NASA rules out March launch for manned moon mission over technical issues

Al JazeeraCenterEN 2 min read 100% complete by By News AgenciesFebruary 21, 2026 at 08:44 PM

AI Summary

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NASA's Artemis 2 mission, the first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years and a precursor to the Artemis III moon landing targeted for 2028, will not launch in March due to a technical issue with helium flow to the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. Solid helium flow is essential for purging the rocket's engines and pressurizing its fuel tanks. The next launch opportunity for the mission is in early or late April. This delay occurs as the US aims to return humans to the moon amidst a competing lunar program from China, which plans to launch its uncrewed Chang'e 7 mission in 2026 and is testing its crewed spacecraft. The Artemis program has faced multiple postponements, including the uncrewed Artemis 1 mission, which launched in November 2022 after several delays.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Mengzhou 30% Chang’e 7 40% Donald Trump 40% Artemis 1 40% Artemis III 50% Space Launch System (SLS) 60% Jared Isaacman ×260% United States ×260% China ×370% Artemis 2 ×480% NASA ×690%

Keywords

artemis 2 100% manned moon mission 90% nasa 80% space launch system (sls) 70% technical issues 70% helium flow 60% launch delay 60% artemis iii 50% china 50% space exploration 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.20

Source Transparency

Source

Al Jazeera

Political Lean

Center (0.00)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

China

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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artemis 2 manned moon mission nasa space launch system (sls)technical issues helium flow launch delay artemis iii china space exploration

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