For the first time in over 50 years, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) successfully launched a crewed lunar flyby mission on Apr. 1, 2026. Artemis II marks the first voyage with crew aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft.
The 322-foot-tall rocket launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying four astronauts – Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
“On this historic mission, you take with you the heart of this Artemis team, the daring spirit of the American people and our partners across the globe, and the hopes and dreams of a new generation,” launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson told the crew right before liftoff. “Good luck, Godspeed Artemis II. Let’s go.”
The historic mission will take the crew on a 230,000-mile journey around the moon and back, serving as a pivotal test flight of the Orion spacecraft.
"This is a test flight," NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman told CBS News. "This is the opening act in a series of missions that will send astronauts to and from the moon with great frequency as we return to stay."
"That one 24-hour orbit gives us time to check out all of (Orion's) environmental control, life support systems," Wiseman said. "Can it scrub our carbon dioxide? Can it keep us alive? Can we drink water? Can we go to the bathroom? All those basic human functions."
"We've got to go get those things tested before we press out to the moon," he added.
Moments Before Launch
Tensions escalated right before the crew’s launch as hydrogen fuel began flowing into the rocket. Earlier this year, dangerous hydrogen leaks occurred during a countdown test, prompting a lengthy flight delay.
During the most recent attempt, no significant hydrogen leaks erupted, allowing the team to load more than 700,000 gallons of fuel (2.6 million liters) into the 32-story SLS rocket.
Right before launch, the space agency endured last-minute technical difficulties due to faulty battery sensors and an inability to get commands through to the rocket’s flight termination system. Luckily, both issues were swiftly resolved, allowing the voyage to commence.
