Artemis 2 Megarockt will launch to the next NASA astronauts to the moon in 2026, it is almost completely assembled.
The giant space launch rocket (SLS) continues to grow inside the NASA vehicle assembly building (VAB). Kennedy Space Center (KSC) technicians in Florida, stacked the second stage of the rocket in the launch vehicle on Thursday (May 1). The interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPs) is responsible for carrying the Orion spacecraft and the crew of the rest of the road in orbit around the earth, and then sending them on their way to the moon.
This SLS rocket will launch the Artemis 2 mission, with NASA Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch astronauts, as well as the astronaut of the Canadian Space Agency Jeremy Hansen. The quartet is flying the second installment of the NASA Artemis program, whose objective is to establish a permanent presence on the moon as a technological springboard to send humans to Mars.
The next mission, Artemis 3, would like astronauts to the moon with the help of a spacecraft landing in 2027. That could be the last SLS rocket to fly, he thought. The Trump administration proposes to cancel the SLS and Orion program after Artemis 3 in its 2026 budget proposal on Friday (May 2).
Artemis 2 is scheduled to launch at some point in early 2026, more than three years after the launch of Artemis 1, in November 2022. Artemisa 1 sent a spacecraft of Orion without driving to the lunar orbit in a mission that was carried out. Orion and the crew earned to enter lunar orbit for artemis 2, but they will fly around the moon.
Instead of entering orbit, the ICP will direct Orion and the artemis 2 crew outside the earth’s orbit in a free return trajectory around the moon. This passes the spacecraft around the distant mole in a course directly back to earth.
The unexpected damage to the thermal shield of Orion Caa by the atmospheric reentry Duration Artemis 1 is to blame for the long time between Artemis 1 and Artemis 2. That damage delayed Artemis 2 and Artemis 3 for more than a year each. Artemis 3 is currently attacked by 2027, and will take the first astronauts to land on the moon from the Apollo missions.
Yesterday morning, the teams complete the stacking of the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPs) at the top of @Nasa_sls for the @Nasaartemis II mission. The ICPS is a rocket stage in the space that provides propulsion to the duration of @Nasaorion the first three missions of Artemis. Read more about … pic.twitter.com/2qbvcz6hwkMay 2, 2025
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Delivering the Orion keys! Lockheed Martin completed the assembly of the Orion Artemis II spacecraft and handed the vehicle to NASA Orion, which in turn transferred it to @Nasagroundsys for processing. Then, Orion will shoot by conveyor to @nasakennedy’s mppf to … pic.twitter.com/uancjeshhoMay 1, 2025
The ICP arrived at VAB last month. Now, NASA has shared photos of the ICPs that are stacked inside the Vabia in X, showing the stage while raising from the warehouse floor and got off in the SLS stage adapter.
NASA also received the delivery of Orion and its service module this week from the main contractor of the Lockheed Martin spacecraft. Before you go to the VAB for incorporation with SLS, Orion will be transferred by KSC exploration exploration systems for processing.
