NASA has announced that the Artemis 2 launch is scheduled for April 1, 2026, at 6:24 p.m. ET from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This mission will mark the first crewed flight to the moon in 53 years, following the Apollo missions that concluded in 1972.

The Artemis II mission will last nearly 10 days and will conclude with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. Although the mission will not land on the moon, it will take the crew around it, setting the stage for future lunar exploration.

The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, standing at 322 feet tall and generating 8.8 million pounds of thrust, will carry the crew aboard the Orion capsule. This mission will see three of the four astronauts making history: the first woman, the first Black man, and the first Canadian to venture near the moon.

NASA has not launched humans beyond Earth orbit since Apollo 17, making this mission a significant milestone. The crew will be the first to fly on the SLS rocket and Orion capsule, with an 80% chance of favorable weather conditions forecasted for the launch.

Approximately 400,000 people are expected to gather on the Space Coast to witness this historic event. If the launch does not occur on April 1, there are six additional available launch times.

Victor Glover, one of the astronauts, expressed the importance of representation, stating, “Girl power and that’s awesome, and that young brown boys and girls can look at me and go ‘Hey, he looks like me and he’s doing what???'”

Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the launch director, remarked, “Our team has worked extremely hard to get us to this moment,” emphasizing the extensive preparation leading up to the launch.

As the Artemis II mission aims to establish a base on the moon and eventually head to Mars, Jared Isaacman noted, “Artemis II is the opening act. It’s a test mission. No humans have ever flown on that rocket before.” NASA plans to stream the launch live on its YouTube channel, inviting everyone to be part of this monumental mission.

Details remain unconfirmed.