NASA selects ULA’s Centaur 5 as the new SLS upper stage for Artemis 4 and 5

NASA has now formally picked ULA's Centaur 5 as the upper stage for SLS on Artemis 4 and 5, locking in a major architecture change for missions expected no earlier than 2028. Spaceflight Now reported the contract details after Jared Isaacman said NASA wanted to simplify the fleet, accelerate manufacturing, and reduce complexity by moving closer to a standardized configuration. The decision gives NASA a concrete hardware path instead of leaving the upper-stage question open.

Choosing a flying upper stage gives NASA a more concrete path for later Artemis missions.

The next question is how far that simplification effort actually reaches. Contract language is one thing; the real test will be whether this choice speeds hardware flow, tightens schedules, and clarifies the rest of the Artemis stack rather than just moving complexity somewhere else.