Artemis II: A Human Flyby of the Moon

Artemis II represents a major step in returning humans to deep space, carrying four astronauts on a carefully planned flyby of the Moon's far side in April 2026. The crew, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada’s Jeremy Hansen, took high-resolution photographs and made real-time observations while Orion traversed a free-return path. During the mission Orion reached its closest approach at about 4,070 miles above the lunar surface and later set a new human distance record, topping roughly 252,760 miles from Earth.

While the spacecraft passed behind the Moon the team experienced a planned communications blackout of roughly 40 minutes, during which they completed critical observations. After contact was restored, the astronauts proposed names for two fresh craters — Integrity and Carroll — and shared an emotional moment with Mission Control that underscored the human side of exploration.

The flight is a systems test as much as it is a science mission; engineers will analyse camera imagery, radiation measurements and the performance of Orion’s life support and navigation systems. Laser communications and Deep Space Network links were exercised, and the mission’s timeline calls for three small trajectory correction burns before a reentry sequence on Flight Day 10. If all goes as planned, Orion will separate its service module, endure reentry heating, deploy parachutes and splash down in the Pacific Ocean where recovery teams will retrieve the crew.

Taken together, the observations and technical checks from Artemis II will inform hardware and procedures for future missions, and will help prepare teams for the first crewed lunar landing attempts later in the decade.