The first core stage for Nasa's "mega-rocket", the SLS, has left its factory in New Orleans for crucial tests to assess its readiness for launch.

Axar.az reports citing foreign media.

The Space Launch System (SLS) is a critical part of the space agency's Artemis programme, which aims to return Americans to the Moon by 2024.

The core stage is the centrepiece of the new rocket and will undergo comprehensive testing in Mississippi.

On Wednesday, it was placed on a barge which will sail it to its destination.

The rocket, which will be taller than a 30-storey building, is being built for Nasa by Boeing.

Nasa deputy administrator Jim Morhard attended the roll-out of the rocket stage from the Michoud Assembly Facility (Maf) in New Orleans where it was built.

He said it represented "an exciting leap forward in the Artemis program as Nasa teams make progress toward the launch pad".

The rocket programme, which was announced in 2010, has been hit by delays and cost overruns.

Some in the space community believe it would be better to launch deep space missions on commercial rockets. But supporters of the programme say that Nasa needs its own heavy-lift launch capability.

After roll-out from the Maf, the core was loaded on to Nasa's Pegasus barge to travel by water to the Stennis Space Center near Bay St Louis in Mississippi.