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The first crewed Artemis flight marks a key step toward long‑term return to the Moon and future missions to Mars.
Buildup of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for the Artemis III lunar mission has started at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, even as NASA prepares for the launch of the Artemis II mission, the second Artemis mission in NASA’s efforts to return humans to the Moon and eventually land on Mars.
The Artemis III SLS engine section and boat-tail – which protects the engines during launch – moved from the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA Kennedy to the mammoth Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) in late July, just a few feet from where the Artemis II SLS is mostly stacked and undergoing integrated testing and checkouts.
In this image, teams from Kennedy lift NASA’s integrated Artemis III SLS core stage engine section with its boat-tail inside the center’s Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Center on Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025. Shown inside the facility’s High Bay 2 for processing, the engine section is one the most complex and intricate parts of the rocket stage that will help power the Artemis missions to the Moon.
Credits: NASA/Cory Huston
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAKennedy #LVSA #Artemis #ArtemisIII
Sunday morning views of NASA’s Space Launch System and the Orion spacecraft.
Teams are progressing toward a 1:04am (ET) Wednesday launch.
In two of the photos, you can see some people at the base of the rocket for scale, as post-hurricane work on the rocket appears to be progressing.
Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program lift the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) core stage for the Artemis II mission from horizonal to vertical inside the transfer aisle at the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024. The one-of-a kind lifting beam is designed to move the core stage from the transfer aisle to High Bay 2 where it will remain while teams stack the two solid rocket boosters for the SLS core stage.
Credit: NASA/Adeline Morgan
#NASA #NASAMarshall #NASAKennedy #ArtemisII #Artemis #SpaceLaunchSystem #SLS #NASASLS #EGS #ExplorationGroundSystems
The Orion spacecraft with integrated European Service Module sit atop the Space Launch System, imaged at sunrise at historic Launchpad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA on 27 August.
The Flight Readiness Review has deemed the trio GO for launch, marking the dawn of a new era in space exploration.
The first in a series of missions that will return humans to the Moon, including taking the first European, Artemis I is scheduled for launch no earlier than Monday 29 August, at 14:33 CEST.
This mission will put NASA’s Orion spacecraft and ESA’s European Service Module to the test during a journey beyond the Moon and back. No crew will be on board Orion this time, and the spacecraft will be controlled by teams on Earth.
The crew module, however, won’t be empty. Two mannequins, named Helga and Zohar, will occupy the passenger seats. Their female-shaped plastic bodies are filled with over 5600 sensors each to measure the radiation load during their trip around the Moon. The specially trained woolly astronaut, Shaun the Sheep, has also been assigned a seat.
The spacecraft will enter lunar orbit using the Moon’s gravity to gain speed and propel itself almost half a million km from Earth – farther than any human-rated spacecraft has ever travelled.
The second Artemis mission will see four astronauts travel around the Moon on a flyby voyage around our natural satellite.
Mission duration depends on the launch date and even time. It will last between 20 to 40 days, depending on how many orbits of the Moon mission designers decide to make.
This flexibility in mission length is necessary to allow the mission to end as intended with a splashdown during daylight hours in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California, USA.
Two more dates are available if a launch on 29 August is not possible. The Artemis Moon mission can also be launched on 2 September and 5 September. Check all the possible launch options on ESA’s Orion blog.
Orion is the only spacecraft capable of human spaceflight outside Earth orbit and high-speed reentry from the vicinity of the Moon. More than just a crew module, Orion includes the European Service Module (ESM), the powerhouse that fuels and propels Orion.
ESM provides for all astronauts’ basic needs, such as water, oxygen, nitrogen, temperature control, power and propulsion. Much like a train engine pulls passenger carriages and supplies power, the European Service Module will take the Orion capsule to its destination and back.
Watch launch coverage on ESA Web TV starting at 12:30 CEST here. Follow @esaspaceflight for updates and live Twitter coverage.
Credits: ESA-S. Corvaja
Artist concept of SLS launching.
Image credit: NASA
Original image:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/s...
More about SLS:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
Space Launch System Flickr photoset:
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Exploration Ground Systems teams NASA's Kennedy Space Center recently mated the Spider to the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage for @NASAArtemis II.
The Spider, held up by the Transportation Integration Fixture, attaches to the top of core stage and is the connection point for lifting operations with the Vehicle Assembly Building high bay crane.
In this image, the Artemis II core stage in the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle with the Spider affixed.
