Space Exploration Technology

Images of rockets and spacecraft in assembly and testing phases, highlighting significant milestones in space exploration and technology advancement.

Rocketdyne J-2 engine on S-IVB (Saturn V Third Stage) of Saturn V Moon Rocket. Davidson Center for Space Exploration: Saturn V Hall. U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, Alabama.

STS-132 ATLANTIS MATED TO ET/SRB STACK

Rocketdyne J-2 engine on S-IVB (Saturn V Third Stage) of Saturn V Moon Rocket. Davidson Center for Space Exploration: Saturn V Hall. U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Huntsville, Alabama.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is lowered alongside the external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters already stacked on the mobile launcher platform. Discovery will be mated with the stack. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39A for a targeted launch on Feb. 12. Discovery will carry the final starboard truss (S6) in the assembly of the International Space Station.

Technicians with United Launch Alliance (ULA) assist as a crane lifts the Centaur upper stage of the ULA Atlas V rocket up inside the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The Centaur stage will be mated to the first stage booster. The rocket is being prepared for Orbital ATK's seventh commercial resupply mission, CRS-7, to the International Space Station. Orbital ATK's CYGNUS pressurized cargo module is scheduled to launch atop ULA's Atlas V rocket from Pad 41 on March 19, 2017. CYGNUS will deliver 7,600 pounds of supplies, equipment and scientific research materials to the space station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In high bay 4 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the framework known as the "birdcage" lowers the Ares I-X simulator crew module-launch abort system, or CM-LAS, onto the simulator service module-service adapter stack. Ares I-X is the flight test for the Ares I. The I-X flight will provide NASA an early opportunity to test and prove hardware, facilities and ground operations associated with Ares I. The launch of the 327-foot-tall, full-scale Ares I-X is targeted for August 2009.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The aft skirt and lower segment of the Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) being prepared for Return to Flight on mission STS-114 arrive inside the Vehicle Assembly Building. The segments will be prepared for stacking with the other segments arriving later. Two SRBs support the liftoff of the Space Shuttle on a launch. The twin 149-foot tall, 12-foot diameter SRBs provide the main propulsion system during launch to place the 180,000-pound orbiters in the proper orbit around the Earth. They operate parallel with the Space Shuttle main engines for the first two minutes of flight and jettison away from the orbiter with help from the Booster Separation Motors, about 26.3 nautical miles above the Earths surface.

At the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, a solid rocket booster (SRB) is mated to a United Launch Alliance Atlas V first stage. The SRB will be help boost NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, or GOES-S, to orbit. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites that will significantly improve the detection and observation of environmental phenomena that directly affect public safety, protection of property and the nation's economic health and prosperity. GOES-S is slated to launch March 1, 2018.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, shuttle Endeavour is lowered into place where it will be attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters, already positioned on the mobile launcher platform. Endeavour and its STS-134 crew will deliver the Express Logistics Carrier-3, Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for Dextre and micrometeoroid debris shields to the International Space Station. Endeavour's final launch is targeted for April 19 at 7:48 p.m. EDT.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, one of space shuttle Atlantis two orbital maneuvering system (OMS) pods can be seen. Large access platforms are being moved into place around Atlantis in preparation for removal of the left OMS pod. The work is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of shuttle Atlantis. The OMS pods will be sent to White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico where they will undergo a complete deservicing and cleaning and then be returned to Kennedy for reinstallation on Atlantis. Atlantis is being prepared for display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - An overhead crane lowers the External Tank that will be used to return the Space Shuttle program to flight into high bay 3 in the Vehicle Assembly Building. The tank, ET-121, and the Solid Rocket Boosters were originally scheduled to fly with orbiter Atlantis on mission STS-121 but will now be used to launch Discovery on mission STS-114. Once secure in the high bay, a new heater will be added to the feedline bellows to minimize the potential for ice and frost buildup. STS-114 is the first Return to Flight mission to the International Space Station. The launch window extends from July 13 through July 31.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - External Tank 118 (ET-118) is lifted from its cell in the Vehicle Assembly Building in order to place it on a transporter. The tank will be transferred to NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The tank is being installed with an improved bipod fitting, which connects the external fuel tank to the Shuttle during launch. The new design, a significant milestone in the effort to return the Shuttle to safe flight, replaces the foam that was used to prevent ice buildup on the tanks bipod fittings with four rod-shaped heaters. The heaters are being retrofitted on the 11 existing tanks and incorporated into the manufacture of all new tanks.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at KSC, a crane lifts external tank No. 120 into the upper regions. The tank is being lifted for a move into a checkout cell. The tank will be prepared for stacking with solid rocket boosters to launch Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120 in October. The mission is the 23rd to the International Space Station and will launch an Italian-built, U.S. multi-port module known as Harmony for the station. Christened after a school contest, Harmony will provide attachment points for European and Japanese laboratory modules. NASA/George Shelton

STS-132 ATLANTIS LIFT & MATE TO ET/SRB STACK

Teams with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs rotate the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage - the largest part of the rocket - into a vertical position in preparation for its move to High Bay 3 in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where it will be placed atop the mobile launcher in between the twin solid rocket boosters, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 11, 2021. The 188,000-pound core stage, with its four RS-25 engines, will provide more than 2 million pounds of thrust during launch and ascent, and coupled with the boosters, will provide more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust to send the Artemis I mission to space. Under the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, as well as establish a sustainable presence on the lunar surface in preparation for human missions to Mars.

