NASA’s Artemis II Mission: Space Launch System Rocket Prepares for Astronaut-Powered Journey Near the Moon's Surface

NASA’s Artemis II Mission: Space Launch System Rocket Prepares for Astronaut-Powered Journey Near the Moon's Surface
Image credit: NASA

NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is set to send four astronauts on the Artemis II mission next year, coming within 80 miles of the lunar surface.

The SLS’s 213-foot-tall core stage has begun its journey to the Kennedy Space Center via a barge, after departing NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. Boeing Space, which played a key role in manufacturing the rocket, shared footage of the core stage's departure, including its 1.3-mile transport to the Pegasus barge.

The barge will travel 900 miles to the Kennedy Space Center, where the SLS will undergo final testing before the Artemis II mission, slated for September 2025. This core stage includes cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen tanks for its four RS-25 rocket engines, along with the vehicle’s avionics and flight computer.

The four astronaut set for the Artemis II mission in September 2025
Image credit: NASA

Artemis II will be the first human mission to lunar orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. The SLS rocket, with 8.8 million pounds of thrust, has flown only once before in 2022, successfully testing both the rocket and the Orion spacecraft.

A successful Artemis II mission will set the stage for Artemis III, aiming to land the first woman and person of color on the moon. The plan involves the SLS launching Orion to lunar orbit, where it will dock with SpaceX’s Starship to transfer astronauts to the moon's surface.

With SpaceX still testing its Starship vehicle, the Artemis III schedule could be delayed, but NASA aims to have Artemis astronauts on the moon before the decade's end.