Credit: NASA
#NASA #KennedySpaceCenter #Artemis #ArtemisII #SpaceLaunchSystem #Rocket #Launch #Moon #NASAMarshall #SLS #NASASLS #NASAArtemis #Space #SpaceExploration
NASA completed another step to ready its SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for the Artemis III mission as crews at the agency’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans recently applied a thermal protection system to the core stage’s liquid hydrogen tank.
Building on the crewed Artemis II flight test, Artemis III will add new capabilities with the human landing system and advanced spacesuits to send the first astronauts to explore the lunar South Pole region and prepare humanity to go to Mars. Thermal protection systems are a cornerstone of successful spaceflight endeavors, safeguarding human life, and enabling the launch and controlled return of spacecraft.
In this image, teams at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans move a liquid hydrogen tank for the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket into the factory’s final assembly area on April 22, 2025. The propellant tank is one of five major elements that make up the 212-foot-tall rocket stage.
Credits: NASA/Steven Seipel
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASA #SpaceLaunchSystem #SLS #NASASLS #Artemis #NASAArtemis #ArtemisII #ArtemisIII
This artist rendering shows an aerial view of the liftoff of the 70-metric-ton (77-ton) lift capacity configuration SLS from the launchpad. The first flight test of NASA's new rocket is scheduled for 2017. (Note: artist concept updated Oct. 23, 2013)
The Space Launch System, or SLS, will be designed to carry the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, as well as important cargo, equipment and science experiments to Earth's orbit and destinations beyond.
America’s new heavy-lift rocket will be the largest launch vehicle ever built and more powerful than the Saturn V rocket that carried Apollo astronauts to the moon. The 70-metric-ton configuration (77 tons) will lift more than 154,000 pounds and will provide 10 percent more thrust than the Saturn V rocket. The 130-metric-ton-configuration (143 tons) will lift more than 286,000 pounds and provide 20 percent more thrust than the Saturn V.
The first SLS mission — Exploration Mission 1 — in 2017 will launch an uncrewed Orion spacecraft to demonstrate the integrated system performance of the SLS rocket and spacecraft prior to a crewed flight.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC
Original image:
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More about SLS:
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Space Launch System Flickr photoset:
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_______________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Another element of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for Artemis II is poised for flight. Technicians joined the core stage March 23 with the stacked solid rocket boosters for the mission at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program and primary contractor Amentum used one of the five overhead cranes inside the spaceport’s Vehicle Assembly Building to lift the rocket stage from the facility’s transfer aisle to High Bay 3, where it was secured between the booster segments atop the launch tower.
In thi image, Artemis II Core Stage is lifted into High Bay 3 inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center on Sunday, March 23, 2025.
Credit: NASA/Frank Michaux
#NASA #space #moon #NASAMarshall #msfc #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #rockets #exploration #artemis #ArtemisIV #NASAMichoud
Watch technicians at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans move the engine section of NASA's #SpaceLaunchSystem rocket for #Artemis IV after welding was completed. This hardware is the first large piece manufactured for the Artemis IV mission and makes up the lowest portion of the 212-foot-tall core stage. Currently, the team is in the process of outfitting engine sections for the Artemis II and Artemis III missions.
Image credit: NASA/Jared Lyons
#MoontoMars #NASAMarshall #nasasls #artemis #NASA #NASAMarshall #MSFC #MarshallSpaceFlightCenter #SpaceLaunchSystem #MichoudAssemblyFacility #NASAMichoud
Team members with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program safely offloaded and transferred the 212-foot-tall Space Launch System (SLS) core stage from the agency’s Pegasus barge, which arrived at Kennedy Space Center's Complex 39 turn basin wharf on July 23 from Marshall Space Flight Center’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. It was then rolled to the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle where teams will process it until it is ready for rocket stacking operations.
SLS will be prepared for integration atop the mobile launcher ahead of the Artemis II launch, which will send NASA's first crewed mission to the Moon with the Artemis campaign.
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAMichoud #NASAKennedy
NASA is preparing the Space Launch System rocket core stage that will help power the first crewed mission of NASA’s Artemis campaign for shipment. On July 6, NASA and Boeing, the core stage lead contractor, moved the Artemis II rocket stage to another part of the agency’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The move comes as teams prepare to roll the massive rocket stage to the agency’s Pegasus barge for delivery to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in mid-July.
Prior to the move, technicians began removing external access stands, or scaffolding, surrounding the rocket stage in early June. NASA and Boeing teams used the scaffolding surrounding the core stage to assess the interior elements, including its complex avionics and propulsion systems. The 212-foot core stage has two huge propellant tanks, avionics and flight computer systems, and four RS-25 engines, which together enable the stage to operate during launch and flight.
