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The deal came hours after President Trump had ordered federal agencies to stop using artificial intelligence technology made by Anthropic, an OpenAI rival.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

A thin atmospheric layer.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

OZONE

Hurdle Word 2 hint

An infectious disease.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for February 28, 2026 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

POLIO

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Part of a flower.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for February 28 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for February 28, 2026 Hurdle Word 3 answer

PETAL

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Land.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

TERRA

Final Hurdle hint

Popular.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

KNOWN

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

The Moon is so very close to being full, but believe it or not, there's still a few days to go. While it continues to appear bigger and brighter in the sky, keep reading to find out exactly what you can see on its surface.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Saturday, Feb. 28, the Moon phase is Waxing Gibbous. According to NASA's Daily Moon Guide, 88% of the Moon will be lit up tonight.

With just your naked eye, tonight you'll be able to see the Mares Tranquillitatis and Crisium. With binoculars you'll be able to see the Mare Nectaris, the Alphonsus Crater, and the Alps Mountains. If you love your moon-gazing gear, get out the telescope to catch a glimpse of and with a telescope you'll see also see the Apollo 15 and 11 landing spots, and the Fra Mauro Highlands.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will be on March 3. The last Full Moon was on Feb. 1.

What are Moon phases?

According to NASA, the Moon takes about 29.5 days to orbit the Earth. Over the course of this period, it moves through eight recognisable phases, what we call the lunar cycle. While the same side of the Moon always faces us, the amount of its surface lit by the Sun changes as it continues along its path. The shifts in sunlight create the different appearances we see from Earth, ranging from a fully illuminated Moon to a thin sliver or near darkness. The eight phases are:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

The deal came hours after President Trump had ordered federal agencies to stop using artificial intelligence technology made by Anthropic, an OpenAI rival.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult to solve if you're into astrology.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for February 28, 2026 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Yearning

• Green: On the road again

• Blue: Male callings

• Purple: Space terms

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Craving

• Green: Jobs that involve traveling

• Blue: Name homophones

• Purple: Astronomical terms plus a letter

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #993 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Craving: DESIRE, ITCH, THIRST, URGE

• Jobs that involve traveling: CRUISE DIRECTOR, PILOT, ROADIE, SALESMAN

• Name homophones: EARNEST, KNEEL, RUSTLE, TAILOR

• Astronomical terms plus a letter: COMETH, NOVAK, START, SUNG

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for February 28, 2026

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you like the finer things in life.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for February 28, 2026 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for February 28, 2026 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Dressing up

The words are related to wealth.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe expensive things.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Glamorous.

NYT Strands word list for February 28

• Heels

• Necktie

• Tuxedo

• Gown

• Glamorous

• Cufflinks

• Diamonds

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you love Greek mythology.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for February 28, 2026 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for February 28, 2026 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

A mythological creature.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter H.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

HYDRA

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

Negotiations between the Pentagon and the AI company Anthropic were severely complicated on Friday when President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the government would stop utilizing the company’s tech. The president ordered the Pentagon to begin a six-month phase-out, accusing Anthropic of being run by "Leftwing nut jobs."

The Truth Social post said that Anthropic wanted the government to abide by its terms of service.

"THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WILL NEVER ALLOW A RADICAL LEFT, WOKE COMPANY TO DICTATE HOW OUR GREAT MILITARY FIGHTS AND WINS WARS!,” Trump wrote. “That decision belongs to YOUR COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, and the tremendous leaders I appoint to run our Military. The Leftwing nut jobs at Anthropic have made a DISASTROUS MISTAKE trying to STRONG-ARM the Department of War, and force them to obey their Terms of Service instead of our Constitution."

Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Truth Social

The federal government and Anthropic have been at odds for weeks as they tried to hammer out an agreement on how the military can use Claude, Anthropic’s AI model. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has been firm that he will not allow the Pentagon to use Claude for mass surveillance of Americans or to create autonomous weapons, like pilotless drones.

