Artemis II is the first crewed mission aboard NASA’s foundational human deep space program
HOUSTON (KIAH) It’s the next step in the incredible voyage of the Artemis program. On April 3, Houston will be the location where the first 4 astronauts will be named to circle around the Moon.
On Monday, at 10 a.m. Houston time, NASA and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) will announce the four astronauts who will venture around the Moon. They will traveling aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft during the Artemis II mission. This will be the first crewed flight test on the agency’s path to establishing a long-term scientific and human presence on the lunar surface.
The crew will include three NASA astronauts and one CSA astronaut. NASA says this will demonstrate the agency’s commitment to international partnerships through the Artemis program. Artemis II builds on the successful Artemis I flight test, which launched an uncrewed Orion, atop the SLS rocket, on a 1.4 million-mile journey beyond the Moon to test systems before astronauts fly aboard the systems on a mission to the Moon.
Artemis II is the first crewed mission aboard NASA’s foundational human deep space capabilities: the Space Launch System rocket, Orion spacecraft, and the ground systems needed to launch them. The 10-day mission will test and stress the Orion spacecraft’s life-support systems to prove the capabilities and techniques required to live and work in deep space in ways only humans can do.
The event, which takes place at NASA Johnson Space Center’s Ellington Field, will also air on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.
