NASA Minute: Jan. 16, 2026

This week, preparations accelerated for Artemis II, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 concluded a five-month mission aboard the International Space Station, and engineers at Marshall Space Flight Center fired up the thrust chamber assembly of the Integrated Rotating Detonation Engine System.

What is said in the film

From the launchpad to the laboratory, NASA is already pushing ahead in 2026. Preparations are accelerating for Artemis II, new technologies are being tested, powerful tools are coming online, and scientists are uncovering clues about how our universe began. Let's take a look in this week's NASA Minute! Rollout for the Artemis II mission is right around the corner. Here's what to expect in the next days and weeks as we prepare for America's return to the Moon.

Tomorrow, NASA will roll out the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft from the Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The journey will take about 12 hours, carrying the vehicle across the spaceport for final launch preparations. Once in place, teams will prepare the pad and ground systems, followed by a fueling test to ensure the rocket and spacecraft are ready for flight. Crew safety remains the top priority, and additional testing may be conducted as needed, so NASA will set a launch date after teams assess the vehicle's readiness on the pad. The first launch window for Artemis II is on Friday, February 6th, with additional opportunities extending throughout March and April.

Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to make progress towards this historic mission. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission safely splashed down early Thursday morning in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California, concluding a five-month mission aboard the International Space Station. During their 167-day mission, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov traveled nearly 71 million miles and completed more than 2,670 orbits around Earth. Along the way, Crew-11 logged hundreds of hours of research, maintenance, and technology demonstrations. They also celebrated the 25th anniversary of continuous human presence aboard the orbiting laboratory on Nov.

2, 2025. The Crew-11 mission was Fincke's fourth spaceflight, Yui’s second, and the first for Cardman and Platonov. Fincke now has logged 549 days in space, ranking him fourth among all NASA astronauts for cumulative days in space. The crew safely splashed down early yesterday morning and all crew members are in good condition. Recently, engineers at Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama fired up the thrust chamber assembly of the Integrated Rotating Detonation Engine System, also known as InRoDES.

This planetary lander engine, capable of up to 10,000 pounds of thrust, uses liquid methane and liquid oxygen to power its innovative rotating system. Technologies like this could increase efficiency and enhance capabilities for long duration spaceflight as NASA returns astronauts to the Moon and paves the way for human exploration on Mars. NASA science shined bright at the American Astronomical Society meeting, where researchers shared new discoveries from across the universe. Among them, a team revealed how NASA's Hubble Space Telescope uncovered a rare and unusual object – a starless, gas-rich cloud dominated by dark matter. Scientists believe this object may be a relic from the earliest days of galaxy formation, offering a rare window into how galaxies first took shape in the young universe.

It's been a strong start to a historic year. That's a look at what's happening across the agency, stay tuned for more on next week's NASA Minute. We'll see you next time!

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