The mission, scheduled to launch as early as February 6th from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, will last approximately 10 days and will conclude with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.
Artemis II will be the second test of NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and its first crewed test. The four astronauts residing in the Orion capsule will test life support, communication, and docking maneuvers. The mission will include NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, as well as Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency. Christina Koch will be remembered as the first woman to travel beyond the Moon, and Victor Glover will be the first Black astronaut to do so.
Although the astronauts will not land on the Moon's surface or enter lunar orbit, they will be the first people to orbit the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. This mission is a critical step towards the Artemis III mission, which aims to land on the Moon's South Pole next year.
Experts are describing this process as a new space race between the USA and China, expected to last until 2030.
The approximately 100-meter-tall giant rocket will begin its 4-mile journey from the assembly building to the launch pad early Saturday morning. Engineers will conduct fueling and countdown rehearsals before the launch. Recently, technical teams have been working on issues including a twisted cable in the rocket's flight termination system, a faulty valve in the Orion capsule, and leaks in the oxygen pumping equipment.
