NASA Answers Your Most Pressing Artemis II Questions

Editor’s Note: This article was up to date at 5:50 p.m. EDT on Monday, April 6, 2026, to replace the instances for lunar flyby actions.

Editor’s Note: This article was up to date at 1:40 p.m. EDT on Sunday, April 5, 2026, to right the time for the space report, and alter different instances for lunar flyby actions.

The first crewed take a look at flight underneath NASA’s Artemis program is underway. Four Artemis II astronauts are flying aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft across the Moon and again, as they take a look at how the spacecraft’s techniques function in a deep area surroundings.

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 on the company’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Real-time protection continues all through the mission on NASA’s YouTube channel. The company additionally offers a separate live stream of views from the Orion spacecraft as bandwidth permits, in addition to contained in the capsule. In addition NASA is offering the most recent mission imagery on-line.

Daily mission standing briefings are held dwell from the company’s Johnson Space Center in Houston by way of splashdown, aside from Monday, April 6, attributable to lunar flyby actions. A list of activities is repeatedly up to date on-line.

The crew are taking part in dwell conversations all through the mission, which have been scheduled previous to their departure from Earth. NASA will present the precise instances of every of those downlink occasions, in addition to the most recent mission protection, on the Artemis blog.

To observe Orion in area, go to: nasa.gov/trackartemis

Frequently Asked Questions (all instances Eastern):

How lengthy is the Artemis II mission? NASA’s Artemis II mission is an roughly 10-day journey across the Moon together with launch, a lunar flyby, and a secure splashdown off the coast of San Diego.

How far will Artemis II journey? Crew is anticipated to journey a complete of 695,081 miles from launch to splashdown. The spacecraft will go inside 4,070 miles of the lunar floor throughout its closest method and can attain a most distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, about 4,105 miles farther than Apollo 13.

When and the place will the Artemis II crew and Orion spacecraft splashdown?

The location and time of our Artemis II splashdown will proceed to shift as mission milestones are reached. In the times main as much as splashdown, updates will probably be out there on NASA’s web site and in our every day information conferences. Mission media occasions can be found on the company’s website.

NASA’s Artemis II mission is scheduled to splash down off the coast of San Diego at roughly 8:07 p.m. EDT (5:07 p.m. PDT) on Friday, April 10. Following splashdown, restoration groups will retrieve the crew utilizing helicopters and ship them to the USS John P. Murtha. Once aboard, the astronauts will bear post-mission medical evaluations within the ship’s medical bay earlier than touring again to shore to fulfill with an plane certain for NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

What is the crew doing on this mission? Artemis II astronauts are placing the Orion spacecraft by way of a sequence of deliberate checks to judge techniques, procedures, and efficiency in deep area. They will conduct guide spacecraft operations and monitor automated actions; consider Orion’s life-support, propulsion, energy, thermal, and navigation techniques; carry out proximity operations actions; assess habitability and crew interfaces; and take part in science actions, together with lunar floor observations and human well being research, that may inform science operations on future Moon missions. They additionally will follow mission-critical actions, together with trajectory changes, communications at lunar distances, and piloting Orion throughout key phases of flight, culminating in a re-entry and splashdown to additional validate the spacecraft’s efficiency with crew aboard.

What can we count on to see throughout lunar flyby? All instances are topic to alter. Here’s a tough schedule of actions:

