The launch of the second mission in NASA’s Artemis lunar program is expected tonight. Four astronauts will head into space to orbit the Moon and return to Earth.
Artemis II is scheduled to launch from Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida between 1:24 a.m. and 3:24 a.m. (UTC+3). We say “is scheduled to” because with projects like this, you can never be completely sure that everything will go according to plan. The mission’s initial launch date was in March, but the flight was postponed. In addition to tonight, backup dates have been set for April 3–6 and April 30.
NASA's Official Livestream on YouTube and the NASA+ Channel
Let’s hope everything goes smoothly today and that the U.S. space agency’s mission is a success. If you want to follow the action in real time, tune in to NASA’s official YouTube live stream, which began today—Wednesday, April 1—at 2:45 p.m. (UTC+3) and will continue uninterrupted throughout the entire 10-day mission.
On NASA+, the agency’s subscription-free streaming channel, you can watch shorter, edited highlights. These begin at 7:50 p.m. and end when the Orion spacecraft deploys its solar panel wings after launch.
What is the Artemis II mission?
The goal of NASA’s Artemis lunar program is to send humans back to the Moon for the first time since 1972, when the Apollo program ended. Earlier this year, the U.S. space agency announced an ambitious goal to land astronauts on the Moon in 2028 and begin construction of a permanent lunar base shortly thereafter.
Before moving on to more complex missions, however, various aspects of manned spaceflight must be tested, and that is precisely what Artemis II is designed to do. The crew for this flight includes astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot, the first black astronaut to participate in a lunar mission), Christina Koch (mission specialist, the first female astronaut on a lunar mission), and Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist, the first non-NASA astronaut on a lunar mission, working for the Canadian Space Agency).
If all goes according to plan, the four-member crew will fly past the Moon on April 6 as part of a ten-day mission and may set a record by taking humans farther into space than ever before. The mission will then return to Earth.
Why is Artemis II Not Going to Land on the Moon?
The first lunar landing under the Artemis program is expected to take place as part of Artemis IV, no earlier than 2028. Artemis II and III are still test missions. For this reason, the spacecraft currently heading into space is not yet capable of landing.
As part of the Artemis I test mission, the unmanned Orion spacecraft was successfully launched into lunar orbit and returned to Earth in late 2022. Artemis II is also a test mission, but this time with a crew. For the first time, Orion will carry life support systems, and the crew will test how well the spacecraft can be maneuvered in Earth orbit before the engines are fired to continue on toward the Moon.
NASA originally planned to land on the Moon with the Artemis III mission in 2027. However, in late February of this year, the agency reorganised the program, turning the Artemis III to a mission, which will test the rendezvous of Orion and a private-sector crewed lander (either SpaceX’s Starship or Blue Origin’s Blue Moon, or both) in Earth orbit. If Artemis III is successful, Artemis IV is expected to take humans to the Moon in 2028.
