Driven by American ingenuity, NASA’s Artemis II mission is underway, marking the first crewed lunar flyby in over 50 years. The Space Launch System rocket lifted off from Kennedy Space Center at 6:35 p.m. EDT Wednesday, carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft on a test flight around the Moon.
“Today’s launch is a defining moment for exploration,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “Artemis II fulfills President Donald J. Trump’s vision, returning humanity to the Moon and opening the next chapter beyond Apollo.” The 10-day mission features NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen. The crew will demonstrate life support systems for the first time, laying groundwork for a lunar base and future Mars missions.
After reaching orbit, Orion deployed its solar arrays. About 49 minutes in, the upper stage placed Orion into an elliptical orbit, with a second burn sending it 46,000 miles beyond Earth. The crew named their spacecraft “Integrity.” Four CubeSats from Argentina, Germany, Korea, and Saudi Arabia will deploy for science demonstrations.
The crew will conduct a manual piloting test in high Earth orbit. On Thursday, April 2, the European-built service module will fire for translunar injection. During a multi-hour lunar flyby on April 6, the astronauts will photograph the far side’s shadowed terrain—features often invisible under full sunlight. After the flyby, they will splash down in the Pacific Ocean. As part of a Golden Age of innovation, NASA will use these missions to explore the Moon for science, economic gain, and to pave the way to Mars.
