Overview

• NASA officials said the launch window could open on February 5, 2026, moving up from the prior April target pending readiness assessments.
• Artemis II will be a 10-day, no-landing test flight carrying Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen on a free‑return loop beyond the Moon.
• Launch director Charlie Blackwell‑Thompson said the SLS is largely stacked, with Orion integration, rollout, a wet dress rehearsal, and pad escape verifications still ahead.
• After investigating Artemis I, NASA kept Orion’s heat shield design with procedural changes and updated fueling processes following earlier hydrogen leak issues.
• NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel warned SpaceX’s Starship Human Landing System schedule is significantly challenged for a 2027 Artemis III landing, citing the unproven cryogenic in‑orbit refueling requirement and recent test setbacks; U.S. officials also note China aims for a crewed lunar landing by 2030.