Encapsulated inside its payload fairing, the Cygnus spacecraft for the upcoming Orbital ATK Commercial Resupply Services-6 is positioned for mating atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in the Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The Cygnus is scheduled to lift off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on March 22 to deliver hardware and supplies to the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, workers finish attaching the sling on the GOES-O satellite that will to lift it into the mobile service tower where it will be mated with the United Launch Alliance Delta IV expendable launch vehicle. The GOES-O satellite is targeted to launch no earlier than June 26. The latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES-O was developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. The GOES satellites continuously provide observations of 60 percent of the Earth including the continental United States, providing weather monitoring and forecast operations as well as a continuous and reliable stream of environmental information and severe weather warnings. Once in orbit, GOES-O will be designated GOES-14, and NASA will provide on-orbit checkout and then transfer operational responsibility to NOAA.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- From high bay 3 of NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building, Space Shuttle Discovery is ready to begin its slow 4.2-mile journey via the crawlerway to Launch Pad 39B. The shuttle rests on a mobile launcher platform that sits atop a crawler-transporter. The rollout is an important step before launch of Discovery on mission STS-121 to the International Space Station. Discovery's launch is targeted for July 1 in a launch window that extends to July 19. During the 12-day mission, Discovery's crew will test new hardware and techniques to improve shuttle safety, as well as deliver supplies and make repairs to the station.

The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft for NASAs SpaceX Crew-1 mission arrived at Kennedy Space Centers Launch Complex 39A on Thursday, Nov. 5, after making the trek from its processing facility at nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Crew Dragon will launch atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The Crew-1 flight will carry Crew Dragon Commander Michael Hopkins, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Shannon Walker, all of NASA, along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi to the space station for a six-month science mission.

In this close-up view inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the base of the Space Launch System (SLS) Core Stage pathfinder can be seen as it is lowered into High Bay 3 on Oct. 16, 2019. The 212-foot-long core stage pathfinder arrived on NASA's Pegasus Barge at Kennedys Launch Complex 39 turn basin wharf on Sept. 27, 2019. The Pegasus Barge made its first delivery to Kennedy in support of the agency's Artemis missions. The pathfinder is being used by Exploration Ground Systems and its contractor, Jacobs, to practice offloading, moving and stacking maneuvers, using important ground support equipment to train employees and certify all the equipment works properly. The pathfinder will stay at Kennedy through at least the month of October before trekking back to NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana.

SDO MOVE FROM ASTROTECH TO PAD 41 - LIFT & MATE

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, a crane lifts a solid rocket booster segment off its transporter. The segment is being lifted up into high bay 3 and will be placed on mobile launcher platform No. 2 for use on mission STS-115. The mission will deliver a truss and other key components to the International Space Station. Launch is currently scheduled for late August.

The full United Delta IV Heavy with Orion on top is revealed on Dec. 3, 2014 as the mobile service tower is rolled back in preparation for the 7:05 am Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) launch. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, segments of the Ares I-X first stage are lifted from the stand. The segments are being moved for stacking and mating to the fifth segment simulator, completing Super Stack 1. The super stack comprises the forward skirt, forward skirt extension, interstages 1 and 2 and the fifth segment simulator. Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is part of the Constellation Program to return men to the moon and beyond. The Ares I-X flight test is targeted no earlier than Aug. 30 from Launch Pad 39B.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building, Atlantis is lowered into high bay 3 for mating with the external tank and solid rocket boosters already installed on the mobile launcher platform. After the stacking, Atlantis will undergo a shuttle interface test and other prelaunch processing. Atlantis' launch window begins Aug. 28. During its 11-day mission to the International Space Station, the STS-115 crew of six astronauts will continue construction of the station and install their cargo, the Port 3/4 truss segment with its two large solar arrays.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers check the attachment, or mating, of the Ares I-X forward center segment atop the aft assembly (aft segment and aft skirt). Part of the Constellation Program, the Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is the essential core of a space transportation system that eventually will carry crewed missions back to the moon, on to Mars and out into the solar system . The Ares I-X flight test is targeted for no earlier than Aug. 30.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the upper levels of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Discovery is moved toward high bay 3 where the external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters are already stacked on the mobile launcher platform. Discovery will be lowered onto the platform and mated with the stack. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39A for a targeted launch on Feb. 12. Discovery will carry the final starboard truss (S6) in the assembly of the International Space Station.

