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This comes after two major delays of the Artemis II launch. In February, during the fueling of the SLS (Space Launch System), hydrogen leaks were detected by NASA. This posed a significant risk to the launch, so NASA decided to scrap the first launch in February. This happened again in late February, and the launch was again delayed, which leads us to our current launch window.
When Artemis II does blast off, it will do so from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex. This will mark the first time a crewed mission to the Moon has been launched in 54 years. It follows the successful launch of Artemis I, which launched way back in 2022, and was an uncrewed lunar orbit mission.
The last time humans have been to the Moon at all was the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. The first orbit of the Moon, which is what the Artemis mission is all about, was the Apollo 8 mission, which launched on December 21, 1968, and achieved orbit of the Moon on December 24, 1968. Both in 1968 and now, it takes roughly three days to get to the Moon.
What is the Mission of Artremis II?
In Cape Canaveral, Florida, on January 17, 2026, NASA’s Artemis II rolls from the Vehicle Assembly B…
NurPhoto/NurPhoto/Getty Images
In a sense, all the Artemis missions are a kind of proof-of-concept. The overall goal of the Artemis program is to reestablish human abilities to land on the Moon, with the long-term goal of creating a permanent moonbase, which is thought to be a jumping-off point to get to Mars.
The entire mission will last roughly 10 days, which includes the launch, Earth orbit, Lunar orbit, and the return trip.
“The Artemis campaign is really a set of test flights,” Dr. Lori Glaze, Deputy Associate Administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, said in a new docuseries, Moonbound. “We haven’t been to the Moon in over 50 years. There are a lot of new systems we need to test out.”
Testing the Orion spacecraft is part of this mission, but Artemis II will also deploy four CubeSats in Earth’s orbit, small research satellites from Argentina, Germany, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia.
Will Artemis II land on the Moon?
CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA – JANUARY 17: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman (L) holds a press conferenc…
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman and the crew of Artemis on January 17, 2026.Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Though Artemis II represents the first time humans are returning to the Moon since the Apollo days, the Orion spacecraft will not land on the lunar surface. Right now, the plan is that Artemis III will land on the Moon in 2028.
Who is in the crew of Artemis II?
(L-R) Canadian Space Agency astronaut, NASA Artemis II Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, NASA astron…
The Artemis II crew: Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Reid Wiseman on January 17, 2026. MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO/AFP/Getty Images
The crew of Artemis II includes three astronauts from NASA and one from the Canadian Space Agency. Those four intrepid human beings are:
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