Artemis 2 explained: Critical facts about NASA’s moon expedition

With 2025 coming to an end, NASA is gearing up to execute its highly anticipated Artemis 2 mission.

Artemis 2 is the second mission of NASA's Artemis program. However, it the first ever to carry real humans into space and to the lunar surface using the Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft. 

The purpose of it is to test “the systems” before setting out on future missions to take humans to the lunar surface.  

NASA's Artemis 2 mission will carry four astronauts to the moon

Artemis 2 is a mission that will allow astronauts to travel to and from the moon. During the journey, the astronauts will test NASA’s Orion spacecraft, the SLS rocket, and other systems.

It is mainly to ensure that future missions to the moon can be conducted safely.

As a result, Artemis 2 is a landmark project as it will carry humans to distances never covered before.

"With a second Trump Administration at the helm in 2025, NASA marked significant progress toward the Artemis II test flight early next year, which is the first crewed mission around the moon in more than 50 years," NASA's webite reads.

It continues:

"Built upon its momentum toward a human return to the lunar surface in preparation to send the first astronauts - Americans - to Mars."

During the astronauts’ time on the journey, they will fly far beyond the moon. At the time, they will face radiation to test whether the spacecraft’s life-support is viable. 

However, Artemis 2 will only go near the moon, not land on it.

With the help of the data collected during the mission, NASA will send astronauts to land on the moon safely in the future.

The names of the astronauts who will embark on this milestone journey were revealed on April 3, 2023.

The team comprised Reid Wiseman from NASA, who will be the commander, followed by Victor Glover, also from NASA, who will be the pilot. 

Then came Christina Koch, another NASA astronaut, who will serve as the mission specialist.

And the last member is Jeremy Hansen, from CSA or the Canadian Space Agency, who will also serve as the mission specialist. 

Hansen will fly into space for the first time with the Artemis 2 mission, and with that, he will become the first Canadian to travel near the moon. 

NASA previously set a tentative launch date for the mission, which is February 5, 2026. The launch will occur at Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  

It is supposed to assess four major areas. First is the mission planning, followed by checking the working of the spacecraft and other systems.

The third purpose is to test the how favorable are the conditions of the spacecraft for humans, and lastly, to check communications and navigation. 

The flight path suggested by NASA, shows that Orion will first circle Earth for a short period of time.

Then, it will utilize its engines to go around the moon and head back to Earth. The pathway will be such that even during system failures, the spacecraft will return to Earth. 

As of now, the mission is supposed to last ten days. However, NASA might extend it based on real-time observations and studies.

In a nutshell, after being launched from the Kennedy Space Center, the mission will make orbit adjustments using the SLS ICPS to raise the lowest and highest points of the orbit.

Additionally, there will be system checks after 42 hours of launch to confirm the launch. After the ICPS is discarded, the Orion will travel to the moon. 

Stay tuned for more updates.