• Live protection begins at 1 p.m. on Monday, April 6, and continues by way of 9:45 p.m.
• 1:30 p.m.: NASA hosts a dialog between the crew and the science officer in NASA’s Mission Control Center on the company’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, to go over the aims and timeline for the flyby.
  • Because the Sun’s angle on the Moon shifts by about one diploma each two hours, the crew couldn’t know the precise lighting circumstances to count on on the lunar floor till after launch. This briefing offers one ultimate alternative to assessment particulars earlier than the flyby begins.
• 1:56 p.m.: The Artemis II crew is anticipated surpass the report beforehand set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970 for the farthest people have ever traveled from Earth.
  • The Apollo 13 crew traveled 248,655 miles from Earth; Artemis II will attain a most distance of 252,760 miles from Earth, surpassing the report by about 4,105 miles. The crew is anticipated to make remarks on the milestone round 2:10 p.m.
• 2:45 p.m.: The seven-hour lunar commentary interval begins. Crew will see each the close to and much sides of the Moon because the commentary interval begins.
  • Because room at Orion’s home windows is proscribed, the crew will divide into pairs, with two crew members observing for 55 to 85 minutes, whereas the opposite pair workouts or works on different duties.
• 6:44 p.m.: Mission management expects to quickly lose communication with the crew as Orion passes behind the Moon.
• 7:00 p.m.: Astronauts will make their closest method to the Moon (4,067 miles), the attain its farthest level from Earth at 7:02 p.m.
  • At this distance, the Moon will seem to the astronauts in regards to the measurement of a basketball held at arm’s size. They additionally would be the first people to see some components of the Moon’s far facet with the unaided eye.
• 7:25 p.m.: NASA’s Mission Control Center ought to re-acquire communication with the astronauts.
• 8:35 p.m.: Orion enters interval with Moon eclipsing the Sun and continues till 9:32 p.m.
• 9:20 p.m.: The flyby commentary interval wraps, and crew will start transferring among the imagery to the bottom. NASA’s science staff will assessment the pictures and observations in a single day, after which talk about with crew the next day, whereas the expertise continues to be contemporary.

Why do we’d like astronauts to view the Moon when we have now robotic observers? Human eyes and brains are extremely delicate to refined adjustments in coloration, texture, and different floor traits. Having astronaut eyes observe the lunar floor instantly, together with the context of all of the advances that scientists have made in regards to the Moon during the last a number of a long time, could uncover new discoveries and a extra nuanced appreciation for the options on the floor of the Moon.

Though the crew will be unable to downlink all their imagery earlier than they return    to Earth, as a lot as doable will probably be made out there on the Artemis II Multimedia website. Additional imagery can even be added as it’s processed following splashdown.

What do the astronauts eat throughout the mission? The Artemis II astronauts have entry to 189 distinctive menu objects throughout their mission, together with 10 completely different drinks like espresso and smoothies. Common meals objects embody tortillas, nuts, barbeque beef brisket, cauliflower, macaroni and cheese, butternut squash, cookies, and chocolate. Food flying aboard Artemis II is designed to assist crew well being and efficiency throughout the mission across the Moon. Menu picks are developed with area meals consultants and the crew to steadiness calorie wants, hydration, and nutrient consumption whereas accommodating particular person preferences. For extra details about their menu, go to here.

What are the targets of the Artemis II Mission? The Artemis II take a look at flight will affirm the techniques essential to assist astronauts in deep area exploration and put together to ascertain a sustained presence on the Moon. The major objective of Artemis II is a crewed take a look at flight in lunar area. There are 5 major extra priorities for Artemis II:

• Crew: Demonstrate the power of techniques and groups to maintain the flight crew within the flight surroundings, and thru their return to Earth.
• Systems: Demonstrate techniques and operations important to a crewed lunar marketing campaign. This ranges from floor techniques to {hardware} in area, and operations spanning from growth to launch, flight, and restoration.
• Hardware and Data: Retrieve flight {hardware} and knowledge, assessing efficiency for future missions.
• Emergency Operations: Demonstrate emergency system capabilities and validate related operations to the extent sensible, comparable to abort operations and rescue procedures, as wanted.
• Data and Subsystems: Complete extra aims to confirm subsystems and validate knowledge.

Can I discuss to the crew aboard Orion throughout their mission? During their mission, crew will take part in a number of dwell and taped downlinks with information retailers, administration officers, and extra. These alternatives have been allotted previous to their launch. A schedule of those occasions is out there on the company’s website.

