NASA's Artemis II Mission to Send First Crew Around Moon in Over 50 Years
NASA's Artemis II mission, scheduled for early February 2026, will send four astronauts on a 10-day journey around the Moon, marking the first crewed lunar mission since 1972.
NASA is set to launch Artemis II, the first crewed lunar mission in over five decades, as early as February 6, 2026. The 10-day mission will carry four astronauts—Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen—on a journey around the Moon and back to Earth. This marks the first time since 1972 that humans will travel beyond low-Earth orbit.
The crew will fly aboard the Orion spacecraft, propelled by NASA's Space Launch System (SLS), the most powerful rocket ever built by the agency. The mission aims to test critical systems and pave the way for future lunar landings.
Notably, this mission will include several historic firsts: Glover will be the first person of color, Koch the first woman, and Hansen the first non-American to travel toward the Moon.
Artemis II is a pivotal step in NASA's Artemis program, which seeks to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon and prepare for future missions to Mars.