Credit: NASA/Michael DeMocker
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAMichoud
On Jan. 17, NASA continued a critical test series for future flights of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket in support of the Artemis campaign with a full-duration hot fire of the RS-25 engine on the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
Data collected from the test series will be used to certify production of new RS-25 engines by lead contractor Aerojet Rocketdyne, an L3Harris Technologies company, to help power the SLS rocket on future Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond, beginning with Artemis V.
Image credit: NASA/Danny Nowlin
#NASA #NASAMarshall #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #exploration #rocket #artemis #ssc #StennisSpaceCenter #Stennis
This artist rendering shows an aerial view of the liftoff of the 70-metric-ton (77-ton) lift capacity configuration SLS from the launchpad. The first flight test of NASA's new rocket is scheduled for 2017.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC
Original image:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/s...
More about SLS:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
More SLS Photos:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr photoset:
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
The Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting a hotter-than-normal summer for Utah, but at Orbital ATK's test facility in Promontory, crews are bundling up to chill down the booster for the world's most powerful rocket, NASA's Space Launch System.
The booster is being cooled to approximately 40 degrees Fahrenheit ahead of its second qualification ground test June 28. Testing at the thermal extremes experienced by the booster on the launch pad is important to understanding the effects of temperature on the performance of how the propellant burns. Data and analysis from past human-rated space programs have set the temperature limits for boosters between 40 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The booster was heated to 90 degrees Fahrenheit for the first successful booster qualification test in March 2015.
"In the winter or summer, you expect your car to start -- regardless of what the temperature is outside," said Mat Bevill, deputy chief engineer in the SLS Boosters Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where the SLS program is managed for the agency. "That car had to be tested to ensure it performed as it was designed to do, even in wide temperature ranges. That's pretty much what we're doing -- except with a huge rocket booster."
To read the full article, click here.
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights, click here.
Editor's note: HUGE positive announcement about SLS today. Read all about it here! go.nasa.gov/1tcY5bV
Artist concept of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) 70-metric-ton configuration launching to space. SLS will be the most powerful rocket ever built for deep space missions, including to an asteroid and ultimately to Mars. The first SLS mission -- Exploration Mission 1 -- will launch an uncrewed Orion spacecraft to a stable orbit beyond the moon and bring it back to Earth to demonstrate the integrated system performance of the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft’s re-entry and landing prior to a crewed flight.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC
Original image:
www.nasa.gov/sls/multimedia/gallery/sls-through-clouds.html
More about SLS:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
More SLS Artist Concepts:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr photoset:
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
In this image from Dec. 11, 2024, the 212-foot-tall SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is lowered into High Bay 2 at the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With the move to High Bay 2, NASA and Boeing technicians now have 360-degree access to the core stage both internally and externally.
The Artemis II test flight, targeted for launch in 2026, will be NASA’s first mission with crew under the Artemis campaign. NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Reid Wiseman, as well as CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, will go on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back.
Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett
#NASA #space #moon #NASAKennedy #NASAMarshall #msfc #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #rockets #exploration #artemis #rocketengine
NASA tested RS-25 engine No. 20001 on June 20, at the Fred Haise Test Stand at NASA’s Stennis Space Center at Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Test teams fired the engine for almost eight-and-a-half minutes (500 seconds), the same amount of time RS-25 engines fire during a launch of an SLS (Space Launch System) rocket on Artemis missions to the Moon. The Artemis campaign will explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars – for the benefit of all.
Four RS-25 engines, built by contractor L3Harris Technologies (formerly Aerojet Rocketdyne), help power each SLS launch, producing up to 2 million pounds of combined thrust. During the test, operators also fired engine No. 20001 up to the 111% power level, the same amount of thrust needed to launch an SLS rocket, carrying the Orion spacecraft, to orbit. The full-duration “hot fire” was the first test since NASA completed certification testing for new production RS-25 engines in 2024.
Credit: NASA
#NASAMarshall #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #exploration #rocket #Artemis #NASAStennis
The primary structure of the Gateway space station's HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost) module is one step closer to launch following welding completion in Turin, Italy. HALO is one of four Gateway modules where astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for lunar surface missions. NASA is partnering with Northrop Grumman and their subcontractor Thales Alenia Space to develop HALO.
