---
title: "Artemis II set to reopen the Moon race after more than 50 years"
date: 2026-04-01
author: ""
url: https://panamadaily.news/2026/04/01/artemis-ii-launch-lunar-orbit/
categories:
  - "News"
  - "Science"
tags:
  - "Artemis II"
  - "Kennedy Space Center"
  - "lunar orbit"
  - "Moon mission"
  - "NASA"
  - "Space exploration"
---

# Artemis II set to reopen the Moon race after more than 50 years

## What Happened

NASA’s Artemis II mission is set to launch from Florida on Wednesday, marking the first time humans have traveled back to lunar orbit since 1972. The mission will not land on the Moon, but it will send four astronauts around it in a major step toward future lunar surface missions.

The launch of the SLS rocket and Orion capsule is scheduled for 18:24 local time, from Kennedy Space Center. NASA has estimated an 80% chance of favorable weather, with clouds and strong winds among the main concerns.

## A Historic Crew

The ten-day mission includes Christina Koch, who will become the first woman to travel to lunar orbit, and Victor Glover, who will become the first Black astronaut to do so. Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency will become the first Canadian to reach lunar orbit. Reid Wiseman will command the crew.

Koch brings the most spaceflight experience on the team, after spending 328 consecutive days aboard the International Space Station between 2019 and 2020. Glover has logged 168 days in space, while Wiseman previously spent 165 days in orbit and completed two spacewalks.

## The Flight Path

After launch, the spacecraft will complete one low-Earth orbit and then another higher orbit as final checks are completed. If all goes as planned, the crew will then head toward the Moon in a four-day journey.

Once in lunar vicinity, the astronauts will fly past the far side of the Moon at an altitude of between 4,800 and 14,500 kilometers. After a full circuit, Orion will return to Earth and splash down in the Pacific Ocean off California.

## Why It Matters

Artemis II is the second mission in NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon and use the lunar surface as a stepping stone for future missions to Mars. The flight is also designed to pave the way for later crewed landings, including Artemis IV and Artemis V, now planned for 2028.

The mission comes after delays linked to technical issues, including a fuel leak detected during a cold test and later problems with the spacecraft’s helium supply. Those setbacks pushed the launch back by nearly two months from the original schedule.

With Artemis II, NASA is moving one step closer to a new era of lunar exploration, while testing the systems and crew performance needed for the missions that follow.