Team members prepare to attach a Centaur upper stage to the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket first stage booster at Space Launch Complex 41 on Floridas Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The rocket will boost NASAs Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft.Targeted for liftoff Sept. 8, 2016, OSIRIS-Rex will be the first U.S. mission to sample an asteroid, retrieve at least two ounces of surface material and return it to Earth for study. The asteroid, Bennu, may hold clues to the origin of the solar system and the source of water and organic molecules found on Earth.

The Orion spacecraft was lifted on top of the Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle at ULA's Launch Complex 37 on Nov. 12, 2014. Over the next few days the Lockheed Martin/ULA team will work to complete the connections between Orion and the launch vehicle in preparation for Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1). Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, workers check the progress of the second half of the fairing as it moves into place around the Space Tracking and Surveillance System - Demonstrator spacecraft. The fairing is a two-part molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the rocket and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. STSS Demo is a space-based sensor component of a layered Ballistic Missile Defense System designed for the overall mission of detection, tracking and discriminating ballistic missiles. STSS is capable of tracking objects after boost phase and provides trajectory information to other sensors. It will be launched by NASA for the Missile Defense Agency between 8 and 8:58 a.m. EDT Sept. 18. Approved for Public Release 09-MDA-4934 (09-22-09)

STS-135 ET-138 External Tank Mated to SRB's

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, shuttle Endeavour is suspended vertically over the transfer aisle. The spacecraft will be moved into a high bay where it will be installed to the waiting external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters.Endeavour and its STS-134 crew will deliver the Express Logistics Carrier-3, Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for Dextre and micrometeoroid debris shields to the International Space Station. Endeavour's final launch is targeted for April 19 at 7:48 p.m. EDT.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Atlantis is lifted by a sling. Atlantis is being taken off its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters stack after of the delay of its STS-125 mission to NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Atlantis will be returned to the Orbiter Processing Facility. Atlantis' targeted launch on Oct. 14 was delayed when a system that transfers science data from the orbiting observatory to Earth malfunctioned on Sept. 27. The new target launch date is under review.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 in Florida, operations are underway to erect the first stage of the Atlas V rocket that will carry the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-K, into orbit.Launch of the TDRS-K on the Atlas V rocket is planned for January 29, 2013. The TDRS-K spacecraft is part of the next-generation series in the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System, a constellation of space-based communication satellites providing tracking, telemetry, command and high-bandwidth data return services.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility-1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, an overhead crane moves shuttle Endeavours left-hand orbital maneuvering system, or OMS, pod away from the spacecraft. The work is part of Endeavours transition and retirement processing. The spacecraft is being prepared for public display at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. Endeavour flew 25 missions, spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122, 883, 151 miles over the course of its 19-year career. Endeavours STS-134 and final mission was completed after landing on June 1, 2011.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the external fuel tank for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-125 mission is lowered between the solid rocket boosters installed on the mobile launcher platform in high bay 3. The tank and boosters will be attached for launch. Atlantis' STS-125 mission is the fifth and final shuttle servicing mission to NASAs Hubble Space Telescope. Launch is targeted for May 12.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The external fuel tank for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-129 mission is being lowered into NASA Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 2 for assembly with the solid rocket boosters already stacked on the mobile launch platform. The STS-129 mission is targeted to launch Nov. 12 on an 11-day supply mission to the International Space Station.