Credit: Northrop Grumman/Thales Alenia Space
#NASA #NASAMarshall #Gateway #Artemis
Astronauts and astronaut candidates from NASA and the Canadian Space Agency pose for a photograph in front of NASA’s Artemis I Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft atop the mobile launcher on the pad at Launch Complex 39B on Aug. 28, 2022. The astronauts are, from left to right: Randy Bresnik, NASA astronaut; Christina Birch, NASA astronaut candidate; Jessica Wittner, NASA astronaut candidate; Joshua Kutryk, Canadian Space Agency astronaut; Joe Acaba, NASA astronaut; Zena Cardman, NASA astronaut; Andre Douglas, NASA astronaut candidate; Shannon Walker, NASA astronaut; Reid Wiseman, NASA astronaut; Jessica Meir, NASA astronaut; Jack Hathaway, NASA astronaut candidate; Kate Rubins, NASA astronaut; Chris Williams, NASA astronaut candidate; Stephanie Wilson, NASA astronaut; Don Pettit, NASA astronaut; Stan Love, NASA astronaut; Jeremy Hansen, Canadian Space Agency astronaut; Victor Glover, NASA astronaut. Artemis I is scheduled to launch Aug. 29, at 8:33 a.m. EDT. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will provide a foundation for human deep space exploration and demonstrate our commitment and capability to extend human presence to the Moon and beyond. The primary goal of Artemis I is to thoroughly test the integrated systems before crewed missions by operating the spacecraft in a deep space environment, testing Orion’s heat shield, and recovering the crew module after reentry, descent, and splashdown. NASA/Kim Shiflett
This week in 2017, NASA engineers completed the eighth and final RS-25 rocket engine hot fire test at NASA’s Stennis Space Center. The engine tested included a large 3D-printed part scheduled for use on future RS-25 flight engines that will power the core stage of NASA’S Space Launch System. The part was a beach ball-sized pogo accumulator assembly that acts as a shock absorber to dampen vibrations, or oscillations, caused by propellants as they flow between the vehicle and the engine. The hardware performed as expected, opening the door for more components scheduled for future tests. Today, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is playing a vital role in the Artemis program by developing the SLS, the backbone of NASA’s exploration plans and the only rocket capable of sending humans to the Moon and Mars. The NASA History Program is responsible for generating, disseminating and preserving NASA’s remarkable history and providing a comprehensive understanding of the institutional, cultural, social, political, economic, technological and scientific aspects of NASA’s activities in aeronautics and space. For more pictures like this one and to connect to NASA’s history, visit the Marshall History Program’s webpage.
Image credit: NASA
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced July 25 the agency will conduct an “Green Run” core stage test for the Space Launch System rocket ahead of the upcoming Artemis 1 lunar mission.
The first eight minutes of every Artemis mission with NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket will begin with core stage and solid rocket boosters producing 8.8 million pounds of thrust to launch the agency’s Orion spacecraft to the Moon. NASA will test the rocket’s 212-foot tall core stage -- the tallest rocket stage the agency has ever built -- with a “Green Run” test on Earth before launch day to help ensure mission success and pave the way for future Artemis missions carrying crew to the Moon. Missions at the Moon will be a stepping stone to prepare for human exploration of Mars.
The "Green Run" acceptance test of the core stage for NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) will be conducted at the B-2 Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Flight Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The historic test stand has been used to test stages for multiple programs, including the Saturn V and the space shuttle. Here, NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) core stage "Pathfinder" is positioned beside the B-2 Test Stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The Pathfinder is the same shape, size and weight (without propellants loaded) as the actual SLS core stage.
Image credit: NASA
Liftoff! NASA’s Space Launch System carrying the Orion spacecraft lifts off the pad at Launch Complex 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 16, 2022 in this camera angle from above. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will provide a foundation for human deep space exploration and demonstrate our commitment and capability to extend human presence to the Moon and beyond. The primary goal of Artemis I is to thoroughly test the integrated systems before crewed missions by operating the spacecraft in a deep space environment, testing Orion’s heat shield, and recovering the crew module after reentry, descent, and splashdown. Photo credit: Chris Coleman and Kevin Davis
Teams at NASA’s Stennis Space Center install a new RS-25 engine nozzle in early February in preparation for continued testing on the Fred Haise Test Stand. NASA is conducting a series of tests to certify production of new RS-25 engines for future (Space Launch System) missions, beginning with Artemis V.
