The solid rocket boosters will operate as a matched pair for the first crewed mission of the SLS system, Artemis II.
Artemis II will not land on the lunar surface nor enter orbit around Earth.
The Launch Abort System abort capability will be fully active for Artemis II to provide an additional safety layer for the four astronaut crew.
The Artemis II crew will reside in rooms inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building during quarantine.
Data and experience collected during Artemis II are expected to form a foundation for subsequent lunar landing flights and longer duration crewed expeditions into deep space.
Teams at Kennedy Space Center are preparing the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft for Artemis II.
NASA has identified backup launch windows for Artemis II in March: March 6–9 and March 11.
NASA has identified backup launch windows for Artemis II in April: April 1, April 3–6, and April 30.
The four astronauts on Artemis II will spend about 10 days on a mission around the Moon.
Artemis II final training activities over the next days will include mission simulations and medical checks.
Artemis II is a roughly ten-day crewed mission around the Moon and is the first crewed flight of NASA's Artemis campaign.
During quarantine the Artemis II astronauts will be able to maintain regular contact with friends, family, and colleagues who meet quarantine requirements, will avoid public places, will wear masks, and will practice distancing while continuing final training activities.
NASA will conduct a fueling rehearsal for the Space Launch System (SLS) as early as January 31 (U.S. time) in preparation for the crewed lunar orbital mission Artemis II.
Artemis II will be the first crewed test flight to the Moon following the uncrewed Artemis I mission in 2022.
Artemis II is scheduled to launch the Orion spacecraft in the first weeks of February on a crewed mission to the Moon.
The planned use of SKY Perfect JSAT’s ground station equipment for Artemis II represents the first time those facilities have been used for lunar exploration.
Artemis II will carry four astronauts on a ten-day trip to the Moon.
SKY Perfect JSAT is the only Asian commercial company selected as a ground station for the Orion one-way Doppler measurements for Artemis II.
The ground station equipment to be used for Artemis II is the same equipment employed in the commercial near-Earth tracking network service JSAT Space Line, which began in September 2025.
Artemis II will launch on NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) carrying the Orion spacecraft and a crew of four astronauts on an approximately 10-day mission to orbit the Moon and return to Earth.