🇺🇸▼
The Artemis 2 mission is scheduled to launch in late 2025, marking a historic return of human explorers to the deep space environment beyond Earth's orbit. The spacecraft is expected to enter the Moon's gravitational sphere of influence approximately four days after liftoff. On the following day, the crew will execute their closest lunar flyby, passing roughly 130 miles (210 kilometers) above the lunar surface. During this orbital loop around the Moon's far side, the astronauts will establish a new record for the farthest human distance from Earth. The previous record was set by the Apollo 13 crew at 00:21 UTC on April 15, 1970, when their spacecraft was positioned approximately 248,655 miles (400,171 kilometers) from Earth. This imminent milestone underscores the historic nature of the anticipated Artemis 2 journey.
The mission is planned to depart Earth's vicinity following a critical engine burn executed at 8:16 p.m. EST. This translunar injection (TLI) burn, lasting 5 minutes and 55 seconds, will be necessary to propel the Orion capsule from Earth orbit onto a trajectory that will carry it around the Moon. This maneuver represents the first human mission to venture beyond low-Earth orbit toward the Moon since 1972. Ground control teams are expected to confirm the burn was executed with high precision, and the event is anticipated to garner significant global attention.
Artemis 2 commander Reid Wiseman captured this image of Earth as the Orion spacecraft left Earth orbit. The night side of Earth is lit by the almost full moon, revealing city lights in Europe and Africa, the Sahara desert, and Spain. The image also features the glow of zodiacal light, Venus, and auroras rimming the limb of the Earth.
Upon completion of the TLI burn, the Orion capsule is expected to be 520 miles (840 kilometers) from Earth and accelerating rapidly. Within minutes, the vehicle is projected to be thousands of miles distant. This successful maneuver will irrevocably commit the mission to its lunar flyby profile. The TLI will follow the initial launch, which will utilize NASA's powerful Space Launch System (SLS) rocket. The crew—commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialists Jessica Watkins, and Jeremy Hansen—will spend the initial post-launch day in a high Earth orbit before the TLI propels them onto their lunar path.
The Artemis 2 mission is scheduled to launch toward the moon, carrying four brave astronauts.
Following the launch, the crew is expected to report a satisfactory rest period. They will conduct tests of the Orion spacecraft's essential systems, including life support and communications. The astronauts will be engaged in monitoring the spacecraft's systems to ensure all parameters remain nominal as they approach the lunar sphere of influence. Post-TLI, the spacecraft will follow a figure-8 free-return trajectory. This path will guide it around the Moon and naturally back toward Earth without requiring additional primary engine burns, a safety feature inherited from the Apollo program. While the capsule retains the capability for minor trajectory correction maneuvers to optimize its lunar encounter and final Earth re-entry angle, the free-return path provides a fundamental safeguard. Artemis 2 is a 10-day mission designed to circumnavigate the Moon without landing, thereby testing systems and operations in deep space to pave the way for subsequent surface missions.
This image illustrates the Artemis 2 planned figure-8 path through space and its mission goals.
The crew has reflected on the significance of their journey. Since the conclusion of the Apollo 17 mission in December 1972, no nation has sent humans beyond low-Earth orbit, let alone to the lunar distance. A hiatus of over five decades in human deep-space travel is anticipated to end with the Artemis 2 mission.
One of the views from Artemis shows the Earth lit as a crescent.
The mission's launch vehicle, the Space Launch System (SLS), was developed under prime contract by Boeing. The crew will travel in the Orion capsule, NASA's deep-space crew vehicle built by Lockheed Martin. This architecture is foundational to NASA's Artemis program.
In early 2024, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and leadership outlined adjustments to the Artemis program's long-term schedule. These modifications will shape subsequent missions. A principal change involves accelerating the launch cadence for the SLS rocket, with a target of approximately one launch per year, a significant reduction from the initially envisioned multi-year intervals. The Artemis 3 mission, following Artemis 2, has been reconfigured to ensure a successful lunar landing. The objective remains to land the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface, specifically in the lunar south pole region. This mission will utilize a commercial Lunar Lander to deliver astronauts from the Orion spacecraft to the surface. The target launch window for Artemis 3 is currently projected for mid-2027. The following missions, Artemis 4 and 5, which are intended to accomplish crewed lunar landings and establish a sustainable presence, are tentatively projected for 2028 and 2029.
Under the revised schedule, Artemis 4 is poised to be a key mission in establishing a sustained presence on the lunar surface. While the United States maintains a nominal schedule advantage, delays within the Artemis program and consistent advancements in China's lunar exploration program have narrowed the apparent gap. China's development of the Long March-10 rocket and the Lanyue lunar lander, both of which have recently passed critical testing phases, indicates robust progress in their Chang'e program.
When questioned about a potential space race with China, NASA leadership has acknowledged that "competition is good," noting its historical role as a motivator during the 1960s. However, they have emphasized that the recent Artemis schedule revisions are primarily driven by a strategic focus on establishing a sustainable and achievable exploration cadence, arguing that a launch frequency of once every 3.5 years is incompatible with long-term program success.
Artemis 2 is scheduled to launch from Kennedy Space Center. The four astronauts on board will journey around the moon in a 10-day mission.
The overarching vision of the Artemis program is to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon within this decade. Initial crewed landings are targeted for the lunar south pole, a region where scientific investigations in recent decades have confirmed significant deposits of water ice. This resource is critical, as water can be processed to produce oxygen and hydrogen, potentially enabling extended surface stays and serving as a resource for life support and propulsion. This endeavor is viewed as a foundational step toward more ambitious goals, including future human missions to Mars. The Artemis missions may ultimately be regarded by historians as the pivotal initiatives that catalyzed humanity's permanent expansion into the solar system.
The Artemis 2 mission crew is expected to cross into the Moon's gravitational sphere of influence in late 2025. Their closest approach to the lunar surface, a historic flyby, will mark a definitive return of human explorers to deep space. The crew will travel in the Orion capsule, which was built by Lockheed Martin, to conclude this first step in a new era of lunar exploration.