NASA launched Artemis II, its first crewed mission under the Artemis program, on April 1, 2026.
The Artemis II astronauts will produce photographs and audio recordings of their observations and experiences for historical documentation and scientific analysis.
Artemis II experienced SRB staging about 5 minutes after launch.
The Artemis II Orion Camera System includes wireless cameras on each of Orion's four solar arrays for in-flight inspection of the spacecraft.
The Artemis II crew will take control of Orion for around two hours to gather data and experience for Artemis III.
The Artemis II Orion Camera System comprises 11 internal and external inspection and navigation cameras.
Artemis II carries four astronauts: Christina Koch, Reid Wiseman, and Victor Glover of NASA and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency.
The Artemis II camera system will capture mission events including separation, jettison, deployment, and crew demonstrations.
Artemis II is the second successful launch of the Boeing-built Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket after Artemis I in 2022.
The Orion spacecraft on Artemis II has begun a ten-day mission.
The Artemis II Orion spacecraft includes the ESA European Service Module.
Artemis II will perform a translunar injection burn on Day 2 to send Orion on a trajectory to the far side of the Moon.
Artemis II was planned as a ten-day mission.
The Artemis II tracking work will passively track the Orion spacecraft to collect tracking data without transmitting commands or signals to the vehicle.
Artemis II will perform two propulsion events to reach a high Earth orbit during its first 24 hours.
Artemis II is expected to end with a high-speed atmospheric reentry at 25,000 miles per hour on April 11, 2026.
Southern Launch’s Artemis II support builds on an earlier effort during Artemis I in 2022, when 10 volunteers tracked the Orion spacecraft.
Some Canadians have experiments on board Artemis II, and others are tracking the spacecraft.
Artemis II will reenter and splash down in the Pacific Ocean at 17 mph on Day 10 using eight parachutes deployed in three tranches.
Southern Launch will use a TALON telemetry dish supplied by Raven Defense for the Artemis II support activity.