March 26, 2026 | Space & Science Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Humanity is days away from its most significant space journey in over half a century. NASA is now in final countdown preparations to launch Artemis II, its first crewed lunar mission since Apollo 17 in 1972, with liftoff targeted for April 1 at 6:24 p.m. ET from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39B.
After a critical pre-flight readiness review, all teams unanimously polled “go” to launch and fly Artemis II around the Moon. “All the teams polled ‘go’ to launch and fly Artemis II around the moon,” said Lori Glaze of NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
The 10-day mission will carry NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), and Christina Koch (Mission Specialist), along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a free-return trajectory around the Moon and back to Earth.
The mission will be one of historic firsts: Glover will be the first Black astronaut to reach the vicinity of the Moon, Koch the first woman, and Hansen the first non-American to venture beyond Earth orbit.
The road to April 1 wasn’t smooth. A dislodged seal prevented helium from flowing to the rocket’s upper stage in late February, forcing NASA to scrub an earlier launch attempt and roll its rocket back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repairs.
NASA confirmed it had resolved the helium flow issue by fixing a blocked seal on a cable connecting the rocket to nearby ground systems, and opted not to conduct another full wet dress rehearsal to preserve the fuel tanks’ operational life.
If April 1 is missed, NASA has six backup windows: April 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 30. The world watches as humanity prepares to return to the Moon.
“Sources: NPR, CNN, NASA.gov, Wikipedia, Houston Public Media, BBC Sky at Night Magazine, Live Science, Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex”