Image credit: NASA/Danny Nowlin
#NASA #NASAMarshall #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #exploration #rocket #artemis #ssc #NASAStennis
Coming through! 🚀
On Aug. 21, the first piece of hardware manufactured here at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center for a crewed NASA Artemis mission began its journey! The cone-shaped launch vehicle stage adapter was carefully transferred to the agency's Pegasus barge and is now on its way to Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Check out this new timelapse video as teams skillfully guide the 27.5 foot tall adapter for #Artemis II at Marshall.
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAMichoud #NASAKennedy #PegasusBarge #LVSA #Artemis #ArtemisII
The solid rocket boosters for NASA's Space Launch System rocket are the largest, most powerful boosters every built for flight. As NASA and Northrop Grumman teams in Utah prepare for a Flight Support Booster (FSB-1) test of NASA's Space Launch System rocket on Sept. 2, learn more about the SLS boosters in this episode of Rocket Science in 60 Seconds with SLS booster subsystem manager and #NASAMarshall team member Julia Khodabandeh.
Image credit: NASA/Tyson Eason
#NASA #space #moon #Mars #NASAMarshall #msfc #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #rockets #exploration #engineering #explore #rocketscience #artemis #solidrocketbooster
Since the mobile launcher returned in October from Launch Pad 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, work has been underway for upcoming stacking operations of NASA's SLS (Space Launch System) Moon rocket.
To prepare for launch, the mobile launcher is undergoing optical scans, system checkouts, and umbilical refurbishment, including installation of the aft skirt electrical umbilicals.
The booster segments soon will move from the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility to the VAB via a transporter. The aft assemblies, or bottom portions of the five segment boosters, will be situated in the facility's transfer aisle then lifted atop the mobile launcher in High Bay 3.
The examinations and preparations of the mobile launcher and rocket elements lay the groundwork for Artemis II crewed test flight around the Moon.
In this image, engineers and technicians with the Exploration Ground Systems Program prepare to transfer one of the aft assemblies of the SLS (Space Launch System) solid rocket boosters for the Artemis II mission with an overhead crane inside the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024.
Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAMichoud #NASAKennedy #Artemis #ArtemisII
NASA resumed Green Run testing activities this week on the first flight stage of its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, with the return of limited crews to perform work at the agency’s Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
This image shows core stage activity at Stennis.
Image credit: NASA/SSC
Aerojet Rocketdyne technicians put the final touches on the 16th engine for the RS-25 program. This engine will join three others to help propel the nation’s most powerful rocket, the Space Launch System, which is currently in-development by NASA.
Read Full article:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/
Credits: Aerojet Rocketdyne
More about SLS:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/index.html
More SLS Photos:
www.nasa.gov/exploration/systems/sls/multimedia/gallery/S...
Space Launch System Flickr photoset:
www.flickr.com/photos/28634332@N05/sets/72157627559536895/
_______________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
This video shows how crews at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, are manufacturing and assembling the launch vehicle stage adapter (LVSA) for the second flight of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The launch vehicle stage adapter in this video will be used for Artemis II, the first crewed mission of NASA’s Artemis program. The launch vehicle stage adapter is a cone-shaped piece of hardware that connects the rocket’s upper and lower stages. The LVSA is welded together as two unique cones, then stacked on top of one another. Technicians recently moved the aft cone to begin welding the LVSA at Marshall. While the larger stages of the SLS rocket are manufactured at other NASA facilities, the LVSA flight hardware is produced exclusively at Marshall by Teledyne Brown Engineering in Huntsville.
Image Credit: NASA
#NASA #space #moon #Mars #NASAMarshall #msfc #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #rockets #exploration #engineering #explore #rocketscience #artemis #LVSA #ArtemisII
A close-up view of the Artemis I Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft atop the mobile launcher at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 30, 2022. The SLS and Orion were transported to the pad on crawler-transporter 2 for a prelaunch test called a wet dress rehearsal. Artemis I will be the first integrated test of the SLS and Orion spacecraft. In later missions, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the surface of the Moon, paving the way for a long-term lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone on the way to Mars. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
This artist rendering shows an aerial view of the liftoff of the 70-metric-ton (77-ton) lift capacity configuration SLS from the launchpad.
The Journey to Mars became more real this week. For the first time in almost 40 years, a NASA human-rated rocket has completed all steps needed to clear a critical design review (CDR). The agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) is the first vehicle designed to meet the challenges of the journey to Mars and the first exploration class rocket since the Saturn V. The CDR provided a final look at the design and development of the integrated launch vehicle before full-scale fabrication begins.
Also as part of the CDR, the program concluded the core stage of the rocket and Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter will remain orange, the natural color of the insulation that will cover those elements, instead of painted white.