The government reportedly agreed to those terms, according to the New York Times, but the contract's legal language provided too much wiggle room for Anthropic’s comfort. Anthropic is known for taking a more cautious approach to AI development, and its founders famously left OpenAI over AI safety concerns.

On Thursday, Amodei explained his stance in a blog post:

"Anthropic understands that the Department of War, not private companies, makes military decisions. We have never raised objections to particular military operations nor attempted to limit use of our technology in an ad hoc manner.

However, in a narrow set of cases, we believe AI can undermine, rather than defend, democratic values. Some uses are also simply outside the bounds of what today’s technology can safely and reliably do."

A deadline of Friday evening was set for an agreement between the Pentagon and Anthropic. It’s not clear if Trump’s announcement of a phase-out will equate to more time for negotiation or if the government is truly moving forward with firing Anthropic by declaring it a supply chain risk. The government may also seek to compel Anthropic to agree to its terms through the Defense Production Act, according to the Times. The government may also choose another AI partner, like Elon Musk's Grok, but CIA officials believe that product is inferior to Anthropic's, the Times reports.

Following the president's Friday afternoon announcement, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman appeared on CNBC and voiced support for Anthropic. "For all the differences I have with Anthropic, I mostly trust them as a company and I think they really do care about safety, and I’ve been happy that they’ve been supporting our war fighters," Altman said, according to a clip of the appearance posted to X.

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Meanwhile, dozens of employees at Google and OpenAI, both competitors of Anthropic, signed letters backing Amodei’s stances. And outside Anthropic’s San Francisco headquarters, words of support appeared in chalk on the sidewalk, according to a post on X.

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This week, Anthropic softened its safety policy — often viewed as one of the strongest in Silicon Valley — citing competitors' reluctance to do the same and the federal government’s disinterest in prioritizing security.

"The policy environment has shifted toward prioritizing AI competitiveness and economic growth, while safety-oriented discussions have yet to gain meaningful traction at the federal level," the company wrote. "We remain convinced that effective government engagement on AI safety is both necessary and achievable, and we aim to continue advancing a conversation grounded in evidence, national security interests, economic competitiveness, and public trust. But this is proving to be a long-term project—not something that is happening organically as AI becomes more capable or crosses certain thresholds."

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

In a draft of his memoir, Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, laid out the secret negotiations that led to his imprisonment and a run-in with ICE.

Parents will receive notifications if a child has used the platform repeatedly to search for terms related to suicide or self-harm, but users must opt in to get them.

Actions by the president and the Pentagon appeared to drive a wedge between Washington and the tech industry, whose leaders and workers spoke out for the start-up.

For decades, Resident Evil has constantly reinvented itself. From fixed-camera survival horror to explosive co-op action to first-person psychological terror. At times, those reinventions pushed the franchise to the brink of losing its identity entirely. But through resets, remakes, and refinement, Capcom rediscovered what truly defined the series: structured vulnerability, spatial tension, and controlled escalation.

With Resident Evil 9, the franchise no longer feels reactive. It feels confident. In this episode of How It Hits, we break down how Resident Evil survived itself, and why it finally feels like everything has come together.

Resident Evil Requiem is now available.

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Whether you’re heading on vacation or just trying to stay powered up on a workday, this GoCable 8-in-1 EDC 100W Cable is ready to simplify how you keep your devices charged. This convenient gadget combines eight essential features into one sleek design that you can bring along anywhere.

Packed with 100W ultra-fast charging, the GoCable makes it speedy and simple to supercharge your device efficiently — from laptops to smartphones and everything in between. It also offers high-speed file transfer capabilities. All you need to add is a power bank or wall adapter, and it’s ready to work with everything from Type-C and Type-C+ to Apple Lightning connectors.

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February has been a turbulent month for DJI. The Chinese tech giant, best known for making drones, escalated its fight against the U.S. drone ban by suing the FCC. Then the internet erupted over an entirely different DJI device: The Romo robot vacuum.

Thousands of Romo vacuums and their live cameras worldwide were hacked — and not by an evil mastermind sitting in a room surrounded by screens, but by a guy trying to get his PS5 controller to control his robot vacuum.

