Artemis III SLS Core Stage Joins Boosters at Kennedy

NASA News 28 Oct 2026 2 min read

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NASA has successfully integrated the 212-foot SLS core stage with twin solid rocket boosters for the Artemis III mission inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, completing the "short stack" configuration on October 28, 2026. The core stage was lifted from High Bay 2 using a specialized lifting beam and positioned onto the mobile launcher in High Bay 3. Following testing and checkouts, the assembled stack will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39B for a tanking test involving liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuel loading and countdown procedure rehearsals.

Why it matters

This assembly milestone advances NASA's Artemis III mission, which will launch four astronauts to test rendezvous and docking capabilities between the Orion spacecraft and commercial vehicles from Blue Origin and SpaceX. These tests are critical prerequisites for future lunar landing missions that will return humans to the Moon's surface.

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A view of the bottom portion of the 212-foot core stage of the Space Launch System rocket as a crane moves it vertically above the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building. Dominating the center of the image are four rocket engines covered in red caps. — The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is lifted from the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.

NASA/Sean Cannon

Four people in hard hats are silhouetted against the side of the core stage of the Space Launch System rocket as it is raised in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building. A spotlight on the group’s right shines a bright spot on a portion of the orange stage which is very close and fills the image. — The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is lifted from the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.

NASA/Sean Cannon

Vertical overhead view of a rocket stage extending through the center of a large assembly building, framed by surrounding platforms and structure. — The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is horizontal in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026.

NASA/Cory S Huston

The 212-foot core stage of the Space Launch System rocket is vertical in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building. The nose cones of the two side boosters are visible as the crane places the core stage between them where they are already set on the Mobile Launcher. — The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is integrated alongside the twin solid rocket booster motor segments on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida completing its short stack configuration.

NASA/Sean Cannon

The central portion of the Space Launch System rocket stack is seen from a platform across the central aisle in the Vehicle Assembly Building. The nose cones of the solid rocket booster flank the orange core stage and are surrounded by platforms and staircases. — The SLS (Space Launch System) rocket core stage is integrated with the solid rocket boosters for Artemis III in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to complete its short stack configuration.

NASA/Frank Michaux

NASA’s Artemis III SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is integrated alongside the twin solid rocket boosters on Oct. 28 inside the Vehicle Assembly Building’s High Bay 3 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Technicians lifted the 212-foot rocket stage from the facility’s High Bay 2 using a one-of-a kind lifting beam designed to place the stage onto the mobile launcher. Once testing and checkouts are complete, teams will roll the core stage and booster stack out to Launch Pad 39B to conduct a tanking test where liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuel will be loaded only into the core stage and launch teams will practice countdown procedures and timelines.

The Artemis III mission will launch NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, Andre Douglas, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano in the Orion spacecraft on top of the SLS rocket to test rendezvous and docking capabilities between Orion and commercial spacecraft from Blue Origin and SpaceX ahead of future mission to land astronauts on the Moon. 

Photo credit: NASA/Sean Cannon, Cory S Huston, and Frank Michaux

Source: Artemis III SLS Core Stage Joins Boosters at Kennedy

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NASA News