NASA’s Artemis II mission to the moon is making progress towards its launch. The fully stacked Artemis II rocket and Orion capsule were rolled out on Saturday, marking a significant step towards the first crewed mission to the moon in over 50 years.
The journey of Artemis II began on Earth as the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion capsule were transported from the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., to Launch Pad 39B. This four-mile journey will take approximately eight to 10 days, with the rocket moving at a leisurely pace of one mile per hour.
“This is the start of a very long journey,” said NASA administrator Jared Isaacman at a press conference on Sunday.
Once the rocket reaches the launch pad, a series of tests and checks will be conducted, including the critical “wet dress rehearsal” where the rocket will be filled with cryogenic propellant and the countdown sequence will be practiced. If all goes well, NASA is aiming for a launch date of no earlier than February 6.
Artemis II is a test of NASA’s readiness to send humans back to the moon, although the mission itself will not involve landing on the lunar surface. Instead, four astronauts – NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen – will orbit the moon, venturing farther into space than any human has gone before.
During the 10-day mission, the astronauts will conduct experiments and tests that will inform NASA’s future moon missions, including Artemis III. The ultimate goal is to establish a permanently staffed base on the lunar surface, a vision emphasized by Isaacman at the press conference.
Before any of these future plans can be realized, Artemis II must successfully complete its mission. “We really are ready to go,” Wiseman stated at the press conference.
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