NASA begins fueling rocket to launch astronauts on the first lunar trip in half a century
01.04.2026
NASA begun fueling its moon rocket Wednesday for humanity’s first lunar trip in more than half a century, aiming for an evening liftoff with four astronauts. Tensions were high as hydrogen fuel started flowing into the rocket hours ahead of the planned launch. The launch team needs to load more than 700,000 gallons of fuel (2.6 million liters) into the 32-story Space Launch System rocket on the pad before the Artemis II crew can board.