Sammy Azdoufal told The Verge he wasn't trying to hack anyone else's robot vacuum. It was merely a fun project for the software engineer, who alerted DJI about its massive authentication slip-up — while sharing how little work it took to access the ins and outs of a Romo owner's home.

SEE ALSO: Firefox adds AI kill switch for users who are sick and tired of AI-everything

And yes, AI was involved. Azdoufal specializes in AI strategy; he got coding help from AI assistant Claude to change the communication protocol between DJI's servers and his Romo.

After creating a custom app for his PlayStation setup, Azdoufal discovered he was looking at way more than his own robot vacuum's data. He'd accidentally unlocked the data of thousands of DJI robot vacuum owners around the world.

The exposed information wasn't just 3D floor plans of homes, which would be bad enough. But the device's live camera feeds and microphone audio were also accessible.

As of Feb. 24, DJI has patched the problem by restricting access to this authentication loophole, Azdoufal found. Meanwhile, the Romo itself appears to have vanished from the online DJI Store, as of Feb. 26.

New fear unlocked: Your robot vacuum as a spy

Even with this issue fixed, the idea that someone could spy on you via your robot vacuum doesn't exactly boost confidence in the whole category. What if another brand of camera-toting robot vacuum brand has a similar undiscovered security flaw — and what if the person who discovers it isn't as goodhearted as Azdoufal?

We've had glimpses of this kind of vulnerability in the past. In 2024, multiple Ecovacs Deebot X2 robot vacuums across the U.S. were hacked and made to yell racial slurs at owners. Other smart home devices with cameras have faced security breaches, from baby monitors to smart doorbells.

But a robot vacuum is the only kind of device that regularly roves around your home. That gives this vulnerability a unique sense of foreboding, perhaps enough to provide the plot to a found footage horror film.

And of course, there are even more opportunities for bad actors when AI has access to personal info.

SEE ALSO: Microsoft says Copilot was summarizing confidential emails without permission

I test robot vacuums for a living, and I really don't want to have to be paranoid about their camera usage. The livestream camera is an incredibly comforting robot vacuum feature for pet parents who get anxious about leaving pets at home alone.

All of the robovacs I've tested have announced out loud when they're in remote viewing mode. But not all robot vacuums provide that courtesy notification (the DJI Romo, for one, does not).

In any case, if a hacker was able to get to the point that they could control the vacuum's camera, would it be that hard for them to disable the warning? While the issue remains, it might be wise to disable your vacuum's camera, at least when not in use, with the lowest-tech hack of all: putting tape over it.

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Screen time is a controversial topic these days. If you’re looking for a non-addictive way to let kids have a little fun on the tablet, it’s time to meet Pok Pok. This award-winning app keeps kids entertained while serving as a great introduction to screen time with hand-drawn animations, low stimulation, and in-house-made gentle sound effects.

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OpenAI is speaking out about changes and overhauls coming to its safety protocols and communications with law enforcement after a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, that left nine dead, including the shooter, earlier this month.

The perpetrator of the shooting had their ChatGPT account suspended in June 2025 after OpenAI detected content from the user that presented "an indication of potential real-world violence." OpenAI banned the user and considered alerting authorities. However, OpenAI decided not to inform law enforcement after determining that the user had no credible plan to act out.

OpenAI's decision not to alert authorities has become a major concern of the Canadian government.

While OpenAI did have a protocol to handle credible threats, the company is now saying it will do more. In an open letter to the Canadian government, OpenAI's Vice President of Global Policy Ann M. O’Leary did not offer any specific policy changes, but did mention that changes were already being implemented and more were coming.

In addition, O'Leary also shared another oversight in OpenAI's protocols. According to OpenAI's open letter, the Tumbler Ridge shooter had opened a second ChatGPT account, which the company only discovered after the shooting occurred and the name of the shooter was publicly released. OpenAI did share that account with police after making the discovery.

