Tag: Orion
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Countdown underway for critical moon rocket fueling test Monday
A full moon rises behind NASA’s Space Launch System moon rocket atop pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center. If a practice countdown and fueling test Monday go well, NASA is expected to press ahead with launch of the Artemis 2 mission on Feb. 8, sending four astronauts on a flight around the moon. Image:…
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NASA readies unique science experiments and tech demonstrations for Artemis II crew
Artemis II, the next mission in NASA’s Artemis program to explore the Moon, is scheduled to launch from Florida within the coming weeks. The mission will be the first crewed mission to the vicinity of the Moon since 1972, with the four-person crew expected to travel farther than any other human mission in spaceflight history.…
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‘The start of a very long journey’: NASA’s Artemis moon rocket makes the slow trip to its launch pad
NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and its mobile launcher head for the launch pad. (NASA Photo / Keegan Barber) NASA’s massive Space Launch System rocket crept to its Florida launch pad today at a top speed of about 1 mph, marking the first step in a journey that will eventually send astronauts around the moon…
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Artemis II rolls out to LC-39B for first crewed lunar mission since 1972
The rocket and spacecraft that will perform the first human spaceflight to the vicinity of the Moon since December 1972 rolled out to Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Orion spacecraft and its associated Space Launch System rocket, mounted on its mobile launch platform, started its rollout with…
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Is Orion’s heat shield really safe? New NASA chief conducts final review on eve of flight.
WASHINGTON, DC—This week, NASA’s new administrator, Jared Isaacman, said he has “full confidence” in the space agency’s plans to use the existing heat shield to protect the Orion spacecraft during its upcoming lunar mission. Isaacman made the determination after briefings with senior leaders at the agency and a half-day review of NASA’s findings with outside…
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Orion hatch ‘blemish’ delays launch day rehearsal for Artemis 2 astronauts
Technicians with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems team use a crane to lift and secure NASA’s Orion spacecraft on top of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, for the agency’s Artemis 2 mission. Image: NASA/Kim…
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Orion spacecraft arrives at VAB ahead of stacking for Artemis 2
NASA’s Orion spacecraft, named ‘Integrity’ by her crew, rolled about seven miles from the Launch Abort System Facility to the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on Oct. 16, 2025. The spacecraft will be the first crewed vehicle to travel to the Moon since Apollo 17, when it launches on the Artemis 2…
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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…
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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…
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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…