STS-133 ET-137 LIFT FROM TRANSFER AISLE AND MOVE TO TEST CELL

In a view from ground level looking up, a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket begins to roll out of the Vertical Integration Facility to Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The launch vehicle will boost NASAs Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. This will be the first U.S. mission to sample an asteroid, retrieve at least two ounces of surface material and return it to Earth for study. The asteroid, Bennu, may hold clues to the origin of the solar system and the source of water and organic molecules found on Earth.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, cranes move the Ares I-X center forward segment toward a stand. The booster used for the Ares I-X launch is being modified by adding new forward structures and a fifth segment simulator. The stacking operations are scheduled to begin in the Vehicle Assembly Building in April. Launch of the Ares I-X flight test is targeted for July 2009.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket begins its early morning move out of the company's Falcon Hangar at Launch Complex 40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Topped by the Dragon spacecraft, the rocket is rolling to the launch pad for a test firing of its nine Merlin first-stage engines in preparation for the SpaceX 2 launch. Liftoff of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft is planned for March 1, 2013, at 10 10 a.m. EST, from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Dragon will be making its third trip to the space station. It will carry supplies and experiments to the orbiting laboratory. The mission is the second of 12 SpaceX flights contracted by NASA to resupply the space station.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a crane lifts a solid rocket motor for attachment to the United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. The Delta II will carry NASAs National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project (NPP) satellite into space. NPP represents a critical first step in building the next-generation of Earth-observing satellites. NPP will carry the first of the new sensors developed for this satellite fleet, now known as the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) to be launched in 2016. NPP is the bridge between NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) satellites and the forthcoming series of JPSS satellites. The mission will test key technologies and instruments for the JPSS missions. NPP is targeted to launch Oct. 25.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a lifting sling is lowered toward space shuttle Endeavour following its arrival in the Vehicle Assembly Building transfer aisle.The rollover began at 12:53 a.m. EST and was completed at 2:08 p.m. when Endeavour was towed into the VAB's transfer aisle. Next, Endeavour will be attached to the sling, hoisted over a transom and lowered into High Bay 1, where it will be attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. Rollout of the shuttle stack to Kennedys Launch Pad 39A, a significant milestone in launch processing activities, is planned for early January 2010. The Italian-built Tranquility module, the primary payload for Endeavour's STS-130 mission, will be installed in the payload bay after the shuttle arrives at the pad. Launch is targeted for early February.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In high bay 1 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, space shuttle Endeavour is lowered alongside its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters for mating. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39B. Endeavour is designated the rescue spacecraft for space shuttle Atlantis STS-125 mission to NASAs Hubble Space Telescope, targeted for October. After Atlantis has safely returned from its flight, Endeavour will be moved to Launch Pad 39A for its STS-126 mission to the International Space Station, targeted for November.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, external fuel tank 130 is raised to a vertical position. The tank will be lifted into high bay 2 for checkout before stacking with the solid rocket boosters and space shuttle Atlantis for the STS-125 mission. The fuel tank was previously designated for the STS-127 mission. The STS-125 Hubble servicing mission is targeted to launch May 12.

Teams with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs lower the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage - the largest part of the rocket - onto the mobile launcher, in between the twin solid rocket boosters, inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 12, 2021. The 188,000-pound core stage, with its four RS-25 engines, will provide more than 2 million pounds of thrust during launch and ascent, and coupled with the boosters, will provide more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust to send the Artemis I mission to space. Under the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, as well as establish a sustainable presence on the lunar surface in preparation for human missions to Mars.

Teams with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs integrate the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) for NASAs Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the launch vehicle stage adapter (LVSA) atop the massive SLS core stage in the agencys Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 5, 2021. The ICPS is a liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen-based system that will fire its RL 10 engine to give the Orion spacecraft the big in-space push needed to fly tens of thousands of miles beyond the Moon. The next component to be stacked on top of ICPS will be the Orion stage adapter, which will connect the ICPS with the spacecraft. Through Artemis, NASA will send the first woman and the first person of color to the lunar surface, as well as establish a sustainable presence on and around the Moon. As the first in an increasingly complex set of missions, Artemis I will test SLS and Orion as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moo

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Horizontal Integration Facility at Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, processing of the Delta IV rocket slated to launch NASA's GOES-P satellite is under way, at left, in close proximity to another Delta IV being prepared for launch of an upcoming mission. GOES-P is the latest Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite developed by NASA for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. Launch is targeted for Feb. 25.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - One of the solid rocket booster segments for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-127 mission is in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for stacking. The mission is targeted for launch in June.

STS-131 DISCOVERY ROLLOUT - 1ST MOTION

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The encapsulated TDRS-J satellite is mated with the Atlas IIA launch vehicle on Launch Complex 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The satellite is scheduled to be launched Dec. 4 aboard an Atlas IIA vehicle. The launch window is 9:42 to 10:22 p.m. EST. TDRS-J, the third in a series of telemetry satellites, will help replenish the current constellation of geosynchronous TDRS satellites that are the primary source of space-to-ground voice, data and telemetry for the Space Shuttle. The satellites also provide communications with the International Space Station and scientific spacecraft in low-Earth orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope. This new advanced series of satellites will extend the availability of TDRS communications services until about 2017.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 4, assembly of the Ares I-X rocket nears completion. The yellow framework, nicknamed the "birdcage," lifts Super Stack 5 toward an opening at the 16th floor crossover into the transfer aisle. The stack will be positioned on top of the segments already in place on the mobile launcher platform in High Bay 3, completing assembly of the 327-foot-tall rocket. Five super stacks make up the rocket's upper stage that is integrated with the four-segment solid rocket booster first stage. Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is part of the Constellation Program to return men to the moon and beyond. The Ares I-X flight test is targeted for Oct. 31, pending formal NASA Headquarters approval.

