First manned lunar exploration in 52 years, standing on the launch pad

NASA announced that “all preparations have been completed” ahead of the launch of Artemis 2 on April 1 (local time). This mission is expected to be a historic flight to send humans into lunar orbit for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The scheduled launch time is 6:24 PM Eastern Time, with a two-hour launch window. Even if there is a delay, additional launch opportunities are secured until April 6. NASA said no technical issues have been reported since completing the flight readiness review on March 20.

Four astronauts, 10-day journey to circle the moon and return

Artemis 2 will be accompanied by four astronauts: Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch from NASA, and Jeremy Hanson from the Canadian Space Agency. They will carry out a 10-day mission aboard the Orion spacecraft, flying around the back of the moon in a swing-by (slingshot) manner and returning to Earth in a figure-of-eight trajectory.

In this mission, astronauts will not enter or land in lunar orbit. Instead, the key goal is to verify the performance of the Orion spacecraft in a manned state. Orion has flown to lunar orbit unmanned on Artemis 1 in November 2022, but this is the first time it has carried a crew.

“The flight system, ground systems, launch operations team, and flight control team in Houston are all ready,” said Lori Glaze, acting director of NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate. “The crew arrived yesterday, and they are more than ready.”

The only variable is the weather

The only thing currently threatening launch is weather conditions. Due to the possibility of cumulus clouds in the lower troposphere, the probability of a violation of weather conditions on April 1 is predicted to be 20%. However, NASA predicts a high overall launch probability.

Artemis program, roadmap leading to the construction of a lunar base

The success of Artemis 2 lays the foundation for subsequent missions. On Artemis 3, Orion will perform rendezvous and docking tests with a lunar lander in Earth orbit. If this test is successful, an actual manned lunar landing will be carried out on Artemis 4. This will be the first manned lunar landing in 52 years since the end of the Apollo program in 1972.

NASA's ultimate goal is to return astronauts to the lunar surface and eventually build a permanent base on the moon. “We are very, very close. And we are ready,” Glaze said.