Artemis II

Artemis II is the first crewed mission of the Artemis lunar program, launching four astronauts on a roughly 10-day free-return trajectory around the Moon aboard the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft. The flight is the first crewed deep-space mission since Apollo 17 in 1972 and the first step toward returning U.S. astronauts to the lunar surface.

The crew includes three NASA astronauts and one Canadian Space Agency astronaut, reflecting the partnership structure of the broader Artemis program. Although Artemis is a civil space program, it is closely tied to Space Force interests in cislunar space situational awareness and to DoW concerns about Chinese lunar ambitions.

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