NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman revealed a reconfigured plan for the Artemis program today that increases the cadence of launches and adds an earth-orbit test flight before a lunar surface return. Calling it a “course correction,” officials said the previous plan was not a path to success. The goal of landing on the Moon in 2028 while President Trump is in office remains and NASA is even preserving the possibility of two landings that year.

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As NASA prepares to launch the Artemis II crew around the Moon in the very near future, the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP) is raising warning flags about the next flight in the queue, Artemis III. That’s the mission designed to land astronauts on the surface of the Moon for the first time since 1972, but ASAP warns the current plan is too risky. NASA will hold a press conference tomorrow morning, February 27, to discuss “Next Steps for the Artemis Campaign” that presumably will focus not only on the upcoming launch of Artemis II, but ASAP’s report as well.

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One week after promising leadership changes stemming from the 2024 Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test incident, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has replaced the heads of the Space Operations Mission Directorate and the Commercial Crew Program. Ken Bowersox is retiring and Steve Stich is moving to another position at the agency. Their deputies will take over for now. An internal review of NASA’s decision-making process and findings from a separate NASA advisory panel criticize how decisions were made even though in the end the two CFT crew members, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, made a safe return on a different spacecraft.

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In a nearly two-hour State of the Union address Tuesday evening, President Trump briefly mentioned launching humans “into the stars” as part of a review of America’s history, but not the Artemis program specifically. The Artemis II crew and NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman were invited guests, but not singled out. …

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Here is SpacePolicyOnline.com’s list of space policy events for the week of February 22-28, 2026 and any insight we can offer about them. The Senate is scheduled to be in session all week; the House Monday-Wednesday.

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Just one day after excitedly sharing the successful results of the second Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal, NASA has a different message this morning. A problem with helium flow to the Space Launch System’s upper stage overnight means they have to roll the SLS back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repairs. NASA’s initial announcement this morning left room for the possibility that the repairs might take place at the pad, but NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman soon clarified that SLS must return to the VAB and launching in March no longer is an option.

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NASA confirmed today that March 6 is their target for sending astronauts around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years. The date for launching Artemis II is tentative pending a review of data from yesterday’s successful Wet Dress Rehearsal and weather, but that is the plan. The four astronauts are entering the 14-day pre-launch quarantine this afternoon.

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Today’s successful Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) positions NASA to launch astronauts around the Moon  for the first time in over 50 years as soon as next month. This was the second WDR of the Space Launch System rocket for the Artemis II mission after hydrogen leaks prematurely ended an attempt earlier this month. NASA will hold a press conference tomorrow to share the results and perhaps confirm a date for when four astronauts will venture beyond Earth orbit for the first time since 1972.

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At a quickly announced news conference today, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman released NASA’s investigation into the 2024 Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test incident. Acknowledging that the Starliner spacecraft itself has deficiencies, Isaacman found the “most troubling” failures were in NASA decision-making and leadership, with mistakes from the program’s inception through execution. That includes not declaring CFT a Type-A Mishap from the beginning. Leadership changes at NASA will be made as the agency and Boeing continue to work together to make Starliner a success.

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NASA will conduct a second Wet Dress Rehearsal (WDR) on Thursday in preparation for the launch of Artemis II. The nearly 50-hour test actually begins Tuesday evening as launch teams conduct tests and fill the Space Launch System rocket with propellant. The simulated launch window opens at 8:30 pm ET on Thursday. The first Artemis II WDR on February 2 ended early because of hydrogen leaks, but NASA has replaced seals and is ready to try again.

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