NASA’s preparations
for landing astronauts on the Moon are ramping up.
The agency announced that it
achieved a major milestone with the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) that would power the rocket-carrying astronauts to the Moon under Artemis III.
The ICPS is being developed
at the United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) factory in Alabama and NASA says that major components of this crucial rocket part are complete.
The ICPS is what would provide
the in-space propulsion to the Orion spacecraft which would be mounted atop the Space Launch System (SLS) Moon rocket.
Being developed by ULA in
collaboration with Boeing, this component will be used after SLS puts the Orion spacecraft into orbit and before it begins its journey toward the Moon on its own.
On the left of the image above is
the liquid hydrogen tank of the rocket which has been completed, whereas, on the right features the intertank which connects the liquid oxygen tank with the hydrogen one.