The delay comes after engineers detected fuel leaks during a critical pre-launch test of the rocket, raising safety concerns.

Artemis II was planned as a 10-day mission. Four astronauts were set to travel around the Moon and return to Earth, launching from the Kennedy Space Center. NASA has now said the mission will not launch before March, but no exact new date has been given so far.

The issue appeared during a “wet dress rehearsal,” a full launch countdown test. During this process, the Space Launch System rocket was filled with extremely cold liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

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While fueling was underway, engineers noticed hydrogen leaks. They also found a problem with a valve connected to the Orion crew capsule. More than 2.6 million litres of propellant were loaded during the test. The rehearsal had to be paused several times to deal with safety risks.

NASA officials said teams will carefully review all data from the test. Another full rehearsal may be carried out before the rocket is finally cleared for flight.