The mission is expected to carry these astronauts 248,655 miles from Earth, breaking Apollo 13’s record for the farthest distance humanity has ever traveled from the planet. The mission also marks demographic and cultural milestones: Koch will be the first woman to travel to the moon; Glover the first person of color; and Hansen, who is a Canadian, the first non-American.
Artemis II will take a figure-eight path on its mission out of Earth’s orbit, around the moon, and back home. After launching, it will circle the Earth twice before heading out further into space. The crew will then fly around the far side of the moon before heading back to Earth.
At their farthest point from the Earth, the Artemis crew will be able to capture images of the planet and the sphere of the moon in the same photo. “I very intentionally keep myself from thinking about what seeing the far side will be like,” Wiseman told TIME in a profile of the Artemis II crew ahead of launch in January. “Because no matter what your expectation is, the reality will be different.”
Space enthusiasts gather at a park in Titusville, Florida several hours before Artemis II is scheduled to launch on April 1, 2026. —Miguel J Rodriguez Carrillo—AFP/Getty ImagesNASA's 322-foot-tall Artemis II Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft stand on Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on March 31, 2026. —Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesMission specialist Jeremy Hansen of CSA (Canadian Space Agency), pilot Victor Glover, commander Reid Wiseman and mission specialist Christina Koch walk out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building ahead of the launch of the Artemis II at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on April 1, 2026. —Joe Raedle—Getty ImagesThe Artemis II crewed lunar mission launches at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on April 1, 2026. —Jim Watson—AFP/Getty ImagesA U.S. flag waves as Artemis II lifts off from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center on April 1, 2026. —Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesThe launch of Artemis II is seen on the television monitor in the James Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. on April 1, 2026. —Alex Brandon—APPeople gather to watch the launch of Artemis II from the A. Max Brewer Bridge in Titusville, Florida on April 01, 2026. —Gerardo Mora—Getty ImagesArtemis II lifts off in Cape Canaveral, Florida on April 1, 2026. —Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesArtemis II Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft stand in Cape Canaveral, Florida on March 31, 2026. —Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesCrowds on the beach in Cape Canaveral, south of Jetty Park, watch the launch of the NASA Artemis II rocket carrying four astronauts to the moon on April 1, 2026. —Malcolm Denemark—USA TODAY/ReutersA monitor at Dodger Stadium shows live footage of the Artemis 2 rocket launch before an MLB interleague game between the Dodgers and the Guardians in Los Angeles on April 1, 2026. —Tosei Kisanuki—The Yomiuri Shimbun/APSpectators look on from the A. Max Brewer Bridge as NASA's Artemis II moon rocket lifts off, as seen from Titusville, Fla., on April 1, 2026. —Phelan M. Ebenhack—APSpectators view NASA's Artemis II moon rocket launch from the A. Max Brewer Bridge, in Titusville, Fla. on April 1, 2026. —Phelan M. Ebenhack—APNASA's Space Launch System rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launches on the Artemis II mission on April 1, 2026. —Keegan Barber—NASA/Getty ImagesNASA's Artemis II Launches on Humanity's First Lunar Voyage in More Than 50 Years
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