Space Launch System
134 articles
Photos: Close-ups of NASA’s moon rocket on the launch pad
These images from pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center show NASA’s Space Launch System moon rocket awaiting a rollback to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repairs.
NASA preps for return of SLS moon rocket to hangar
Ground teams moved a diesel-powered crawler-transporter underneath the Space Launch System moon rocket Sunday on pad 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, preparing the towering launcher for a return to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repairs.
NASA plans to roll first Artemis moon rocket back to hangar next week
NASA will move its first giant Space Launch System moon rocket off the launch pad and back to its hangar at the Kennedy Space Center as soon as next Tuesday, giving teams an opportunity to resolve several problems discovered during three attempts to load super-cold propellants into the launcher earlier this month.
Hydrogen leak halts tanking test for Artemis moon rocket
A hydrogen leak near the connection between NASA's Space Launch System moon rocket and its mobile launch platform foiled another attempt Thursday to pump cryogenic propellants into the towering mega-booster at the Kennedy Space Center.
VideoLive coverage: Technical issues again prevent full loading of SLS tanks
NASA tried for the third time Thursday to load cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants into the Space Launch System moon rocket at the Kennedy Space Center, after ground system issues cut short a countdown rehearsal on two occasions earlier this month. But a hydrogen leak in the connection between the launch platform and the core stage again forced officials to call off the countdown.
NASA restarts moon rocket wet dress rehearsal countdown
NASA restarted a two-day dress-rehearsal countdown Tuesday for the agency's new Space Launch System moon rocket after a series of unrelated glitches, mostly involving ground systems, blocked two earlier attempts to fully fuel the huge launcher to verify its readiness for flight.
Citing valve problem, NASA will load only the SLS core stage in next countdown test
A problem with a helium valve on the Space Launch System moon rocket's upper stage will require ground teams to only partially load the giant launcher with cryogenic propellants during an upcoming countdown dress rehearsal, NASA officials said Saturday. NASA also confirmed teams now targeting Thursday for the next try to complete the test.
NASA’s SLS moon rocket, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 share the scene at Kennedy Space Center
NASA’s Artemis 1 moon rocket and SpaceX’s Falcon 9 shared the scene Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center — the first time since 2009 that rockets have stood on both pads at Launch Complex 39.
NASA bumps Artemis countdown rehearsal until after Axiom crew launch
NASA officials said Tuesday they are standing down from a cryogenic loading test on the agency's Space Launch System moon rocket until after the launch of a commercial crew mission from a neighboring pad at the Kennedy Space Center. A countdown test Monday was delayed by what NASA managers characterized as minor issues, including a liquid oxygen temperature concern and a manual valve that was left in the wrong configuration before teams evacuated the SLS launch pad.
Ground system problem halts Artemis 1 countdown dress rehearsal
NASA launch controllers called off plans to load super-cold liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen into the first fully-assembled Space Launch System moon rocket Sunday for a countdown dress rehearsal, giving time for ground teams to troubleshoot problems with fans used to ventilate the giant rocket's mobile launch structure at the Kennedy Space Center.