On December 11, the successful splashdown of the Orion spacecraft in the Pacific Ocean marked the end of the Artemis 1 mission.
NASA said it is on track for an early April launch of Artemis II after rollback following problems that arose in the wake of a successful wet dress rehearsal in late February.
A leak in the flow of helium in the rocket caused it to be rolled back to the vehicle assembly building beginning Feb. 25.
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Upon arrival at the vehicle assembly building, NASA began to address the problems, and the spacecraft remains there for the time being.
The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft, integrated for the Artemis II mission, are seen at Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 30, 2026 ahead of the first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years.
((Photo by Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator of the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, said the work is ongoing, but they have a targeted rollout date to the launch pad of March 19.
From there, additional work will be completed on the spacecraft and the earliest launch opportunity will be 6:24 p.m. ET on April 1.
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Glaze said there are six days in April that could be used for a launch.
Shawn Quinn, Exploration Ground Systems program manager, said work in the vehicle assembly building is ahead of schedule at this time.
NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft back at the VAB for repairs following a helium flow leak.
(NASA)
Quinn said the team found the root cause of the disruption in the flow of helium that caused the rollback and has tested a design fix and qualified it for use.
He said the team has “fairly high confidence” that the March 19 roll out will happen.
Artemis II has been delayed three times, initially aiming for a February launch, then an early March launch.
“An incredible amount of work has gone into preparing for this test flight,” Glaze said.
This crewed mission will bring four astronauts in NASA’s first lunar flyby in more than 50 years.