The Orion spacecraft was lifted on top of the Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle at ULA's Launch Complex 37 on Nov. 12, 2014. Over the next few days the Lockheed Martin/ULA team will work to complete the connections between Orion and the launch vehicle in preparation for Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1). Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

The Orion for Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) is complete and ready for flight inside the Launch Abort System Facility (LASF) at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 4, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building, space shuttle Endeavour is lowered into high bay 1 toward the external tank seen below. The shuttle will be mated with the tank and solid rocket boosters in preparation for launch on the STS-123 mission, targeted for March 11. The mission will deliver the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency's two-armed robotic system, Dextre.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the top of external tank No. 120 is seen as the tank is lowered between the solid rocket boosters for mating on the mobile launcher platform. The external tank-SRB stack is being prepared for the orbiter Discovery, which will be mated to the stack in the VAB in two weeks. Space Shuttle Discovery is targeted to launch Oct. 23 on mission STS-120 to the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour is suspended above the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In this position, it is ready to be lifted into High Bay 1 and attached to the external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters already installed on the mobile launcher platform. Endeavour is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39B on April 17. Endeavour will be prepared on the pad for liftoff in the unlikely event that a rescue mission is necessary following space shuttle Atlantis' launch on the STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope. After Atlantis is cleared to land, Endeavour will move to Launch Pad 39A for its upcoming STS-127 mission to the International Space Station, targeted to launch in mid-June.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a crane lifts the fifth segment simulator assembly for the Ares I-X to move it into High Bay 4. Ares I-X is the flight test vehicle for the Ares I, a component of the Constellation Program. Ares I is the essential core of a safe, reliable, cost-effective space transportation system that eventually will carry crewed missions back to the moon, on to Mars and out into the solar system. The launch of the Ares I-X flight test is targeted for August 2009.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Rotation, Processing, and Surge Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Ares I-X aft skirt is mated to the aft segment. The complete Ares I-X will be assembled in the Vehicle Assembly Building. The launch of Ares I-X is targeted for August 2009.

SpaceXs Crew Dragon is at NASAs Plum Brook Station in Ohio, ready to undergo testing in the Reverberant Acoustic Test Facility—the worlds largest thermal vacuum chamber. The chamber will allow SpaceX and NASA to verify Crew Dragons ability to withstand the extreme temperatures and vacuum of space. This is the spacecraft that SpaceX will fly during its Demonstration Mission 1 flight test under NASAs Commercial Crew Transportation Capability contract with the goal of returning human spaceflight launch capabilities to the U.S.

The Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Floridas Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Nov. 21, 2019. Starliner will be secured atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for Boeings Orbital Flight Test to the International Space Station for NASAs Commercial Crew Program. The spacecraft rolled out from Boeings Commercial Crew and Cargo Processing Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center earlier in the day.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In high bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building, external tank No. 118 has been lowered between the twin solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform. The stack is designated to fly on mission STS-115 with Atlantis. ET-118 will fly with many major safety changes, including the removal of the protuberance air load ramps. The mission will deliver the second port truss segment, the P3/P4 Truss, to attach to the first port truss segment, the P1 Truss, as well as deploy solar array set 2A and 4A. Launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled for late August.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The orbiter Endeavour is lowered into high bay 1 of the Vehicle Assembly Building for stacking with the external tank (seen at the bottom) and solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform. Endeavour will be launched on mission STS-118, its first flight in more than four years. The shuttle has undergone extensive modifications, including the addition of safety upgrades already added to shuttles Discovery and Atlantis. Endeavour also features new hardware, such as the Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System that will allow the docked shuttle to draw electrical power from the station and extend its visits to the orbiting lab. Endeavour is targeted for launch on Aug. 7.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Space Launch Complex 17B on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, spacecraft technicians monitor the movement of a section of the clamshell-shaped Delta payload fairing as it encloses NASA's twin Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory spacecraft.The fairing will protect the spacecraft from the impact of aerodynamic pressure and heating during ascent and will be jettisoned once the spacecraft is outside the Earth's atmosphere. Launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Pad 17B is scheduled for Sept. 8. The spacecraft will fly in tandem orbits around the moon for several months to measure its gravity field. GRAIL's primary science objectives are to determine the structure of the lunar interior, from crust to core, and to advance understanding of the thermal evolution of the moon.

The Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft is seen as the work platforms around it are retracted in preparation for being encapsulated in its fairing on Thursday, Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2016 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 49 flight engineer Shane Kimbrough of NASA, flight engineer Andrey Borisenko of Roscosmos, and Soyuz commander Sergey Ryzhikov of Roscosmos are scheduled to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Oct. 19.

