Artemis Two: First Crewed Moon Flyby in 50 Years

0:00On April 1st, NASA's Artemis-2 mission is gearing up for the first crew trip around the moon in over 50 years, with a possible launch as early, as Wednesday from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This 10-day flight on the massive SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft will test everything before future landings, building on the uncrewed Artemis-1, run back in 2022. The Artemis program kicked off under Trump, but Roots go back to the shuttle era, aiming to plant a long-term U.S. flag on the moon, and set up for Mars. Unlike Apollo days, NSA is teaming up with private players like SpaceX and Blue Origin, plus international partners, especially from Canada and Europe. Leading the crew is 50-year-old Navy vet Reed Wiseman as commander, with 49-year-old Victor Glover piloting, making him the first black. Astronaut to head lunar. Engineer Christina Koch-47 becomes the first woman on a moon mission, and Canadian fighter pilot Jeremy Hansen, also 50, marks the first.

1:03Non-American flyby. After launch, they'll orbit Earth for checks and manual piloting tests on the crewed first Orion, then slingshot to the moon's far side, breaking the OLO. Apollo 13 distance record with no Earth contact. It's a free-return path using lunar gravity home, splashing down in the Pacific after tweaks to fix heat shield issues from the last flight. This flyby locks in data for Artemis IV's South Pole landing in 2028, pushing humanity's edge while proving the tech for sustainable. Moon bases and beyond. Stay informed with U.S. news today, AI-powered updates.