NASA Ready to Launch 4 Astronauts Around Moon April 1

Four astronauts are just days away from making history as the first humans to fly near the moon in over half a century.

NASA confirmed Sunday that Artemis 2 remains on track for its April 1 launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The mission faces no technical problems, and teams report everything is running smoothly ahead of the 6:24 p.m. EDT launch window.

The crew arrived Saturday ready to fly. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch will launch alongside Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen on a 10-day journey aboard the Orion spacecraft.

Their mission will take them on a figure-eight path around the moon's far side before returning to Earth. They won't enter lunar orbit, but instead will use the moon's gravity to slingshot back home in a critical test of the Orion crew capsule.

This marks the first crewed flight of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to establish a permanent human presence on the moon. The massive Space Launch System rocket rolled out to the launchpad on March 20 after passing its flight readiness review with flying colors.

"Our flight systems are ready, the ground systems are ready, our launch and operations teams are ready," said Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate. "The crew arrived yesterday, and I know that they're ready. They are more than ready."

The Ripple Effect

This mission builds on Artemis 1, which successfully sent an uncrewed Orion around the moon in November 2022. If Artemis 2 succeeds, it clears the path for Artemis 3 to test lunar lander operations in Earth orbit.

The ultimate goal is Artemis 4, planned as the first crewed moon landing since Apollo 17 ended in 1972. That mission would make history again, potentially putting the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface.

The only current concern is weather. Forecasters predict a 20% chance of cumulus clouds that could delay the launch. If needed, backup launch windows extend through April 6.

After five decades of waiting, humanity's return to lunar exploration is finally here.