Four astronauts launched from Florida on Wednesday as part of NASA's Artemis II mission, marking the first crewed lunar mission since the Apollo era.
The mission, a 10-day journey around the Moon, represents the United States' most significant step yet toward returning humans to the lunar surface within this decade, ahead of China's first crewed landing.
NASA astronauts piloting the mission include Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, forming the 'Orion crew' named in tandem with the ship's crew capsule.
The launch occurred at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
After the launch, the Orion crew capsule successfully separated from the rocket's upper stage and entered a highly elliptical orbit around Earth. The crew will spend the first one to two days in high Earth orbit conducting extensive systems checks before heading onto its planned trajectory toward the moon.
Artemis II's trip to the moon
During the several-day transit to the moon, astronauts will continue monitoring spacecraft systems en route to operating farther from Earth than any previous human spaceflight. Mission controllers will track communications and navigation performance as Orion travels deep into space.
Closing in on the Moon's orbit, Orion will conduct a ‘moon fly-by’ - a pass behind the Moon on a "free-return" trajectory. A path that naturally swings the spacecraft back toward Earth without requiring additional propulsion.
After the lunar flyby, the crew will spend several days heading home while conducting additional deep-space tests, including evaluations of power systems, thermal controls, and crew operations far beyond low Earth orbit.
As Orion approaches Earth, it will separate key components before plunging into the atmosphere at speeds of about 40,233 kph. Testing the capsule’s heat shield during high-energy re-entry is one of the mission’s primary objectives. The spacecraft is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean, where recovery teams will retrieve the crew.