The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is taking a significant step toward returning humans to the Moon.
This weekend, the agency began rolling its colossal Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft to the launch pad at Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre, setting the stage for the historic Artemis II mission.
The mission is scheduled to launch on February 6, 2026. This will be the first crewed mission to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.
It will last a 10-day flight while carrying four astronauts, including NASA’s Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot), Christina Koch (mission specialist), and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
The most important point to consider is that Artemis II will not land on the Moon. Instead, it is a critical test flight to authenticate the spacecraft’s systems with a crew on board.
After launching, Orion will perform two orbits of Earth before a powerful engine burn sends it on a trajectory around the Moon.
The capsule will orbit the far side of the Moon, possibly breaking the record for the farthest mankind has ever ventured from Earth, and then use the Moon’s gravity to propel it back to Earth, where it will land via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
With this “free-return” trajectory, the crew will be able to return safely to Earth without major engine burns after the lunar flyby.
The mission will pave the way for Artemis III by testing Orion’s life-support, navigation, and communication systems in deep space, aiming to land astronauts near the Moon’s south pole by 2028.
