When the administration decided last year to speed up NASA’s human lunar exploration blueprint by four years, it immediately hit a formidable obstacle.

The first Space Launch System (SLS) core stage, earmarked for an uncrewed mid-2020 flight test around the Moon, was not expected to be finished until August 2020.

Accessexclusive subscriber-only in-depth coverage on the plan to complete assembly of the first core stage.

Plus every subscriber has access to our expanding eBook library, featuring updates in supersonics, manned and unmanned innovation in aviation, the renaissance of high-speed air travel, the legends behind the world's first wide-body jet, emerging technologies making their way into the MRO market, technological developments for new satellites & the next generation of space start-ups and the most pressing issues facing military pilots today.

Subscribe today and receive all of this plus exclusive online access at aviationweek.com