Image Credit: NASA/MSFC
(Artist concept updated Oct. 20, 2015)
Artist concept of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) 70-metric-ton configuration launching to space.
The Journey to Mars became more real this week. For the first time in almost 40 years, a NASA human-rated rocket has completed all steps needed to clear a critical design review (CDR). The agency’s Space Launch System (SLS) is the first vehicle designed to meet the challenges of the journey to Mars and the first exploration class rocket since the Saturn V. The CDR provided a final look at the design and development of the integrated launch vehicle before full-scale fabrication begins.
Also as part of the CDR, the program concluded the core stage of the rocket and Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter will remain orange, the natural color of the insulation that will cover those elements, instead of painted white.
Image Credit: NASA/MSFC
(Artist concept updated Oct. 20, 2015)
All eyes are on south Mississippi with this month’s delivery and installation of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket’s first core stage to Stennis Space Center for a milestone Green Run test series prior to its Artemis I flight.
Core stage installation
The Green Run testing will be the first top-to-bottom integrated testing of the stage’s systems prior to its maiden flight. The testing will be conducted on the B-2 Test Stand at Stennis, located near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and the nation’s largest rocket propulsion test site. Green Run testing will take place over several months and culminates with an eight-minute, full-duration hot fire of the stage’s four RS-25 engines to generate 2 million pounds of thrust, as during an actual launch.
In this image, the Pegasus barge, which delivered the core stage, is in the foreground with the first core stage mounted in the test stand beyond.
Image credit: NASA/SSC
Over the last month, NASA's Exploration Ground Systems team has made significant progress stacking NASA's Space Launch System solid rocket boosters for the #Artemis II mission.
Now, both boosters stand one aft assembly and one segment tall inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
Follow them on Facebook and X for more updates!
Credits: NASA
#NASA #NASAKennedy #NASAMarshall #nasasls #rocket #exploration #artemis #ExplorationGroundSystems #EGS #ArtemisII
As crews at #NASAMichoud near the end of production on the core stage for Artemis I, teams are working on flight hardware for Artemis II. The liquid hydrogen tank has been moved for proof testing at the factory.
Image credit: NASA/Jude Guidry
Engineers and technicians with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program integrate the right forward center segment onto mobile launcher 1 inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025. The boosters will help support the remaining rocket components and the Orion spacecraft during final assembly of the Artemis II Moon rocket and provide more than 75 percent of the total SLS (Space Launch System) thrust during liftoff from NASA Kennedy’s Launch Pad 39B
Credits: NASA
#NASA #space #moon #NASAKennedy #NASAMarshall #msfc #sls #spacelaunchsystem #nasasls #rockets #exploration #artemis #rocketengine #ExplorationGroundSystems #EGS #ArtemisII
The Orion spacecraft with integrated European Service Module sit atop the Space Launch System, imaged at sunrise at historic Launchpad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA on 27 August.
The Flight Readiness Review has deemed the trio GO for launch, marking the dawn of a new era in space exploration.
The first in a series of missions that will return humans to the Moon, including taking the first European, Artemis I is scheduled for launch no earlier than Monday 29 August, at 14:33 CEST.
This mission will put NASA’s Orion spacecraft and ESA’s European Service Module to the test during a journey beyond the Moon and back. No crew will be on board Orion this time, and the spacecraft will be controlled by teams on Earth.
The crew module, however, won’t be empty. Two mannequins, named Helga and Zohar, will occupy the passenger seats. Their female-shaped plastic bodies are filled with over 5600 sensors each to measure the radiation load during their trip around the Moon. The specially trained woolly astronaut, Shaun the Sheep, has also been assigned a seat.
The spacecraft will enter lunar orbit using the Moon’s gravity to gain speed and propel itself almost half a million km from Earth – farther than any human-rated spacecraft has ever travelled.
The second Artemis mission will see four astronauts travel around the Moon on a flyby voyage around our natural satellite.
Mission duration depends on the launch date and even time. It will last between 20 to 40 days, depending on how many orbits of the Moon mission designers decide to make.
This flexibility in mission length is necessary to allow the mission to end as intended with a splashdown during daylight hours in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California, USA.
Two more dates are available if a launch on 29 August is not possible. The Artemis Moon mission can also be launched on 2 September and 5 September. Check all the possible launch options on ESA’s Orion blog.
Orion is the only spacecraft capable of human spaceflight outside Earth orbit and high-speed reentry from the vicinity of the Moon. More than just a crew module, Orion includes the European Service Module (ESM), the powerhouse that fuels and propels Orion.
