Overview
- Artemis II remains on its planned lunar flyby after crews fixed an early urine‑collection fan and controller failure and then reported two devices that could not run Microsoft Outlook, which controllers treated as routine with a reboot.
- NASA is running a new Orion laser communications system that can send 4K video at up to about 260 Mbps through ground stations in New Mexico and California with the Deep Space Network as radio backup.
- Mission planners say the flight will reach roughly 406,773 kilometers from Earth on the return leg, topping Apollo 13’s mark based on trajectory data calculated after the translunar injection burn.
- The White House proposed cutting NASA’s 2027 discretionary budget to $18.8 billion, which would reduce support for the SLS heavy rocket and shift emphasis to commercial options such as SpaceX’s Starship and Blue Origin’s New Glenn.
- NASA allowed personal electronic devices for this flight, including an iPhone used for recording inside Orion, with all data routed through the spacecraft’s network rather than direct links to Earth.