NASA begins countdown for first crewed Moon mission since 1972
What's the story
NASA is all set to launch its Artemis II mission, marking the first crewed flight to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. The four-member crew will be on a 10-day journey around the Moon and back. The countdown for this historic test flight has already begun at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
International crew
Meet the Artemis II crew
The Artemis II mission will see NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch along with Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) on board. This diverse team is a first for a Moon mission as it includes a woman, a person of color, and an international astronaut. The crew has been in preflight quarantine to ensure their health and safety ahead of the launch.
Mission details
Mission details
The Artemis II mission will be the first crewed flight of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft. The crew will first orbit Earth to test vital systems on their spacecraft such as life support, communication, and navigation. If all goes well, they will use their vehicle's propulsion system to embark on a looping figure-eight trajectory around the Moon and back.
Future plans
NASA's long-term goal for Moon missions
The Artemis II mission is a major milestone in NASA's plan to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon, including a lunar base, with international partners. However, work on essential hardware such as the landing vehicle is still ongoing. NASA has been working with its two lunar lander contractors, SpaceX and Blue Origin, to speed up the process.