Artemis II is scheduled to lift-off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on Wednesday, sending four astronauts on a 10‑day mission around the moon at 11:24 p.m. UK time, according to NASA. The crewed flight, which will not land but will loop some 4,700 miles beyond the moon's far side, marks the first attempt to send humans back towards the lunar vicinity in 54 years.
According to Daily Star, Artemis II is the second step in NASA's long‑term programme to return to the lunar surface and, eventually, establish a sustained human presence there. The first mission, Artemis I, flew without a crew and tested the Space Launch System rocket and Orion capsule in 2022. This new flight is designed to prove that Orion can safely carry humans on the demanding journey out of Earth orbit, around the moon and back again, paving the way for landings later in the decade.
