NASA is targeting Feb 6 for the launch of its Artemis II mission, which will send four astronauts on a crewed journey around the Moon, marking humanity’s first return to lunar spaceflight since the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972.
The 10-day mission will carry NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, who will serve as commander, Victor Glover as pilot and Christina Koch as a mission specialist, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, aboard the Orion spacecraft. The spacecraft will not land on the Moon but will fly around its far side before returning to Earth.
In preparation for the flight, the U.S. space agency has moved the Orion spacecraft and its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
“Artemis II will be a momentous step forward for human spaceflight. This historic mission will send humans farther from Earth than ever before and deliver the insights needed for us to return to the Moon — all with America at the helm,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said.
“Artemis II represents progress toward establishing a lasting lunar presence and sending Americans to Mars. Boldly forward,” he added.
NASA said the Artemis II mission will set the stage for Artemis III, currently scheduled for launch in 2027, when astronauts are expected to land on the Moon’s south pole for the first time and begin building a long-term human presence.
“Under the Artemis campaign, NASA is returning humans to the Moon for economic benefits, scientific discovery, and to prepare for crewed missions to Mars,” the agency said.
NASA previously conducted Artemis I in August 2022, an uncrewed test flight that marked the first integrated launch of the Orion spacecraft and the SLS rocket as part of the agency’s Deep Space Exploration Systems.
With Artemis II, NASA will conduct a full test of the Orion spacecraft and its deep-space exploration systems in real mission conditions. The spacecraft will not touch down on the lunar surface.
The four-member crew will launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida and first enter an initial orbit around Earth, allowing astronauts to check life support and other critical systems. While still close to Earth, the crew will assess the performance of systems required to generate breathable air.
Using the Moon’s gravity, the astronauts will then attempt a trans-lunar injection burn, with Orion’s service module providing the final push to send the spacecraft on an outbound journey of about four days around the far side of the Moon, tracing a figure-eight trajectory.
At its farthest point, the mission is expected to take the astronauts more than 230,000 miles from Earth, following a free-return path that would allow the spacecraft to coast back to Earth without additional engine burns.
The flight will conclude with a high-speed atmospheric re-entry and a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
“In the coming days, engineers and technicians will prepare the Artemis II rocket for the wet dress rehearsal, a test of fueling operations and countdown procedures,” NASA said.
The agency added that teams will load the rocket with cryogenic, or super-cooled, propellants, conduct a full countdown sequence, and practise safely draining the propellants from the rocket, steps required ahead of the first crewed Artemis mission, by Feb. 2.
(with agency input)
