The American space agency NASA is launching the first manned space mission, Artemis 2, in February 2026 after five decades.
For this purpose, final preparations are being made by NASA and very soon the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft will be moved to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
NASA will transfer the spacecraft there on or after January 17, while the mission will launch on February 6. However, this will depend on the weather and other technical details.
The last time NASA sent a manned mission to the Moon was in 1972 under the Apollo program, and now, more than 5 decades later, it is being done again.
The 10-day Artemis 2 mission will carry four astronauts who will test the life support systems installed in the Orion spacecraft to make future long-duration missions possible.
This mission will first fly into Earth’s orbit twice and then head towards the part of the moon that is not visible from Earth. If the mission launches as scheduled, NASA will also conduct a rehearsal in late January.
It should be noted that in November 2022, the Artemis 1 mission was successful in going to the Moon and returning to Earth, but there were no humans on this mission. The 10-day Artemis 2 mission aims to take humans around the moon and then back.
These astronauts will not set foot on the lunar surface, but it will be the first time since 1972 that a human has traveled beyond low Earth orbit. The mission was initially planned to launch in April 2026, but is now likely to launch in February.
The Artemis 2 mission aims to test the capabilities of NASA’s Artemis 3 mission. Under the Artemis 3 mission, scheduled for 2027, humans will set foot on the lunar surface for the first time in decades.
The Artemis 3 mission will be sent to the Moon by SpaceX’s Starship rocket.
In comparison, the Artemis 2 mission will be launched using the most powerful Space Launch System (SLS) rocket in NASA’s history. This rocket was also used to send Artemis 1 to the Moon.
