NASA astronaut Christina Koch, Artemis II mission
specialist, peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft’s main cabin windows on
Saturday, April 4, 2026, looking back at Earth, as the crew travel toward the
Moon.
NASA
Editor’s Note: This article was updated at 5:50 p.m. EDT on Monday, April
6, 2026, to update the times for lunar flyby activities.
Editor’s Note: This article was
updated at 1:40 p.m. EDT on Sunday, April 5, 2026, to correct the time for the
distance record, and adjust other times for lunar flyby activities.
The first crewed test flight under
NASA’s Artemis program is underway. Four Artemis II astronauts are flying aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft around the Moon
and back, as they test how the spacecraft’s systems operate in a deep space
environment.
NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman,
Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut
Jeremy Hansen lifted off at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1 from launch pad 39B at the
agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Real-time coverage continues
throughout the mission on NASA’s YouTube channel. The agency also provides a separate live stream of views from the Orion spacecraft as bandwidth
allows, as well as inside the capsule. In addition NASA is providing the
latest mission
imagery online.
Daily mission status briefings are
held live from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston through splashdown,
except for Monday, April 6, due to lunar flyby activities. A list of activities is regularly updated online.
The crew are participating in live
conversations throughout the mission, which were scheduled prior to their
departure from Earth. NASA will provide the exact times of each of these
downlink events, as well as the latest mission coverage, on the Artemis blog.
To track Orion in space,
visit: nasa.gov/trackartemis
Frequently Asked Questions (all
times Eastern):
How long is the Artemis II
mission? NASA’s Artemis
II mission is an approximately 10-day journey around the Moon including launch,
a lunar flyby, and a safe splashdown off the coast of San Diego.
How far will Artemis II travel? Crew is expected to travel a total of 695,081
miles from launch to splashdown. The spacecraft will pass within 4,070 miles of
the lunar surface during its closest approach and will reach a maximum distance
of 252,760 miles from Earth, about 4,105 miles farther than Apollo 13.
When and where will the Artemis II
crew and Orion spacecraft splashdown?
The location and time of our
Artemis II splashdown will continue to shift as mission milestones are reached.
In the days leading up to splashdown, updates will be available on NASA’s
website and in our daily news conferences. Mission media events are available
on the agency’s website.
NASA’s Artemis II mission is
scheduled to splash down off the coast of San Diego at approximately 8:07 p.m.
EDT (5:07 p.m. PDT) on Friday, April 10. Following splashdown, recovery teams
will retrieve the crew using helicopters and deliver them to the USS John P.
Murtha. Once aboard, the astronauts will undergo post-mission medical
evaluations in the ship’s medical bay before traveling back to shore to meet
with an aircraft bound for NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
What is the crew doing on this
mission? Artemis II astronauts are
putting the Orion spacecraft through a series of planned tests to evaluate
systems, procedures, and performance in deep space. They will conduct manual
spacecraft operations and monitor automated activities; evaluate Orion’s life-support,
propulsion, power, thermal, and navigation systems; perform proximity
operations activities; assess habitability and crew interfaces; and participate
in science activities, including lunar surface observations and human health
studies, that will inform science operations on future Moon missions. They also
will practice mission-critical activities, including trajectory adjustments,
communications at lunar distances, and piloting Orion during key phases of
flight, culminating in a re-entry and splashdown to further validate the
spacecraft’s performance with crew aboard.
What can we expect to see during
lunar flyby? All times are subject to change. Here’s a rough schedule of activities:
- Live coverage begins at 1
p.m. on Monday, April 6, and continues through 9:45 p.m.
- 1:30 p.m.: NASA hosts a
conversation between the crew and the science officer in NASA’s Mission
Control Center at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, to go over
the objectives and timeline for the flyby.
- Because the Sun’s angle
on the Moon shifts by about one degree every two hours, the crew could
not know the exact lighting conditions to expect on the lunar surface
until after launch. This briefing provides one final opportunity to
review details before the flyby begins.
- 1:56 p.m.: The Artemis II
crew is expected surpass the record previously set by the Apollo 13 crew
in 1970 for the farthest humans have ever traveled from Earth.
- The Apollo 13 crew
traveled 248,655 miles from Earth; Artemis II will reach a maximum
distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, surpassing the record by about
4,105 miles. The crew is expected to make remarks on the milestone around
2:10 p.m.
- 2:45 p.m.: The seven-hour
lunar observation period begins. Crew will see both the near and far sides
of the Moon as the observation period begins.
- Because room at Orion’s
windows is limited, the crew will divide into pairs, with two crew
members observing for 55 to 85 minutes, while the other pair exercises or
works on other tasks.
- 6:44 p.m.: Mission control
expects to temporarily lose communication with the crew as Orion passes
behind the Moon.
- 7:00 p.m.: Astronauts will
make their closest approach to the Moon (4,067 miles), the reach its
farthest point from Earth at 7:02 p.m.
- At this distance, the
Moon will appear to the astronauts about the size of a basketball held at
arm’s length. They also may be the first humans to see some parts of the
Moon’s far side with the unaided eye.