Technicians with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems rehearse lifting operations using a mock-up of the Space Launch System (SLS) aft booster segment, referred to as a pathfinder, inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 11, 2020, in preparation for Artemis I. The exercise involved preparing the aft pathfinder segment in High Bay 4 of the VAB and moving it over to High Bay 3, where it was placed on the mobile launcher. Stacking of the actual booster segments will occur later this year, before the SLS core stage arrives at Kennedy. Artemis I is the first in a series of increasingly complex missions that will test SLS and the Orion spacecraft as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moon.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, workers keep watch as space shuttle Endeavour's payload bay doors close. Inside are the Integrated Cargo Carrier-Vertical Light Deploy, the Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section and the Japanese Experiment Module's Exposed Facility.The STS-127 mission is the final of three flights dedicated to the assembly of the Japanese Kibo laboratory complex on the International Space Station.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a large yellow, metal sling lifts shuttle Discovery from the transfer aisle into High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building. In the bay, the shuttle will be attached to its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. The operation began Sept. 9 and wrapped up early Sept. 10. Discovery is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39A later this month in preparation for its launch to the International Space Station on the STS-133 mission.Targeted to lift off Nov. 1, Discovery will take the Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2 (R2) to the station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building, the redesigned external fuel tank that will launch Space Shuttle Atlantis on the next shuttle mission, STS-115, is lifted toward the upper levels for transfer into a checkout cell for further work. Designated ET-118, the tank will fly with many major safety changes, including the removal of the protuberance air load ramps.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space shuttle Endeavour's external fuel tank is lifted into high bay 1 for stacking with the solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform. Endeavour is the launch vehicle for the STS-127 mission. Endeavour will deliver the Japanese Experiment Module's Experiment Logistics Module-Exposed Section, or ELM-ES, to the International Space Station on STS-127. Launch is targeted for mid-June 2009.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, External Fuel Tank-122 is suspended vertically over the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building as it is lifted toward a test cell.ET-122, the Space Shuttle Program's last external fuel tank was delivered to Kennedy's Turn Basin from NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans aboard the Pegasus Barge. After testing, ET-122 eventually will be attached to space shuttle Endeavour for the STS-134 mission to the International Space Station targeted to launch February, 2011.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V first stage is lifted at the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The rocket is scheduled to launch the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, TDRS-M. It will be the latest spacecraft destined for the agency's constellation of communications satellites that allows nearly continuous contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories. Liftoff atop the ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled to take place from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 on Aug. 3, 2017 at 9:02 a.m. EDT.

Teams with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs prepare to lift the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage and transfer it over to High Bay 3 in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where it will be placed atop the mobile launcher in between the twin solid rocket boosters, at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 10, 2021. The 188,000-pound core stage will provide more than 2 million pounds of thrust at launch, and coupled with the boosters, will provide more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust to launch the Artemis I mission. The first in an increasingly complex series of missions, Artemis I will test SLS and the Orion spacecraft as an integrated system ahead of crewed flights to the Moon.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3, the Ares I-X "super stack 1" is being attached to the forward motor segment. Super stack 1 comprises the frustum, forward skirt, forward skirt extension, interstages 1 and 2 and the fifth segment simulator. Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is part of the Constellation Program to return men to the moon and beyond. The Ares I-X flight test is targeted for Oct. 31, pending forma NASA Headquarters approval.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex 41, NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft is lifted for mounting atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The TDRS-L satellite will be a part of the second of three next-generation spacecraft designed to ensure vital operational continuity for the NASA Space Network. It is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Jan. 23, 2014. The current Tracking and Data Relay Satellite system consists of eight in-orbit satellites distributed to provide near continuous information relay contact with orbiting spacecraft ranging from the International Space Station and Hubble Space Telescope to the array of scientific observatories.

Orion Service Module Testing. The European Service Module for the Artemis II mission is photographed inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida earlier this month. The Service Module successfully completed a round of acoustic tests to ensure it can withstand the speed and vibration it will experience during launch and throughout the mission. Artemis II will be the first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The service module will provide the power necessary to propel Orion on a trip around the Moon, including the in-space maneuvering capability and other commodities necessary to sustain crew for the duration of the mission.

Inside the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians prepare to mate the right-hand motor segment - one of five segments that make up one of two solid rocket boosters for the agencys Space Launch System (SLS) - to the rockets right-hand aft skirt on June 24, 2020. Once the booster aft segments are mated to the two aft skirts, they will be moved to the Vehicle Assembly Building for stacking on the mobile launcher. Manufactured by Northrop Grumman in Utah, the twin boosters provide more than 75 percent of the total SLS thrust at launch. Under the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will test the Orion spacecraft and SLS as an integrated system ahead of crewed flights to the Moon.

GOES-P DELTA IV SRB #2 LIFT & MATE TO BOOSTER

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - From a vantage point high on a work platform in the high bay at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., a worker checks the progress of the movement of the fairing halves as they enclose the GOES-N satellite. The fairing protects the spacecraft during launch and flight through the atmosphere. Once out of the atmosphere, the fairing is jettisoned. GOES-N is the latest in a series of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites for NOAA and NASA providing continuous monitoring necessary for intensive data analysis. GOES-N will be launched May 18 on a Boeing Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the external tank is lowered toward the solid rocket boosters on the mobile launcher platform below. Visible on the bottom is an orbiter aft attachment. After mating, the boosters-tank configuration will be used on space shuttle Atlantis for mission STS-122, which is targeted for launch on Dec. 6.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is lifted into the workstands in the Vertical Processing Facility as work begins at KSC to process the 94-inch primary mirror telescope for launch on Discovery on Space Shuttle Mission STS-31 in March 1990. With HST, astronomers will be able to view 97 percent of the known universe, and will be able to get pictures unlimited and undistorted by the Earth's atmosphere. Compared with earth-based observatories, the HST will be able to view celestial objects that are 50 times fainter, provide images that are 10 times sharper, and see objects that are seven times farther away. .

