Artemis II Sets Stage for Near-Moon Science and Hands-On Flight Tests
NASA's Artemis II will send four astronauts on a 10-day Orion mission around the Moon, testing manual piloting, proximity operations, life-support and health experiments (ARCHeR, AVATAR, immune biomarkers), radiation shielding, and lunar geology studies to validate operations for future Moon landings. The mission also features historic firsts: the first woman and the first person of color beyond LEO toward the Moon, and the first non-American aboard Artemis II. The crew includes Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, with launch date to be confirmed after a wet dress rehearsal.