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Launch Vehicle

Space Launch System

Also Known As SLS
United States

NASA's super heavy-lift launch vehicle for the Artemis program, built around a hydrogen-fueled core stage descended from the Space Shuttle's external tank and engines, flanked by twin solid rocket boosters. Its first flight, Artemis I, sent an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the Moon in November 2022, the most powerful rocket to reach orbit since the Saturn V.

Facts
Vehicle Class
Super heavy-lift expendable crewed launch vehicle 3
Manufacturer
Boeing (core stage), Northrop Grumman (solid rocket boosters) 3
First Flight Date
2022-11-16 3
Date of Artemis I, its first flight.
Status
Operational; slated to launch the crewed Artemis II lunar flyby and subsequent Artemis missions. 3
Height (m)
98 3
Payload to LEO (kg)
At least 27,000 kg in its initial Block 1 configuration. 3
Classification
Vehicle Class
Expendable Launch Vehicle 1
Status
Status (category)
Active 2
Connections

Has Vehicle Class

Expendable Launch System, Concepts

Operated By

NASA, Space Agencies and Companies
Source NASA History Office
In the Other Atlases

Manufactured By

Aerojet Rocketdyne

Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.

The Boeing Company

Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.

United Launch Alliance

Also in Business Atlas: the manufacturer of this subject.

Sources
1. Wikipedia (space and spaceflight articles)
Wikimedia Foundation
2. Space Launch System (Wikipedia)
  • Space Launch System, Wikipedia - lead section, vehicle kind (expendable)
    The Space Launch System (SLS) is an American two-stage super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle used by NASA.
  • Infobox: status
    Active
  • In Group: NASA-Developed Launch Systems, Lead sentence
    The Space Launch System (SLS) is an American two-stage super heavy-lift expendable launch vehicle used by NASA.
View the Source
3. NASA History Office
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
  • https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/space-launch-system/reference-guide/
    NASA's super heavy-lift rocket that will send astronauts to the Moon as part of the Artemis missions.
  • Operated By: NASA
View the Source

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