In its open letter, OpenAI says it will "continue to strengthen" its law enforcement referral protocol. The company said it's working with mental health experts to better assess difficult cases and when conversations cross the line into being a risk.

OpenAI also said they are establishing a direct point of contact with Canadian law enforcement to refer cases with potential for "real world violence."

ChatGPT will also be tweaked to provide help to users who are in distress or are pursuing prohibited behavior by providing them resources to localized support within their communities. 

In addition, OpenAI said it is addressing its protocols that allowed for the shooter to open a second account. The company said it had a system in place to detect repeat policy offenders and is committing to "strengthening our detection systems to better prevent attempts to evade our safeguards and prioritize identifying the highest risk offenders."

Mashable has reached out to OpenAI for additional information regarding these policy overhauls and to find out whether these affect the company's policies in the United States as well. We will update this piece when we hear back.

FREE BOOKS: The latest Stuff Your Kindle Day takes place on Feb. 28. Indulge in the Darkness, hosted by The Book Club Fest, is offering free dark romance books for your e-reader.

Another Stuff Your Kindle Day is dropping, merely days after the Sapphic Shelf Explosion. We're certainly not complaining. It's very much a case of "the more the merrier" with Stuff Your Kindle Day. We're always greedy for more.

Indulge in the Darkness, hosted by The Book Club Fest, is offering participants the chance to download dark romance books without spending anything. Everything that you download is yours to keep forever, so there's no need to hold back. Dive into the world of dark romance with this limited-time event.

SEE ALSO: I tested the best Kindles to help you find the perfect e-reader

Looking to make the most of the latest Stuff Your Kindle Day? We've lined up everything you need to know about this popular event.

When is Stuff Your Kindle Day?

Indulge in the Darkness takes place on Feb. 28. This free giveaway only runs for 24 hours, so you'll need to act quickly to pick up all the titles on your list.

Which ebooks are free?

Indulge in the Darkness offers free dark romance books from a number of sub-genres. Fortunately, The Book Club Fest has created a helpful hub page with links to everything on offer:

• Contemporary

• Poly/Why Choose/Reverse Harem

• Paranormal/Sci-Fi/Fantasy

• MM or FF

Anyone can participate in Stuff Your Kindle Day. Kindle and Kobo readers can download these dark romance books for free.

Is Stuff Your Kindle Day the same as Amazon Kindle Unlimited?

Everything you download on Stuff Your Kindle Day is yours to keep, and there's no limit on the number of books you can download. Stuff Your Kindle Day downloads don't count towards the 20 books that Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscribers can borrow at the same time.

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These popular e-readers let you take your entire library on the go. With weeks of battery life and an anti-glare display, you can read anywhere and anytime with the Kindle. Plus, you can get three months of Kindle Unlimited for free with your purchase.

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NASA will trade the Artemis mission that was expected to land astronauts on the moon for a new plan intended to increase launch frequency of the agency's mega rocket.

At a news briefing on Friday, NASA administrator Jared Isaacman described a vast overhaul to the moon-to-Mars program. The changes scrap the Artemis III lunar landing and instead make it a flight in low-Earth orbit for a crew to practice meeting up with either the SpaceX or Blue Origin-built lunar landers — or, perhaps, both. 

Those efforts also will impact the U.S. space agency's timeline for the future Artemis missions, moving up the revised Artemis III flight to the middle of 2027, which could make way for Artemis IV and Artemis V at the beginning and end of 2028. Under the new direction, Artemis IV would be the first mission to put astronaut boots on the lunar surface. 

The sweeping revisions to the agency's program came during an update on repairs to the Space Launch System rocket, which will launch Artemis II, a 10-day lunar flyby mission with a crew, as early as April. 

"There has to be a better way in line with our history," Isaacman said. "We did not just jump right to Apollo 11. We did it through Mercury, Gemini, and lots of Apollo missions, with a launch cadence every three months. We shouldn't be comfortable with the current cadence. We should be getting back to basics and doing what we know works."

