Space Launch System
NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket hit by new problem expected to bump moonshot into early April
Engineers ran into problems repressurizing the Artemis 2 moon rocket’s upper stage helium tanks overnight Friday, a problem that will require rolling the huge rocket off the launch pad and back to its processing hangar for troubleshooting. The work will push the already delayed mission from March to at least early April, officials said Saturday.
Moon mission fueling test concludes with no major problems
The practice countdown began Tuesday night, kicking off a carefully choreographed series of steps to ready the world’s most powerful operational rocket for what amounted to a simulated launch Thursday at 8:42 p.m. EST. Controllers then carried out additional tests to make sure the team can recycle, hold and restart an actual launch countdown as needed to handle unexpected problems.
NASA waves off February launch for Artemis II moon mission; now targeting early March
Artemis 2 commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, in pre-flight medical quarantine at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, had hope to fly to Florida Tuesday to begin final preparations for launch. Instead, they will remain in Houston and rejoin family, friends and co-workers.
How SpaceX’s Starship stacks up to other rockets
SpaceX Starship is set to propel itself into the record books today on its maiden flight, becoming the tallest, heaviest and most powerful rocket ever launched by humankind into space, topping a role call of famous and history-making heavy-lift launch vehicles including the mighty Saturn 5 that first took humans to the moon.