NASA Prepares Historic Return to the Moon as Artemis II Crew Suits Up for Launch.
The four astronauts selected for NASA’s Artemis II mission stepped out in their spacesuits at Kennedy Space Center on launch day, pausing for photos, offering thanks, and drawing applause from supporters. Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen are set to lift off atop the Space Launch System rocket for a roughly 10-day journey that will take them around the Moon and back — the first crewed lunar flight since Apollo 17 in 1972.
The mission is a test flight. Orion spacecraft will swing past the Moon on a free-return trajectory without landing, pushing farther from Earth than any humans have traveled before. NASA has targeted liftoff at 6:24 p.m. EDT on April 1, 2026, from Launch Complex 39B, with backup opportunities in the days that follow if weather or technical issues arise.
This step marks a return to deep-space human exploration after decades focused closer to home. Supporters see it as a bold push to restore American leadership in space.
Skeptics question the cost, the timeline, and whether the crew mix prioritizes other factors over pure mission needs. Either way, the hardware is on the pad, the countdown is underway, and the world is watching to see if NASA can deliver on its long-promised comeback to the Moon.