Everything Still on Track for Artemis II Launch to the Moon on April 1
NASA is targeting a 6:24 p.m. ET launch on April 1 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the Artemis II mission, with an 80 percent weather “go” probability reported by U.S. Space Force 45th Weather Squadron launch officer Mark Burger. The crew will consist of NASA commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, marking the first human flight around the Moon since the Apollo era. The two‑hour launch window opens at the scheduled time, and no technical problems are currently being addressed, according to a pre‑launch briefing held one day before lift‑off.
The launch vehicle is the Space Launch System core stage paired with the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, topped by the Orion crew capsule that will follow a nine‑day free‑return trajectory around the Moon. After a roughly 24‑hour stay in low‑Earth orbit, Orion will fire toward lunar distance, with the crew able to rely on suit‑based life‑support for up to six days if the primary system fails. Radiation protection includes a shielded compartment lined with stowage bags, a precaution highlighted after an intense solar flare produced a heightened probability of an M‑class event (55 percent) and a smaller chance of an X‑class flare (10 percent) over the next 48 hours, as monitored by NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center. Tanking operations begin at 7:45 a.m. ET, and full launch coverage will be streamed on NASA’s YouTube channel and NASA+ starting at 12:50 p.m. ET.
Artemis II serves as the crewed test flight that follows the uncrewed Artemis I demonstration, and its success will validate Orion’s systems for subsequent missions, including the planned Artemis III lunar landing. The flight represents the United States’ first crewed lunar proximity mission in more than 53 years, re‑establishing human presence beyond low‑Earth orbit and extending international partnership through the inclusion of a Canadian astronaut. The mission’s outcome will shape schedule and hardware decisions for the broader Artemis program, which aims to sustain a permanent lunar exploration architecture.
