NASA is already walking back its Friday announcement that it will try to launch to the moon in March, after discovering a new problem with the Artemis II rocket. 

Officials said they’re eyeing Tuesday, Feb. 24, to haul the rocket off the launchpad.

During a routine step to restore pressure in the Space Launch System, the team couldn’t get helium to flow properly through the rocket. Helium, though not a fuel, is important because it helps protect the engines and keeps the fuel tanks at the right pressure. Though the helium system worked fine during a launch rehearsal that ended Thursday night, engineers are especially troubled knowing a similar pattern cropped up before the Artemis I launch in 2022, which didn’t carry astronauts. 

The affected part is the rocket’s upper stage, which uses super-cold fuels — liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen — to power the mission once it’s in space. Engineers are looking at several possible causes, including a connection point between the ground equipment and the rocket, a valve in the upper stage, and a filter in the helium line. Fixing any of those issues would require work at the Vehicle Assembly Building, the rocket’s enormous hangar about four miles away from the pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Unless NASA suddenly discovers a different cause that can be addressed at the pad, a delay is inevitable. 

“We will begin preparations for rollback, and this will take the March launch window out of consideration,” said NASA administrator Jared Isaacman in an X post.

Artemis II is a 10-day flight around the moon and back, testing the new Orion spaceship with humans aboard. It’s the space agency’s first crewed mission beyond Earth orbit since 1972. The test flight sets the stage for a moon landing during Artemis III. The overall Artemis campaign is intended to establish a permanent human presence on the moon in preparation for more challenging missions to Mars.

The four-person crew began quarantining at the Johnson Space Center in Houston on Friday, when a launch on March 6 seemed achievable. The astronauts — Commander Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Hammock Koch, and Jeremy Hansen — were released from their sequester Saturday night. 

NASA administrator Jared Isaacman says President Donald Trump wants Artemis to exceed the achievements of the Apollo program.
Credit: NASA / Aubrey Gemignani

Acting quickly now could keep an April launch on the table. The windows include April 1, April 3-6, and April 30. NASA has not released future launch window dates to the public, despite requests from reporters. 

At this time, the rocket is safe and using a backup method to maintain stable conditions in the upper stage, according to NASA. The upper stage is critical because it pushes the spacecraft onto its trajectory after liftoff.

NASA studied the Artemis I helium issue and confirmed the system was still working within safe limits before the inaugural launch. But given that Artemis II involves human lives, the bar is much higher on what risks the agency will accept before launching. 

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NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens said the team had been “up all night” from Friday to Saturday, troubleshooting the helium issues at the Kennedy Space Center launch pad. Officials plan to hold a detailed briefing on the situation later this week. 

Delays are frustrating, but space missions often hit technical setbacks, and fixing issues before a crewed flight is the right move, Isaacman said. 

“The President created Artemis as a program that will far surpass what America achieved during Apollo. We will return in the years ahead, we will build a Moon base, and undertake what should be continuous missions to and from the lunar environment,” he wrote. “Where we begin with this architecture and flight rate is not where it will end.”

TL;DR: Windows 11 Pro was $199, but right now, it’s only $12.97.

Last year, Microsoft ended support for Windows 10. One major consequence of that is that machines running Windows 10 aren’t getting the essential security updates that keep your data private. The good news is that it’s also really cheap to upgrade right now. Before, it would have cost you $199 to get Windows 11 Pro, but right now, it’s only $12.97. This offer ends very soon.

Security is one of the main reasons to move away from Windows 10. Windows 11 Pro uses newer hardware security tools like TPM 2.0 and UEFI, which help your PC check that nothing has been tampered with when it starts up. BitLocker can encrypt your whole drive so your files are harder to get into if your laptop is lost or stolen, and Smart App Control helps block shady or unsafe apps before they run. If you run virtual machines, test software, or connect to business networks, tools like Hyper-V, Windows Sandbox, and Azure AD support give you a safer way to do that work.

You also get a simpler desktop layout, a new Start menu, and snap tools that make it easier to line up windows side by side without dragging them around forever. Virtual desktops let you keep separate setups for work, school, and personal use on the same computer. Built-in Teams and Widgets keep calls, calendars, weather, and other quick info close so you are not digging through menus just to join a meeting or check something basic.

Copilot adds an AI assistant directly into Windows. You can use it to change settings, summarize pages you are reading, draft emails or other text, or get quick code suggestions. You open it from the taskbar, with the Windows logo key plus C, or with a Copilot key if your keyboard has one.

Time to upgrade. Get Windows 11 Pro while it’s only $13.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

The Moon is a quarter of the way back to us now, meaning there is more than enough of its surface lit up that we can enjoy some Moon gazing. So, what can you see when you look up tonight?

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Sunday, Feb. 22, the Moon phase is Waxing Crescent. According to NASA’s Daily Moon Guide, 26% of the Moon will be lit up tonight.

There’s plenty to see on the Moon’s surface tonight, but some Mares and craters stand out. With just your naked eye, you should be able to make out the Mares Crisium and Fecunditatis. If you add binoculars you’ll also be able to see the Endymion Crater. And with a telescope, enjoy a glimpse of the Apollo 17 landing spot.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will be on March 3. The last Full Moon was on Feb. 1.

What are Moon phases?

NASA tells us that the Moon completes a full orbit around Earth in roughly 29.5 days. During this cycle, it passes through eight distinct phases. Although we consistently see the same side of the Moon, the portion illuminated by the Sun shifts as it travels along its orbit. The changing angle of sunlight reflecting off the Moon’s surface is what makes it appear full, partially lit, or nearly dark at different times. The eight phases include:

New Moon – The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it’s invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent – A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter – Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous – More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon – The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous – The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) – Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent – A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.