NASA is preparing to roll out its towering Artemis 2 moon rocket to Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center on Jan. 17, and we will have full coverage of the major event here.
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Artemis 2 moon rocket emerges from giant hangar
As we near the 2-hour mark of NASA's up to 10-hour move of the Artemis 2 rocket to its Florida launch pad, the 322-foot-tall Space Launch System is fully visible and has exited its massive Vehicle Assembly Building hangar.
Above is an amazing image from Space.com's Josh Dinner at the Kennedy Space Center as he's monitoring the rollout to Pad 39B.
Here's a video update from Josh via the Space.com TikTok channel.
"The place is basically a rocket cathedral," Dinner says of the VAB.
First motion for Artemis 2 rollout!
NASA reports that the towering Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket is officially on the move.
First motion for today's rollout occurred at 7:04 a.m. EST (1204 GMT) as the huge rocket began its daylong trip to the launch pad. It is about 4 miles to Pad 39B from NASA's 52-stroy Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), where the SLS for Artemis 2 was stacked and assembled.
"It takes us a little while to get out of the building, but about an hour after we get that first motion, you'll begin to see this beautiful vehicle cross over the threshold of the VAB and come outside for the world to have a look," Artemis 2 Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson said Friday.
Here's a look at our report from Friday's Artemis 2 press conference:
Rollout day begins for NASA's Artemis 2
Good morning, Space Fans!
Rollout day is here fro NASA's Artemis 2 moon rocket and the livestream for the giant moon rocket's move is underway. It could take up to 8 to 10 hours for NASA's Crawler Transporter 2 to haul the combined 11 million pound stack of the Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket, mobile launch platform and Orion spacecraft to the pad.
Space.com's Josh Dinner is on the scene and shared a first update before dawn at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
How to watch NASA's Artemis 2 rocket rollout
Now that we're all set for rollout, this will be our final post of the day.
Thanks for joining us and we'll see you bright an early on Saturday for rollout.
NASA Artemis 2 rollout briefing ends
Overall, it appears NASA is ready to move the 322-foot-tall Space Launch System rocket out to Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Jan. 17, but time appears tight for the space agency's hope to launch the four Artemis 2 astronauts to the moon in February as planned.
Artemis 2 is NASA's first crewed Artemis mission and the first astronaut mission to the moon in over 50 years. As such, a series of tests on both the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft for the mission must go well before it will be clear for astronauts to fly on then.
NASA has launched an SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft before, on the Artemis 1 mission in November 2022, but that was an uncrewed test flight. The Orion spacecraft on Artemis 2 is the first to include many life support systems to sustain astronuts on the 10-day mission.
NASA also wants to complete a fueling test on Feb. 2 that will help the space agency decide if it can proceed with a February launch. The February launch window is limited to a series of days between Feb. 6-10.
It took three attempts to launch Artemis 1, with fuel leaks contributing to two delays. NASA believe its has fixes in place, but needs to test them before Artemis 2 can launch.
If Artemis 2 is unable to launch in February, NASA can try again in March and April.
Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson said NASA has launch opportunities every month for Artemis 2, ranging from a few days to up to a week.
NASA Artemis 2 rollout press conference begins
- John Honeycutt, Artemis II mission management team chair
- Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director, Exploration Ground Systems
- Jeff Radigan, Artemis II lead flight director, Flight Operations Directorate
- Lili Villarreal, landing and recovery director, Exploration Ground Systems
- Jacob Bleacher, chief exploration scientist, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate
"I will say, it really doesn't get much better than this," Honeycutt says in opening remarks." This is making history."
NASA to hold press conference on Artemis 2 rollout
Hello, Space Fans! NASA is one day away from its historic rollout of the Artemis 2 rocket that will carry four astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years.
The Artemis 2 rocket, NASA's second Space Launch System booster, is currently scheduled to head out to Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT). It should take several hours for the towering 322-foot rocket to reach the launch pad.
Space.com's Josh Dinner is on the scene at Kennedy Space Center for the Artemis 2 rollout, and will share insights on what the view is like there.
But first, NASA will hold a press conference today at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT) to discuss the Artemis 2 rollout, plans for the Feb. 6 launch of the 10-day mission around the moon.
You can watch that press conference live in the window above.
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