[NASA] Coverage, Briefing Set for NASA’s Artemis II Moon Rocket Roll to Pad

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NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket is seen inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building as teams await the arrival of Artemis II crewmembers to board their Orion spacecraft on top of the rocket as part of the Artemis II countdown demonstration test, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky

NASA’s integrated SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft for the

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mission is inching closer to launch – literally.

The agency is targeting no earlier than 7 a.m. EST, Saturday, Jan. 17, to begin the multi-hour trek from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A pre rollout mission news conference, live feed of rollout, and a media gaggle will stream on NASA’s 

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channel. Individual streams for each of these events will be available from that page. Learn how to 

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 through a variety of online platforms, including social media.

The time of rollout is subject to change if additional time is needed for technical preparations or weather.

All times are Eastern. Events are as follows:

Friday, Jan. 16:

12 p.m.: Artemis II Rollout, Mission Overview News Conference

• John Honeycutt, Artemis II mission management team chair
• Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director, Exploration Ground Systems
• Jeff Radigan, Artemis II lead flight director, Flight Operations Directorate
• Lili Villarreal, landing and recovery director, Exploration Ground Systems
• Jacob Bleacher, chief exploration scientist, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate

Saturday, Jan. 17:

7 a.m.: Rollout, Artemis II Live Views from Kennedy Space Center feed begins

9 a.m.: Artemis II Crew Rollout Media Event

• NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and the Artemis II crew, including NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (********* Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, will answer questions about their preparations and the mission for media in-person at the countdown clock.

NASA’s crawler-transporter 2 will carry the 11-million-pound stack at about one mile per hour along the four-mile route from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B, on a journey that will take up to 12 hours.

To participate in the news conference by telephone, media must RSVP no later than two hours before the start to: ksc*****@*****.tld. 

These events will be open in-person only to media previously credentialed for launch. The deadline has passed for in-person accreditation for Artemis II events at Kennedy.

Rollout to the pad marks another milestone leading up to the Artemis II mission. In the coming weeks, NASA will complete final preparations of the rocket and, if needed, rollback SLS and Orion to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional work. While the Artemis II launch window opens as early as Friday, Feb. 6, the mission management team will assess flight readiness after the wet dress rehearsal across the spacecraft, launch infrastructure, and the crew and operations teams before selecting a launch date.

Follow NASA’s

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for mission updates.

Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Learn more about Artemis at:

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-end-

Rachel Kraft / Lauren Low
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
rachel.h*****@*****.tld / lauren.e*****@*****.tld

Tiffany Fairley
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
*****@*****.tld

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Last Updated

Jan 14, 2026

Editor

Jennifer M. Dooren

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