SEE ALSO: These 'avatars' will fly around the moon with NASA's Artemis 2 astronauts

NASA leaders said the shakeup is meant to address a larger underlying problem: the U.S. agency is flying its most powerful rocket too infrequently and repeating some of the same technical issues from one mission to the next.

Isaacman pointed to hydrogen leaks on Artemis I and helium flow problems on Artemis II as signs that a three‑year gap between launches is not sustainable. When teams only fly every few years, he said, they lose "muscle memory" — the routine, hands-on experience required to handle a complex rocket safely and efficiently.

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To fix that, NASA is redefining the Artemis campaign as a step‑by‑step test program. The agency now aims to launch roughly once every 10 months, standardize its rocket configuration, and rebuild in‑house expertise that has withered over time.

Increasing the Artemis launch cadence

A major change is the decision to treat Artemis III as a practice mission in Earth orbit rather than a landing attempt. That mission will let astronauts and engineers test how the Orion spaceship and the landers find each other, fly together, and possibly dock. It will also allow crews to start checking life‑support systems and other hardware inside the landers before sending them all the way to the lunar surface. Officials said they may even try limited tests of the new moonwalking suits in weightlessness, if schedules allow.

NASA leaders argued that it makes more sense to uncover problems and practice operations close to home, in Earth orbit, rather than discovering them for the first time while attempting a landing on the moon. If the faster launch tempo holds, Artemis IV and Artemis V together could give NASA two opportunities in 2028. Officials stressed that the timeline still depends on hardware readiness and safety reviews.

Work toward Gateway, a small space station that would orbit the moon and serve as a staging point for future missions, is not going away, officials said. But they made clear the agency’s priority is getting Artemis flights off the ground more often before building out that lunar outpost.

Not far from their minds is the reality that China is also attempting to land its own crew on the moon before 2030 and may be able to get there before the United States. NASA hasn't sent humans to the lunar surface since Apollo 17 in 1972. And though no other nation has followed in the giant leap for humankind, that won't always be true.

NASA leaders announced an overhaul to the Artemis program's timeline, trying to simplify the missions and created a stepped approach from one launch to the next. Credit: NASA infographic

"[In] the 1960s [it] turned out, in hindsight, we had a near-endless schedule margin there," Isaacman said. "That is certainly not the case today. I'd say this is very, very close from a timeline perspective."

Artemis 2 works toward April launch

The revised campaign comes as engineers work through immediate issues on Artemis II, the first crewed flight of the program. After a successful "wet dress rehearsal" — a full countdown test that loads the rocket with super‑cold fuel — teams discovered that helium was not flowing correctly to the engines in the rocket's upper stage.

Helium is used to pressurize tanks and help push fuel into the engines. Without proper helium flow, the rocket cannot safely fly. Because the upper stage is hard to reach at the launchpad, NASA rolled the stacked rocket back into the Vehicle Assembly Building, the sky-scraping hangar where it was originally put together.

While the rocket is inside, technicians will remove and inspect suspected helium system components, update any faulty hardware, and perform other work. That includes replacing batteries in the flight termination system — the emergency system that can destroy the rocket if it strays off course — swapping out a seal on the line that feeds liquid oxygen into the rocket, refreshing items inside Orion, and giving the closeout crew more practice sealing the capsule.

NASA wants to streamline that work to preserve a chance to launch Artemis II on April 1, April 3 through 6, or April 30. They have not provided potential launch dates beyond April, despite many requests from reporters to do so. 

Technicians are trying to diagnose a helium flow problem in the upper stage of the moon rocket ahead of Artemis II, which could launch as early as April. Credit: NASA Back to the Apollo-era approach

Beyond the near-term, Isaacman said NASA will standardize the current moon rocket configuration instead of evolving the design after only a few flights, as originally planned. The goal is to avoid turning each booster into a bespoke project and instead fly a simpler, repeatable version that industry can achieve quicker.

Isaacman also highlighted a push to rebuild NASA's workforce, shifting some key roles from contractors — who today make up about 75 percent of the agency's technical labor — back to in-house expertise. NASA leaders say that will give them more control over launch preparations, as it did in the Apollo and space shuttle eras.

