Just Days From SLS Rollout, Here’s the Latest Update for NASA’s Artemis 2 Mission

It’s official: NASA plans to roll its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft out to the launch pad on Saturday. The move will signal the final stage of preparation for the Artemis 2 mission, which will send astronauts beyond Earth’s orbit and around the Moon for the first time since the Apollo era.

In a Friday update, NASA said it could take up to 12 hours for the SLS to complete the 4-mile (6.4-kilometer) journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at Kennedy Space Center to Launch Pad 39B. Teams are working 24/7 to complete the necessary tasks ahead of rollout, but it could be pushed back if they need more time for technical preparations or if the weather interferes.

“We have important steps remaining on our path to launch and crew safety will remain our top priority at every turn, as we near humanity’s return to the Moon,†Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, said in the statement.

If the agency can complete these steps without any major complications, Artemis 2 could launch as soon as February 6. Here are the latest mission developments and everything that still needs to happen before liftoff.

Orion’s heat shield cleared for launch

Artemis 2 was originally scheduled to launch in November 2024, but NASA pushed the mission back to September 2025 after Orion’s heat shield eroded unexpectedly during the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission. NASA engineers expected some charring as the spacecraft endured temperatures above 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,760 degrees Celsius) while reentering Earth’s atmosphere, but more of the heat shield’s ablative material sloughed off than anticipated.

An ensuing investigation into the heat shield issue and additional technical problems further delayed Artemis 2 to April 2026. In September, however, NASA said it could launch as early as February. Since then, the big question has been whether Orion will be ready in time.

On Thursday, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the agency has “full confidence in the Orion spacecraft and its heat shield,†Ars Technica reports. This determination is “grounded in rigorous analysis and the work of exceptional engineers who followed the data throughout the process,†he added.

The two years NASA spent testing and analyzing the heat shield issue have led engineers to believe that they can minimize damage to the shield by increasing the angle of Orion’s descent during Artemis 2. This will shorten the amount of time Orion spends exposed to extreme heat. NASA is confident that the revised reentry profile will be perfectly safe for the astronauts on board.

A long checklist of launch preparations

Once the stacked SLS and Orion spacecraft are on the launch pad, NASA will begin preparing both the rocket and the pad for launch.

This will include connecting ground support equipment such as electrical lines, fuel environmental control system ducts, and cryogenic propellant feeds. Teams will also power up all integrated systems at the pad for the first time to make sure flight hardware, the mobile launcher, and ground infrastructure systems are all functioning properly.

After those preparations are complete, the Artemis 2 crew—consisting of NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen—will conduct a final walkdown at the pad.

If that all goes according to plan, NASA will conduct a wet dress rehearsal at the end of January. During this final test, both SLS and Orion will be powered on, and ground crews will load the rocket with propellant. Engineers will then run a launch countdown without firing the rocket’s boosters, instead rehearsing how to safely drain propellant from the SLS.

The mission’s “closeout crew†(a team of NASA personnel responsible for securing the Artemis 2 astronauts inside Orion and closing its hatches before launch) will also use the wet dress rehearsal to practice their procedures without astronauts on board.

Wet dress rehearsals are tricky—it’s virtually inevitable for technical problems to arise during this process. That’s actually a good thing, as NASA needs to address any issues before the real deal, but it also means getting ready for launch could take some time.

If Artemis 2 isn’t ready to launch by February 6, there are subsequent launch opportunities on February 7, 8, 10, and 11. After that, the next launch opportunities are March 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11, followed by April 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 30.

This long-awaited mission will pave the way for Artemis 3, the historic return of NASA astronauts to the lunar surface. The agency is under mounting pressure to achieve this feat before China, so getting Artemis 2 off the ground as soon as possible is currently its primary goal.