The SLS Saga: 2025 Project Update
Artemis II Integration (Courtesy of NASA)
“Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable—the art of the next best”
***The 2025 edition of the yearly update on the SLS Program. For related posts, please visit the SLS Saga microsite here***
As 2025 unfolds and NASA announces its latest class of astronauts, the Space Launch System (SLS) continues to find itself at the center of an increasingly contentious debate about America's path back to the Moon, Mars, and Beyond. While commercial space companies continue their rapid ascent, the SLS Program has become a lightning rod for discussions about public versus private sector leadership for America’s Outer Space dreams. This year's annual update explores not just the technical developments, but the political compromises and policy battles that continue to define the SLS saga.
The Public Outcry Grows Loud…
The SLS Program elicits strong emotions from many policy groups. But some are becoming increasingly vocal that the SLS Program is not the way forward for America's space policy. For instance, the Reason Foundation (a libertarian think tank) argues for the immediate cancellation of the SLS Program and a shift toward commercial providers using NASA’s existing public-private partnership approach. Meanwhile, the Manhattan Institute (a conservative/free-market think tank) similarly recommends retiring SLS as soon as practicable, potentially after the first crewed lunar landing, and restructuring NASA with a more entrepreneurial mindset.
While the path forward might differ, one thing is clear from these think tanks: they all strike at the heart of the SLS Program's reason for existence. As commercial alternatives become increasingly viable, these policy groups all seem to question why America needs a government-owned super heavy-lift rocket at all.
… But it is still a Senate Launch System
While there are growing calls to terminate the SLS Program, it still retains significant political momentum. There is a reason why the SLS Program is often dubbed the “Senate Launch System.” Despite the program's fair share of detractors, politicians on both sides of the aisle continue to support it for one simple reason: it remains a substantial job creator in key districts. For instance, the 2026 fiscal year budget includes $4.1 billion allocated directly for the SLS Program: funding that can support Artemis IV and Artemis V missions. However, this funding does come with the caveat that additional support will not preclude the inclusion of “new, commercial options if and when they become available.”
This dynamic illustrates a fundamental tension in space policy. Even as serious questions about the SLS Program's long-term viability reach a crescendo, political momentum continues to propel the program forward. I believe the reason here is rather straightforward: programs that create jobs across multiple congressional districts have proven remarkably difficult to eliminate.
Though a Compromise in the Making?
But recognizing that the SLS’s ballooning costs and job creation status represent a political double-edged sword, a compromise appears to be emerging. It seems that Congress and the Trump administration may find middle ground by maintaining the SLS core stage while eliminating its costly Exploration Upper Stage. This would represent a significant scale back from the Block 1B configuration discussed in last year’s update. But, it would also eliminate the need to construct a costly second mobile launcher for the new configuration.
Such a compromise could keep enough of SLS alive to maintain crucial congressional support while acknowledging the fiscal and technical realities that have plagued the program’s development. It’s a solution that might not please anybody completely, which means it might just be the political sweet spot everyone can live with.
Testing Continues... With Fireworks
On the technical front, NASA continues to test various SLS components, though not without drama. A summer test of a new solid rocket booster ended with an unexpected explosion near its exhaust nozzle, with the booster violently shedding some of its tail-end structural components. Setting aside the political realities of the SLS program, the optics of critical hardware literally blowing apart during testing hardly inspire confidence in the system’s readiness for human spaceflight.
Though Success can be Found: Artemis II Inches Forward
On a more positive note, the first quarter of 2025 saw the achievement of a significant milestone for the Artemis II mission with the completion of its core stage integration. This tangible progress moves NASA closer to launching the first crewed mission around the Moon in over half a century. While the SLS program faces mounting criticism, there’s something to be said for hardware that’s actually being built and assembled. The spacecraft is real, its rocket is taking shape and moving steadily toward the launch pad. Whatever debates surround the program’s future, this concrete achievement deserves recognition.
NASA has Full Confidence in Artemis II
In fact, in September 2025, NASA went as far as releasing an article declaring that Artemis II is “ready to fly.” It is a significant pronouncement suggesting that the space agency has confidence in the integrated rocket system despite well-documented challenges. This declaration represents more than a technical milestone, it shows that NASA is willing to stake its reputation on the claim that SLS can safely carry astronauts around the Moon.
Given what’s at stake, the lives of four brave astronauts willing to risk everything for human exploration, the margin for error is zero. The technical challenges are real, the costs have been staggering, and the delays frustrating. But for the sake of those who will strap themselves to this rocket and for the future of American space-bound dreams, one can only hope that NASA’s confidence is well-founded.
Artemis II’s Target Date
Furthermore, it looks like Artemis II’s launch date is starting to crystallize. Officials have now confirmed that the first Artemis crewed mission around the Moon is tracking toward a launch window that could open as early as February 5, 2026, with the mission launching no later than April 2026. If Artemis II launches on the earliest date, it will be at night, which will add extra drama to what’s already being billed as a historic moment.
Ahead of this launch, NASA is expected to debut the fully assembled rocket in October 2025. After all the delays, cost overruns, and technical setbacks, having an actual launch window is progress worth celebrating, even if cautiously.
Artemis II Crew Names Its Spacecraft “Integrity”
Speaking of Artemis II, its crew recently named their Orion spacecraft “Integrity.” Proposed by the Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, this moniker is chosen to symbolize “peace and hope for all humankind.” Serving as the inaugural crewed flight of the Orion capsule, Integrity will carry astronauts around the Moon for the first time since the Apollo era.
However, some technical concerns still linger from the previous mission. The uncrewed Artemis I Orion capsule returned to Earth with “charring and bolt melting on the heat shield.” While hardly confidence-inspiring imagery, NASA determined that a hypothetical crew aboard Artemis I would “have been safe.” But the agency is not taking chances. Since it’s too late to replace Artemis II’s heat shield, NASA plans to use a gentler reentry trajectory to prevent the gas buildup that caused the damage.
The stakes could not be higher for getting this right. After all, Outer Space exploration has always demanded the best of our technology and the courage of those brave souls willing to venture into the unknown.
Send Your Name to the Moon
On a lighter note, NASA has opened applications for people to send their names on the Artemis II mission. This public engagement initiative allows anyone to have their name recorded on a flash drive that will orbit the Moon aboard the Orion spacecraft. It’s a continuation of NASA’s tradition—and a wonderful one may I add—of connecting the public with its missions. This simple gesture gives people a small but meaningful way to be a part of humanity’s return to lunar orbit.
For Outer Space enthusiasts and general public alike, this represents a unique opportunity to literally be a part of history—having your name circle the Moon (you can submit here) alongside the first crew to do so in over half a century. With all of the technical challenges and political debates surrounding the SLS program, it’s refreshing to see NASA remember that Outer Space exploration, at its heart, belongs to all of us!