- 7:25 p.m.: NASA’s Mission
Control Center should re-acquire communication with the astronauts.
- 8:35 p.m.: Orion enters
period with Moon eclipsing the Sun and continues until 9:32 p.m.
- 9:20 p.m.: The flyby
observation period wraps, and crew will begin transferring some of the
imagery to the ground. NASA’s science team will review the images and
observations overnight, and then discuss with crew the following day,
while the experience is still fresh.
Why do we need astronauts to view
the Moon when we have robotic observers? Human eyes and brains are highly sensitive to
subtle changes in color, texture, and other surface characteristics. Having
astronaut eyes observe the lunar surface directly, in combination with the
context of all the advances that scientists have made about the Moon over the
last several decades, may uncover new discoveries and a more nuanced
appreciation for the features on the surface of the Moon.
Though the crew will not be able to
downlink all their imagery before they return to Earth, as much as
possible will be made available on the Artemis II Multimedia website. Additional imagery will also be added as it is
processed following splashdown.
What do the astronauts eat during
the mission? The Artemis II crew has access to 189 unique menu items during their
mission, including 10 different beverages like coffee and smoothies. Common
food items include tortillas, nuts, barbeque beef brisket, cauliflower,
macaroni and cheese, butternut squash, cookies, and chocolate. Food flying
aboard Artemis II is designed to support crew health and performance during the
mission around the Moon. Menu selections are developed with space food
experts and the crew to balance calorie needs, hydration, and nutrient intake
while accommodating individual preferences. For more information about their
menu, visit here.
What are the goals of the Artemis
II Mission? The
Artemis II test flight will confirm the systems necessary to support astronauts
in deep space exploration and prepare to establish a sustained presence on the
Moon. The primary goal of Artemis II is a crewed test flight in lunar space. There are five main additional
priorities for Artemis II:
- Crew: Demonstrate the ability of systems and
teams to sustain the flight crew in the flight environment, and through
their return to Earth.
- Systems: Demonstrate systems and operations
essential to a crewed lunar campaign. This ranges from ground systems to
hardware in space, and operations spanning from development to launch,
flight, and recovery.
- Hardware and Data: Retrieve flight hardware and data,
assessing performance for future missions.
- Emergency Operations: Demonstrate emergency system
capabilities and validate associated operations to the extent practical,
such as abort operations and rescue procedures, as needed.
- Data and Subsystems: Complete additional objectives to
verify subsystems and validate data.
Can I talk to the crew aboard Orion
during their mission? During their mission, crew will participate in several live and taped
downlinks with news outlets, administration officials, and more. These
opportunities were allocated prior to their launch. A schedule of these events
is available on the agency’s website.
What is the Artemis II zero-gravity
indicator and how was it selected? NASA’s Artemis II crew selected Rise as their
zero-gravity indicator for the mission. A zero-gravity indicator is a small
plush item that flies along with a crew to visually indicate when they are in
space. Rise was designed by Lucas Ye from Mountain View, California, as a
tribute to the iconic Earthrise moment from the Apollo 8 mission, which deeply
resonated with the crew. Rise was fabricated by NASA’s Thermal Blanket Lab at
the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. NASA worked with the company
Freelancer to hold a Moon Mascot Design Challenge to design the zero-gravity
indicator for Artemis II, which drew more than 2,600 submissions from more than
50 countries, including from K-12 students.
How many cameras are installed on
the Orion spacecraft? Orion is carrying 32 cameras and devices, including any instrument with a
lens capable of capturing photos or video, inside or on the exterior of the
vehicle. The systems support engineering, navigation, crew monitoring, and a
range of lunar science and outreach activities. Fifteen cameras are mounted
directly to the spacecraft, and 17 are handheld cameras operated by the crew.
Who are
the capsule communicators, or capcoms, for the Artemis II mission inside NASA’s
Mission Control Center in Florida? – Follow link below
Artemis Program FAQs
Artemis
II will travel around the Moon but will not land on its surface. Why is this
mission so important? The Artemis II test
flight is NASA’s first crewed Artemis mission. Astronauts on their first flight
aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft will confirm the spacecraft’s systems operate as
designed with crew aboard in the actual environment of deep space. The unique
Artemis II mission profile builds on the uncrewed Artemis I flight test by
demonstrating a broad range of SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion capabilities
needed on deep space missions. This mission will verify Orion’s life support
systems can sustain astronauts on longer-duration missions ahead and allow the
crew to practice operations essential to Artemis III and beyond.
What
is the next mission for NASA’s Artemis program and the agency? NASA is aligning agencywide initiatives to achieve President Donald J.
Trump’s National Space Policy and advance American leadership in space. During
an Ignition event on March 24 at the agency’s headquarters in Washington. Among
the updates, NASA is prioritizing the Artemis program launch cadence, a robust
U.S. presence in low Earth orbit, the creation of a Moon Base, breakthrough
science, space nuclear power and propulsion, and investment in the NASA
workforce to deliver on the agency’s mission with urgency. Learn more on the
agency’s website: https://www.nasa.gov/ignition.
For more information about the Artemis mission, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-ii
Source: NASA Answers Your Most Pressing Artemis II Questions - NASA
