- Artemis II mission could still be all over tonight despite historic liftoff – here’s why
All eyes were on Kennedy Space Center yesterday as history unfolded.
The Artemis II mission successfully launched on April 1, sending the spacecraft into the Florida sky and beginning its orbit around Earth.
Orbit Earth for roughly 25 hours
Over the next ten days, Artemis and its four astronauts will head toward the Moon — though they won’t land. Instead, they’ll orbit the Moon, offering humanity perhaps the most breathtaking view yet of its mysterious far side.
”We are going for all humanity,” said mission specialist Jeremy Hansen as they launched.
Onboard the Orion capsule are NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, joined by Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency. At its furthest point, Artemis II could take the crew about 230,000 miles from Earth — humanity’s farthest journey into space yet.
The crew will orbit Earth for roughly 25 hours before being flung toward the Moon.
However, the mission isn’t without risks. A final crucial step remains before the spacecraft can leave Earth’s orbit.
Taking a four-hour nap
The rocket blasted off Wednesday evening without a hitch (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images), though weather concerns had raised the possibility of delays. Shortly after liftoff, the crew reported a malfunctioning toilet — luckily, mission control was able to fix it quickly.
Onboard the Orion capsule are NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, joined by Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency. At its furthest point, Artemis II could take the crew about 230,000 miles from Earth — humanity’s farthest journey into space yet.
The crew will orbit Earth for roughly 25 hours before being flung toward the Moon.
However, the mission isn’t without risks. A final crucial step remains before the spacecraft can leave Earth’s orbit.
Taking a four-hour nap
The rocket blasted off Wednesday evening without a hitch (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images), though weather concerns had raised the possibility of delays. Shortly after liftoff, the crew reported a malfunctioning toilet — luckily, mission control was able to fix it quickly.
According to Royal Museums Greenwich, the reason is simple: money. While John F. Kennedy’s government initially estimated the cost at $7 billion, the final tally for the Apollo 17 mission reached around $20 billion.
A NASA inspector general estimate, cited by Bloomberg, puts the total cost of the Artemis program at around $93 billion through 2025.