ESM provides for all astronauts’ basic needs, such as water, oxygen, nitrogen, temperature control, power and propulsion. Much like a train engine pulls passenger carriages and supplies power, the European Service Module will take the Orion capsule to its destination and back.
Watch launch coverage on ESA Web TV starting at 12:30 CEST here. Follow @esaspaceflight for updates and live Twitter coverage.
Credits: ESA-S. Corvaja
All four RS-25 engines were structurally mated to the core stage for NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for Artemis I, the first mission of SLS and NASA's Orion spacecraft. To complete assembly of the rocket stage, engineers and technicians are now integrating the propulsion and electrical systems within the structure. The completed core stage with all four RS-25 engines attached is the largest rocket stage NASA has built since the Saturn V stages for the Apollo Program that first sent Americans to the Moon. The stage, which includes two huge propellant tanks, provides more than 2 million pounds of thrust to send Artemis I to the Moon. Engineers and technicians at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans attached the fourth RS-25 engine to the rocket stage Nov. 6 just one day after structurally mating the third engine. The first two RS-25 engines were structurally mated to the stage in October. After assembly is complete, crews will conduct an integrated functional test of flight computers, avionics and electrical systems that run throughout the 212-foot-tall core stage in preparation for its completion later this year. This testing is the first time all the flight avionics systems will be tested together to ensure the systems communicate with each other and will perform properly to control the rocket's flight. Integration of the RS-25 engines to the massive core stage is a collaborative, multistep process for NASA and its partners Boeing, the core stage lead contractor, and Aerojet Rocketdyne, the RS-25 engines lead contractor.
Image credit: NASA/Eric Bordelon
In this view looking up from the flame trench at Launch Pad 39B, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft are photographed atop the mobile launcher at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 18, 2022. The Artemis I stack was carried from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the pad – a 4.2-mile journey that took nearly 11 hours to complete – by the agency’s crawler-transporter 2 for a wet dress rehearsal ahead of the uncrewed launch. Artemis I will test SLS and Orion as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moon. Through Artemis, NASA will land the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface, paving the way for a long-term lunar presence and serving as a steppingstone on the way to Mars. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Astronauts and astronaut candidates from NASA and the Canadian Space Agency pose for a photograph in front of NASA’s Artemis I Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft atop the mobile launcher on the pad at Launch Complex 39B on Aug. 28, 2022. The astronauts are, from left to right: Christina Birch, NASA astronaut candidate; Joe Acaba, NASA astronaut; Don Pettit, NASA astronaut; Victor Glover, NASA astronaut; Jeremy Hansen, Canadian Space Agency astronaut; Jessica Meir, NASA astronaut; Stan Love, NASA astronaut; Jack Hathaway, NASA astronaut candidate; Shannon Walker, NASA astronaut; Andre Douglas, NASA astronaut candidate; Kate Rubins, NASA astronaut; Chris Williams, NASA astronaut candidate; Reid Wiseman, NASA astronaut; Stephanie Wilson, NASA astronaut; Jessica Wittner, NASA astronaut candidate; Zena Cardman, NASA astronaut; Joshua Kutryk, Canadian Space Agency astronaut; Randy Bresnik, NASA astronaut. Artemis I is scheduled to launch Aug. 29, at 8:33 a.m. EDT. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will provide a foundation for human deep space exploration and demonstrate our commitment and capability to extend human presence to the Moon and beyond. The primary goal of Artemis I is to thoroughly test the integrated systems before crewed missions by operating the spacecraft in a deep space environment, testing Orion’s heat shield, and recovering the crew module after reentry, descent, and splashdown. NASA/Kim Shiflett
This is the fully-assembled NASA Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion capsule, seen outside the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center for the first time on March 17, 2022. Here the rocket is being transported to Launch Complex 39B, where it will undergo tests and a "wet dress rehearsal" in advance of the Artemis 1 mission.
For its inaugural launch, currently scheduled for mid-2022, the SLS will send the Orion capsule on a journey around the Moon and back.
The 4-mile journey to the pad took approximately 11-hours; The aptly named Crawler Transporter crawls along at about .8mph (1.28kph).
A Space Launch System (SLS) rocket small-scale solid rocket booster roared to life during a 22-second test on Aug. 6 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. The test with a 24-inch booster will help engineers evaluate a new material for booster nozzle cleaning that may be used on future SLS rocket boosters.
