NASA Preparing to Roll Back Artemis

Saturday, February 21, 2026

NASA is taking steps to potentially roll back the Artemis II rocket and Orion spacecraft to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida after overnight Feb. 21 observing interrupted flow of helium to the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket's interim cryogenic propulsion stage.

Posted by REDIAL at 11:51 PM | 1 COMMENT | permalink | Comment on This Entry |

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A rollback would mean NASA will not launch Artemis II in the March launch window. However, the quick preparations enable NASA to potentially preserve the April launch window if a rollback is required, pending the outcome of data findings, repair efforts, and how the schedule comes to fruition in the coming days and weeks.

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Update...

US: Technical issues force NASA to postpone moon mission
www.dw.com

... The US space agency NASA on Saturday announced that an issue with the flow of helium to the upper stages of its SLS rocket has left engineers with no option but to again postpone the launch of the agency's first manned moon mission in 50 years.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said that a bad filter, valve or connector plate could have stalled helium flow, explaining that the 322-foot-tall (98-meter) rocket would have to be rolled back into the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida to allow specialists to track down the source of the problem.

"We will begin preparations for rollback, and this will take the March launch window out of consideration," Isaacman said via X. NASA's next opportunity will likely come in April. ...

#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-02-22 01:34 PM | Reply