How NASA’s Artemis II Moon mission will unfold

WASHINGTON – NASA’s Artemis II mission, which launched on April 1, is expected to last about 10 days, sending four astronauts on a high-speed journey around the Moon and back in the first crewed lunar mission since the Apollo era.

Artemis II is designed to pave the way for future missions aimed at returning astronauts to the lunar surface later this decade.

Here is a day-by-day outline of how the flight is expected to proceed.

Launch day

Artemis II lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Space Launch System, the most powerful rocket the agency has ever flown. After launch, the Orion crew capsule will separate from the rocket’s upper stage and enter a highly elliptical orbit around the Earth.

Days 1 to 2: Earth orbit checks

The crew will spend the first one to two days in high Earth orbit conducting extensive systems checks. These include testing Orion’s life support, propulsion, navigation and communications systems to ensure the spacecraft is ready to head into deep space.

Translunar injection

Once the checks are complete, Orion’s propulsion system will perform a critical engine burn known as translunar injection, sending the spacecraft out of Earth’s orbit and onto a trajectory towards the Moon.

Days 3 to 4: Coast to the Moon

During the several-day transit to the Moon on a “free-return” trajectory – a path that naturally swings the spacecraft back towards the Earth without requiring additional propulsion. The spacecraft will reach its greatest distance from the Earth during this phase.

Days 5 to 8: Return to Earth

After the lunar fly-by, the crew will spend several days heading home while conducting additional deep space tests, including evaluations of power systems, thermal controls and crew operations far beyond low Earth orbit.

Re-entry and splashdown

As Orion approaches the Earth, it will separate key components before plunging into the atmosphere at speeds of about 40,233kmh.

Testing the capsule’s heat shield during high-energy re-entry is one of the mission’s primary objectives. The spacecraft is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean, where recovery teams will retrieve the crew. REUTERS