Image credit: NASA/Tyson Eason
22-9639; 20221116; Artemis; SLS; Orion; Launch; Orion; Artemis; Artemis-1; Artemis 1; SLS; Space Launch System; Lockheed Martin; Kennedy Space Center; KSC; aheadofready; Igor.Bertolucci@lmco.com; Credit Igor Bertolucci/LMCO
The Orion spacecraft with integrated European Service Module sit atop the Space Launch System, imaged at sunrise at historic Launchpad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA on 27 August.
The Flight Readiness Review has deemed the trio GO for launch, marking the dawn of a new era in space exploration.
The first in a series of missions that will return humans to the Moon, including taking the first European, Artemis I is scheduled for launch no earlier than Monday 29 August, at 14:33 CEST.
This mission will put NASA’s Orion spacecraft and ESA’s European Service Module to the test during a journey beyond the Moon and back. No crew will be on board Orion this time, and the spacecraft will be controlled by teams on Earth.
The crew module, however, won’t be empty. Two mannequins, named Helga and Zohar, will occupy the passenger seats. Their female-shaped plastic bodies are filled with over 5600 sensors each to measure the radiation load during their trip around the Moon. The specially trained woolly astronaut, Shaun the Sheep, has also been assigned a seat.
The spacecraft will enter lunar orbit using the Moon’s gravity to gain speed and propel itself almost half a million km from Earth – farther than any human-rated spacecraft has ever travelled.
The second Artemis mission will see four astronauts travel around the Moon on a flyby voyage around our natural satellite.
Mission duration depends on the launch date and even time. It will last between 20 to 40 days, depending on how many orbits of the Moon mission designers decide to make.
This flexibility in mission length is necessary to allow the mission to end as intended with a splashdown during daylight hours in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California, USA.
Two more dates are available if a launch on 29 August is not possible. The Artemis Moon mission can also be launched on 2 September and 5 September. Check all the possible launch options on ESA’s Orion blog.
Orion is the only spacecraft capable of human spaceflight outside Earth orbit and high-speed reentry from the vicinity of the Moon. More than just a crew module, Orion includes the European Service Module (ESM), the powerhouse that fuels and propels Orion.
ESM provides for all astronauts’ basic needs, such as water, oxygen, nitrogen, temperature control, power and propulsion. Much like a train engine pulls passenger carriages and supplies power, the European Service Module will take the Orion capsule to its destination and back.
Watch launch coverage on ESA Web TV starting at 12:30 CEST here. Follow @esaspaceflight for updates and live Twitter coverage.
Credits: ESA-A. Conigli
NASA will roll the fully assembled core stage for the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket that will launch the first crewed #Artemis mission out of NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans in mid-July. The 212-foot-tall stage will be loaded on the agency’s Pegasus barge for delivery to Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Here, the core stage is currently behind scaffolding to allow work to continue at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The stage’s two massive propellant tanks hold a collective 733,000 gallons of liquid propellant to power the four RS-25 engines at its base. Following hardware acceptance reviews and final checkouts, the stage will be readied for delivery.
Image credit: NASA/ Eric Bordelon
#Artemis #ArtemisI #Marshall #Space #NASASLS #Orion #NASA #NASAKennedy #EGS #ExoplorationGroundSystems
NASA rolled out a key piece of space flight hardware for the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for the first crewed mission of NASA’s Artemis campaign from Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, on Wednesday, Aug. 21 for shipment to the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The cone-shaped launch vehicle stage adapter connects the rocket’s core stage to the upper stage and helps protect the upper stage’s engine that will help propel the Artemis II test flight around the Moon, slated for 2025.
In this image, crews moved the cone-shaped launch vehicle stage adapter out of NASA Marshall’s Building 4708 to the agency’s Pegasus barge on August 21. The barge will ferry the adapter first to NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility, where it will pick up additional SLS hardware for future Artemis missions, and then travel to NASA Kennedy. In Florida, teams with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems will prepare the adapter for stacking and launch.
#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #NASAMichoud #NASAKennedy #PegasusBarge #LVSA #Artemis #ArtemisII
Inside NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, this image captures a detailed look at the Vertical Assembly Structure where components of the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage are integrated. Michoud is responsible for producing and assembling the massive cryogenic fuel tanks and structural sections for Artemis missions. The image highlights upper-level access platforms, fluid transfer lines, structural support towers, and work platforms surrounding cylindrical core stage hardware. The illuminated scaffolding, wiring harnesses, and service walkways reflect the precision required for assembling high-tolerance aerospace structures intended for deep space missions. The facility plays a key role in preparing the United States’ next-generation launch vehicles for lunar exploration.