European government satellites regularly launched on Russian Soyuz rockets, and more recently on SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets from the United States.…
-
As preps continue, it’s looking more likely that NASA will fly the Artemis II mission
Late Saturday night, technicians at Kennedy Space Center in Florida moved the core stage for NASA’s second Space Launch System rocket into position between the vehicle’s two solid-fueled boosters. Working inside the iconic 52-story-tall Vehicle Assembly Building, ground teams used heavy-duty cranes to first lift the butterscotch orange core stage from its cradle in the…
-
Rocket Report: SpaceX lands in the Bahamas; ULA tests modified booster
Welcome to Edition 7.32 of the Rocket Report! It’s true that the US space program has always been political. Domestic and global politics have driven nearly all of the US government’s decisions on major space issues, most notably President John F. Kennedy’s challenge to land astronauts on the Moon amid intense Cold War competition with…
-
Artemis II rescheduled for spring of 2026 as program decides on path forward
The Artemis II mission, humanity’s first crewed mission to the vicinity of the Moon since 1972, will wait longer to get off the ground. Originally planned for September 2025, Artemis II will now fly no earlier than April 2026 but will fly with the original Orion command module and heat shield. A heat shield replacement…