Artemis mission live: NASA's mega-rocket painstakingly crawls towards launch pad

As the mega-rocket nears the end of its 10-hour journey to the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, we're pausing our live updates.

But fear not - this page will return for the next big moment in the mission.

As we've been explaining throughout the day, this is merely the first step as we build up to the launch of the Artemis 2 mission.

Once the rocket is safely on its launch pad, crews can begin putting it through even more rigorous testing.

The fuelling test, called a "wet dress rehearsal", is scheduled to take place on 2 February, four days before the first launch window.

Based on the rocket's performance during that test, NASA will decide if Artemis 2 will be ready for a 6 February launch.

Watch: Mega-rocket behind moon mission

We brought you the news that NASA had started moving the rocket to the launch pad little over 10 hours ago (see 12.11 post).

Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the Artemis launch director, said it was expected to be in motion for up to 10 hours before arriving at the site.

"We'll be at a cruising speed of just under 1mph," she said. 

"It'll be a little slower around the turns and up the hill. The journey will take around 8-10 hours."

If you're just catching up on our coverage of the Artemis 2 mission, we can tell you more about what the crew of four will be doing in space.

The astronauts will manually fly the space capsule in orbit to test steering and manoeuvres for future missions.

As we've explained, while this mission won't be landing on the moon, the aim is to complete that step when Artemis 3 launches.

The crew will head to a point thousands of kilometres beyond the moon to check power and navigation systems.

They will also be sending back data and imagery from deep space.

The work will be conducted in a small cabin, where radiation levels will be higher than on the International Space Station.

The rocket is now nearing the launch pad after slowly making its way there through the day.

Our science correspondent Thomas Moore explains everything you need to know about the 98m-tall rocket in this video...

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has issued an update as the rocket slowly makes its way to the launch pad.

"Today's rollout is a critical step... more milestones remain, and each one matters," he wrote on social media.

"Next comes an extensive testing campaign to ensure the vehicle is ready to fly three Americans and one Canadian - Reid, Victor, Christina, and Jeremy - into space than we have ever sent humans before and bring them home safely."

Isaacman reiterated that there's still "a lot of work ahead" before launch.

"We'll take all the time necessary until we are ready," he added.

We're now joined by space journalist Ken Kremer, who has been describing the excitement in Florida as the rocket edges towards the launch pad.

"I've waited for this my whole life," he tells presenter Jonathan Samuels.

"I was a kid when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon, so I'm very thrilled that we're finally going back."

He goes on to explain that there's still many milestones to go.

Regarding a launch date, Kremer says there's no guarantees for 6 February.

"It's going to be tough to meet that deadline," he adds.

"It is possible, they can launch it until 11 February in this launch period. If that doesn't go, they'll have to wait until March or early March."

Watch the interview...

Earlier, we told you about the three steps of the Artemis mission (see 9.00 post).

This mission, named Artemis 2, will circle around the moon before returning home, while Artemis 3 plans to land NASA astronauts on the moon's surface.

So, why won't this mission be touching down on the moon's surface?

"The short answer is because it doesn't have the capability. This is not a lunar lander," Patty Casas Horn, deputy lead for Mission Analysis and Integrated Assessments at NASA, told CNN. 

"Throughout the history of NASA, everything that we do is a bit risky, and so we want to make sure that that risk makes sense, and only accept the risk that we have to accept, within reason. 

"So we build out a capability, then we test it out, then we build out a capability, then we test it out. And we will get to landing on the moon, but Artemis II is really about the crew."

As we've been reporting, crews will be putting the rocket through rigorous testing once it reaches the launch pad.

Based on its performance during those tests, NASA will decide if Artemis 2 will be ready for a 6 February launch.

But that's not the only date available. Here's a look at the possibilities...

• 6, 7, 8, 10 and 11 February
• 6, 7, 8, 9 and 11 March
• 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 April

Reid Wiseman, the NASA astronaut who will be mission commander of Artemis 2, has been sharing images on his social media account throughout the day.

This picture shows the sheer scale of the 98m-tall rocket as it crawls towards the launch pad, with a person watching on.

As NASA's mega-rocket crawls towards the launch pad, we've just received a picture showing the moment it first emerged into the outside world.

Our science correspondent Thomas Moore explained that the rocket is roughly the size of Big Ben, standing at 98m tall.