NASA's Artemis II moon rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39-B on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. The mission sends a four-person crew on a 10-day journey around the Moon.
Mission commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen are aboard the Orion spacecraft. This marks the first human mission beyond low-Earth orbit since the Apollo era.
The launch occurred at 22:35 UTC from Florida's Kennedy Space Center. The crew will spend about 23.5 hours in Earth orbit before heading to the Moon.
Artemis II is a test flight designed to evaluate Orion’s life support, navigation, and communication systems. It is the second mission in NASA's Artemis program, following the uncrewed Artemis I.
The mission aims to push humanity farther from Earth than ever before, surpassing Apollo 13’s previous record. The crew will loop behind the Moon on April 6, traveling more than 400,000 kilometers from Earth.
This mission paves the way for future lunar landings under Artemis III (2027) and IV (2028), which plan to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon.
"We are going for our families, our teammates, and all humanity," said mission specialist Jeremy Hansen.