STS-133 ET-137 LIFT FROM TRANSFER AISLE AND MOVE TO TEST CELL

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In NASA Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building High Bay 4, a crane lowers the Ares I-X Super Stack 3 toward Super Stack 2 for integration. The upper stage comprises five super stacks, which are integrated with the four-segment solid rocket booster first stage on the mobile launch platform. Ares I-X is the test vehicle for the Ares I, which is part of the Constellation Program to return men to the moon and beyond. The Ares I-X flight test is targeted for Oct. 31, pending formal NASA Headquarters approval.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Suspended by an overhead crane, space shuttle Endeavour is being raised to a vertical position n the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center. The shuttle will be lifted into high bay 1 for mating with its external fuel tank and solid rocket boosters. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39B. Endeavour is designated the rescue spacecraft for space shuttle Atlantis STS-125 mission to NASAs Hubble Space Telescope, targeted for October. After Atlantis has safely returned from its flight, Endeavour will be moved to Launch Pad 39A for its STS-126 mission to the International Space Station, targeted for November.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The orbiter Discovery rolls out of the Orbiter Processing Facility bay 3 for the short move to the Vehicle Assembly Building. First motion was at 9:23 p.m. Oct. 31. In the VAB the orbiter will be mated to its large external tank and twin solid rocket boosters already stacked on the mobile launcher platform. Space Shuttle Discovery is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39B no earlier than Nov. 7 for mission STS-116. The mission is No. 20 to the International Space Station and construction flight 12A.1. The mission payload is the SPACEHAB module, the P5 integrated truss structure and other key components. The launch window for mission STS-116 opens Dec. 7.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. - At Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the first of three solid rocket boosters for the United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket for launch of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, is positioned next to the rocket's first stage in the pad's mobile service tower.WISE will survey the entire sky at infrared wavelengths, creating a cosmic clearinghouse of hundreds of millions of objects which will be catalogued and provide a vast storehouse of knowledge about the solar system, the Milky Way, and the universe. Launch is scheduled for Dec. 7. For additional information, visit http://wise.ssl.berkeley.edu.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Atlantis is slowly lifted into the upper expanse of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA Kennedy Space Center. The orbiter will be lifted over the cross-beam into high bay 1 and mated with the Solid Rocket Boosters and External Tank already stacked there on the Mobile Launcher Platform. Atlantis is the designated orbiter for Return to Flight mission STS-121. The lighted planning window for launch extends from Sept. 9 to Sept. 25.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building high bay at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Orion crew and service module stack for Exploration Flight Test-1 was lifted by crane out of the test cell and is being lowered onto a mating device. A protective covering surrounds the crew module. Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of the Orion is scheduled to launch later this year atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida to an altitude of 3,600 miles above the Earth's surface. The two-orbit, four-hour flight test will help engineers evaluate the systems critical to crew safety including the heat shield, parachute system and launch abort

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - A mockup of the Launch Abort System, or LAS, is lifted off a trailer inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida so it can be positioned atop a boilerplate Orion capsule during test stacking operations. The Orion spacecraft is being designed to carry astronauts on missions beyond Earth orbit. It will have the LAS during the first part of launch in case an emergency develops that requires the spacecraft to be pulled away from the rocket to save the crew. NASA's Ground Services Development and Operations Program, or GSDO, performed the test operations.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- A worker on a stand behind the mobile launcher platform holding Space Shuttle Discovery waits for first motion of the shuttle out of NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building. The rollout is an important step before launch of Discovery on mission STS-121 to the International Space Station. Discovery's launch is targeted for July 1 in a launch window that extends to July 19. During the 12-day mission, Discovery's crew will test new hardware and techniques to improve shuttle safety, as well as deliver supplies and make repairs to the station.

This image shows technicians and engineers move and connect the liquid oxygen tank (LOX) to the intertank as they continue the process of the forward join on the core stage of NASAs Space Launch System rocket for Artemis II, the first crewed mission of NASAs Artemis program at NASAs Michoud Assembly Facility. The forward join connects the forward skirt, the liquid oxygen tank (LOX) and the intertank structures to form the top part of the SLS rockets core stage. Now, NASA and Boeing, the SLS prime contractor, will continue to integrate various systems inside the forward part of the core stage and prepare for structural joining of the liquid hydrogen tank and engine section to form the bottom of the stage. Together with its four RS-25 engines, the rockets massive 212-foot-tall core stage — the largest stage NASA has ever built — and its twin solid rocket boosters will produce 8.8 million pounds of thrust to send NASAs Orion spacecraft, astronauts and supplies beyond Earths orbit t

