Virtual Astro Live: Built for the Moon—NASA’s Space Launch System November 15

NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) is one of the most powerful rockets ever built, designed to send astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft beyond Earth orbit and toward the Moon. Standing taller than the Statue of Liberty and producing more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust at liftoff, SLS combines decades of spaceflight experience with new technologies to support NASA's Artemis campaign and future missions into deep space.

The rocket builds on the legacy of the Space Shuttle Program, using upgraded versions of the shuttle's main engines and solid rocket boosters alongside a massive core stage that holds more than 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellant. Following the historic Artemis II mission, which carried astronauts around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years, NASA is now preparing SLS for Artemis III, a mission that will test critical capabilities needed for future lunar landings and help pave the way for humanity's return to the lunar surface.

Join us for a conversation with Dave Reynolds, SLS Stages Manager at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, as we explore the engineering behind this powerful rocket, the challenges of preparing it for flight, and how SLS is supporting the next steps of the Artemis campaign.

Viewers who have a passion for space science participate and meet astronauts, scientists, engineers, and other talents through these monthly virtual and onsite programs that explore relevant space-themed topics.

Live streamed via the Intrepid Museum’s Facebook, YouTube, and X, as well as NASASpaceflight’s YouTube and X, and Kerbal Space Academy’s Twitch. 

Register here.

Participants:

Dave Reynolds is the manager of the Space Launch System (SLS) Stages Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where he oversees the rocket’s core stage, main propulsion systems, and avionics integration. He previously managed the SLS Boosters Office during the Artemis I and Artemis II missions and led the Booster Obsolescence and Life Extension (BOLE) project, which is developing upgraded booster technology for future SLS flights.

Reynolds joined NASA in 2004 after working as a propulsion design engineer for the U.S. Navy. Earlier in his NASA career, he supported 22 Space Shuttle missions as a Space Shuttle Main Engine specialist and received the prestigious Silver Snoopy Award for his work investigating an engine anomaly. He holds two patents for additive manufacturing technologies, a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Brigham Young University, and a master’s degree from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.