The Artemis II rocket, consisting of the Space Launch System (SLS) and the spaceship Orionarrived at Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:42 p.m. local time on Saturday, January 17, 2026.
The transport marked the completion of a nearly 12-hour rollout from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB).
The transport was carried out using Crawler Transporter 2, which began the approximately 6.4 kilometer (4 mile) route several hours earlier and moved at a maximum speed of just 1.3 km/h. The device slowly brought the stacked rocket and spacecraft to the launch complex.
After exiting the VAB gates, the team made a scheduled stop so that teams could reposition the crew access arm — the structure that allows astronauts and technical personnel access to the Orion spacecraft on launch day.
In the coming days, engineers and technicians will prepare Artemis II for the so-called wet dress rehearsal — a crucial phase that will test cryogenic fueling, countdown procedures and safe fuel dumping. The test is scheduled for February 2nd at the latest.
NASA does not rule out the need for additional testing to ensure that all systems are fully verified. If necessary, the rocket and spacecraft can return to the VAB for adjustment before the final launch date.
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The Artemis II test flight will take NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a roughly 10-day mission around the moon and back to Earth.
The mission represents a further step in the Artemis program towards new manned operations on the lunar surface and the establishment of a permanent presence on Earth’s natural satellite, while paving the way for future manned missions to the Moon Mars.
Source and images: NASA. This content was created with the support of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