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- -- The nose fairing encapsulating the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-I) nears the top of the launch tower at Pad 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The fairing will be attached to the Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA rocket for launch. The second in a new series of telemetry satellites, TDRS-I replenishes the existing on-orbit fleet of six spacecraft. The TDRS System is the primary source of space-to-ground voice, data and telemetry for the Space Shuttle. It also provides communications with the International Space Station and scientific spacecraft in low-Earth orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope. This new advanced series of satellites will extend the availability of TDRS communications services until about 2017. Launch of TDRS-I is scheduled for March 8 between 5 39 - 6 19 p.m. EST

A solid rocket motor for the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket slated to boost NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, or MMS, arrives at the mobile service tower at Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Four identical MMS spacecraft will study the mystery of how magnetic fields around Earth connect and disconnect, explosively releasing energy via a process known a magnetic reconnection. Launch is set for March 12.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Inside the mobile service tower on Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, workers connect the two sections of the payload fairing into place around NASA's Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope, or GLAST. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. GLAST is a powerful space observatory that will explore the Universe's ultimate frontier, where nature harnesses forces and energies far beyond anything possible on Earth; probe some of science's deepest questions, such as what our Universe is made of, and search for new laws of physics; explain how black holes accelerate jets of material to nearly light speed; and help crack the mystery of stupendously powerful explosions known as gamma-ray bursts. The launch date is targeted no earlier than June 3.

Technicians observe as the Thrust Reaction Structure and the Guidance Control Assembly for the Orion Program's Ascent Abort-2 flight test are mated together and will be flipped over during practice, or pathfinder activities, June 22, 2018, inside the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility high bay at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Many pathfinding tests are being done to the flight hardware in preparation for the April 2019 flight test.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, three replica shuttle main engines RSMEs have been installed on the space shuttle Atlantis.Three RSMEs were installed on Atlantis. The replicas were built in the Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne engine shop at KSC to replace the space shuttle main engines SSMEs which will be placed in storage to support NASA's Space Launch System currently under development. The RSME installation is part of the Space Shuttle Programs transition and retirement processing of the space shuttle fleet. A groundbreaking was held Jan. 18, 2012 for Atlantis future home, a 65,000-square-foot exhibit hall in Shuttle Plaza at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Atlantis is scheduled to roll over to the visitor complex during November in preparation for the exhibits grand opening in July 2013.

Technicians with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems rehearse lifting operations using a mock-up of the Space Launch System (SLS) aft booster segment, referred to as a pathfinder, inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 11, 2020, in preparation for Artemis I. The exercise involved preparing the aft pathfinder segment in High Bay 4 of the VAB and moving it over to High Bay 3, where it was placed on the mobile launcher. Stacking of the actual booster segments will occur later this year, before the SLS core stage arrives at Kennedy. Artemis I is the first in a series of increasingly complex missions that will test SLS and the Orion spacecraft as an integrated system prior to crewed flights to the Moon.

Teams with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs prepare to lower the Space Launch System (SLS) core stage - the largest part of the rocket - onto the mobile launcher, in between the twin solid rocket boosters, inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 12, 2021. The 188,000-pound core stage, with its four RS-25 engines, will provide more than 2 million pounds of thrust during launch and ascent, and coupled with the boosters, will provide more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust to send the Artemis I mission to space. Under the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, as well as establish a sustainable presence on the lunar surface in preparation for human missions to Mars.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - At NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, technicians monitor the progress as the fourth ogive panel is lifted by crane so that they can be installed on the Orion ground test vehicle in Vehicle Assembly Building high bay 4. Three of the panels have already been installed on the test vehicle. The ogive panels enclose and protect the Orion spacecraft and attach to the Launch Abort System. The test vehicle is being used by the Ground Systems Development and Operations Program for path finding operations, including simulated manufacturing, assembly and stacking procedures.Orion is the exploration spacecraft designed to carry astronauts to destinations not yet explored by humans, including an asteroid and Mars. It will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities. The first unpiloted test flight of Orion is scheduled to launch in 2014 atop a Delta IV rocket and in 2017 on NASAs Sp

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a technician climbs toward an environmental enclosure on space shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank. The enclosure will provide protection from wind, temperature and humidity changes while foam is re-applied and cured on the tank. The foam cracked during initial loading operations for Discoverys launch attempt on Nov. 5. The cracks are on one of the 108 stringers, which are the composite aluminum ribs located vertically on the intertank area. Discovery's next launch attempt is no earlier than Nov. 30 at 4:02 a.m. EST.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the frustum is ready to be lifted from a transporter to move onto a stand. The solid rocket booster segment will be added to the stack for space shuttle Atlantis, launch vehicle for mission STS-122 targeted for a December launch. Atlantis will be carrying the Columbus Laboratory, Europes largest contribution to the construction of the International Space Station. It will support scientific and technological research in a microgravity environment. Columbus, a program of ESA, is a multifunctional, pressurized laboratory that will be permanently attached to Node 2 of the space station to carry out experiments in materials science, fluid physics and biosciences, as well as to perform a number of technological applications.

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