The White House, Congress, and major contractors support the new approach, he said. The bigger question is whether the American public will get on board. Many people are unaware that NASA is just weeks away from launching astronauts into deep space for the first time in over a half-century.

"It's a different environment than the 1960s. There's more than three channels on a TV, so capturing people's attention at times can be challenging," Isaacman said. "I have no doubt when Artemis II takes flight, the world will take notice to that."

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TCL has finally released its RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses, alongside two limited-edition Batman-themed models. These AR glasses are the world's first smart glasses with an HDR display, and they're designed for watching movies and playing video games. While most smart glasses are priced at $500 or more, the new RayNeo AR glasses are priced at $299, which could shake up this emerging market.

On top of that, early buyers can also save $50 when they purchase the glasses from TCL or Amazon, bringing the price to $249 for a limited time.

When TCL showed off its RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses at CES 2026, I was impressed, and I wrote at the time that competitors like Xreal should be worried. Despite the relatively affordable price tag, the glasses have super-bright OLED displays that support HDR10, something never seen before in smart glasses. TCL describes them as "head-mounted TVs," and that's what they feel like.

I've been testing the glasses over the past few weeks, and overall, I'm still impressed, despite their quirks. Like other AR glasses, you connect them to a compatible laptop, smartphone, or gaming device via the included USB-C cable.

Introducing the RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses Take a look under the hood. Credit: Timothy Werth / Mashable

The RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses launched today. The base version is priced at $299, but TCL also released two limited-edition, Batman versions of the glasses, the Limited Justice and Limited Chaos Editions. The Batman glasses come with additional accessories like a Batman cowl that attaches to the frames; they have an MSRP of $319, though they're also discounted at launch to $269.

Using a Vision 4000 processor and dual OLED displays, the Air 4 Pro glasses can create a virtual screen up to 201 inches in size. I wore them to watch Mad Max: Fury Road and The Hobbit (not to mention countless YouTube videos), and the display is gorgeous.

The RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses have an impressive list of specs. While they're priced like a pair of budget smart glasses, they have a premium display.

• Style: Augmented reality smart glasses

• Display: 0.6-inch micro-OLED display

• Screen size: 201 inches

• Brightness: Up to 1,200 nits

• Resolution: 1920x1080 (3840x1080 for 3D)

• Refresh rate: Up to 120 Hz

• Color accuracy: ΔE

• Sound: Bang & Olufsen surround sound (4 speakers)

SEE ALSO: These color-changing sunglasses are like something out of a sci-fi movie Are the RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses worth it? These AR/XR glasses have a huge price advantage over their rivals. Credit: TCL

If you're an early adopter looking to try out AR glasses, it's hard to argue with the $299 price tag. For reference, Xreal recently launched a more affordable version of its glasses called the Xreal 1S, priced at $449.

There's no doubt that the RayNeo Air 4 Pro smart glasses have a better display. The Xreal 1S has a peak brightness of 700 nits, compared to 1,200 with the RayNeo. In addition, the micro-OLED displays on the Air 4 Pro are noticeably more vibrant, ideal for watching movies and gaming.

However, before you get too excited, Xreal glasses still have some big advantages. First off, Xreal can project much larger virtual screens. You can also control the screen distance and angle for optimum viewing, and set the display to anchor in a specific spot in your eyeline or move with your head. There's no anchor feature with the RayNeo glasses.

If you're looking for AR glasses that can be used as a productivity tool, giving you an extra screen while you work, then Xreal is by far the better choice. But for entertainment, the Air 4 Pros are going to be hard to beat, especially for the price. If money is no object, then check out the ROG Xreal R1 AR Gaming Glasses.

Opens in a new window Credit: TCL RayNeo Air 4 Pro AR/XR Glasses $249 at Amazon
$299 Save $50   Get Deal Opens in a new window Credit: TCL RayNeo Air 4 Pro × Batman Limited Edition $269 at Amazon
$319 Save $50   Get Deal