What is the Artemis II zero-gravity indicator and the way was it chosen? NASA’s Artemis II crew chosen Rise as their zero-gravity indicator for the mission. A zero-gravity indicator is a small plush merchandise that flies together with a crew to visually point out when they’re in area. Rise was designed by Lucas Ye from Mountain View, California, as a tribute to the long-lasting Earthrise second from the Apollo 8 mission, which deeply resonated with the crew. Rise was fabricated by NASA’s Thermal Blanket Lab on the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. NASA labored with the corporate Freelancer to carry a Moon Mascot Design Challenge to design the zero-gravity indicator for Artemis II, which drew greater than 2,600 submissions from greater than 50 international locations, together with from Ok-12 college students.

How many cameras are put in on the Orion spacecraft? Orion is carrying 32 cameras and units, together with any instrument with a lens able to capturing images or video, inside or on the outside of the car. The techniques assist engineering, navigation, crew monitoring, and a spread of lunar science and outreach actions. Fifteen cameras are mounted on 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 Houston?

What can we count on to see throughout Artemis II’s return to Earth?

A rigorously timed sequence will information Orion by way of the ultimate levels of descent:

• 7:33 p.m.: Orion’s crew module will separate from the service module, exposing its warmth protect for the spacecraft’s return by way of Earth’s environment, the place it can encounter temperatures of about 3,000 levels Fahrenheit.
• 7:37 p.m.: Following separation, Orion will carry out an 18 second crew module elevate burn starting to set the correct entry angle and align the warmth protect for atmospheric interface.
• 7:53 p.m.: When Orion reaches 400,000 ft above Earth’s floor whereas touring practically 35 instances the pace of sound. The crew is anticipated to expertise as much as 3.9 Gs within the deliberate entry profile. This second marks the spacecraft’s first contact with the higher environment and the beginning of a deliberate six-minute communications blackout as plasma builds across the capsule.
• 8:03 p.m.: Around 22,000 ft in altitude, the drogue parachutes will deploy, slowing and stabilizing the capsule as Orion nears splashdown.
• 8:04 p.m.: At round 6,000 ft, the drogues will launch, and the three major parachutes will deploy, lowering Orion’s pace to lower than 136 mph.
• 8:07 p.m.: Slowing to twenty mph, Orion will splash down within the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, finishing the Artemis II crew’s return to Earth and a 694,481-mile journey.
• From there, groups from NASA and the U.S. navy will extract the crew from Orion and fly them through helicopter to the USS John P. Murtha.
• Within two hours after splashdown, the crew will probably be extracted from Orion and flown to the USS Murtha. Recovery groups will retrieve the crew, help them onto an inflatable raft, after which use helicopters to ship them to the ship. Once aboard, the astronauts will bear publish‑mission medical evaluations earlier than returning to shore the place awaiting plane will take them to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Artemis Program FAQs

Artemis II will journey across the Moon however won’t land on its floor. Why is that this mission so essential? The Artemis II take a look at flight is NASA’s first crewed Artemis mission. Astronauts on their first flight aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft will affirm the spacecraft’s techniques function as designed with crew aboard within the precise surroundings of deep area. The distinctive Artemis II mission profile builds on the uncrewed Artemis I flight take a look at by demonstrating a broad vary of SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion capabilities wanted on deep area missions. This mission will confirm Orion’s life assist techniques can maintain astronauts on longer-duration missions forward and permit the crew to follow operations important to Artemis III and past.

What is the subsequent mission for NASA’s Artemis program and the company? NASA is aligning agencywide initiatives to realize President Donald J. Trump’s National Space Policy and advance American management in area. During an Ignition occasion on March 24 on the company’s headquarters in Washington. Among the updates, NASA is prioritizing the Artemis program launch cadence, a sturdy U.S. presence in low Earth orbit, the creation of a Moon Base, breakthrough science, area nuclear energy and propulsion, and funding within the NASA workforce to ship on the company’s mission with urgency. Learn extra on the company’s web site: https://www.nasa.gov/ignition.

For extra details about the Artemis mission, go to:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-ii