NASA Sets New Launch Date for Artemis 2 Moon Mission: March 6, 2026

NASA is targeting March 6, 2026, for the launch of Artemis II, a crewed mission intended to fly around the Moon. The announcement follows a recent wet dress rehearsal at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39B, where engineers successfully loaded cryogenic propellant into the Space Launch System (SLS) tanks.

The wet dress rehearsal, completed early Tuesday morning, involved fueling the rocket and practicing launch timelines and procedures. While engineers encountered some challenges during the two-day test, they met many of the planned objectives, according to NASA. The agency will now conduct a second wet dress rehearsal before confirming the March launch date.

The Artemis II mission will carry a crew of four astronauts: Reid Wiseman, the mission commander. Victor Glover, the pilot; Christina Koch, a mission specialist; and Jeremy Hansen, a mission specialist from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The crew entered quarantine on January 21 in Houston, and will re-enter quarantine approximately two weeks before the targeted launch date. The temporary release from quarantine is a result of the launch delay.

Artemis II represents the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. The Orion spacecraft will follow a free-return trajectory, utilizing the Moon’s gravity to slingshot the spacecraft back towards Earth. The entire mission is planned to last approximately 10 days.

While Artemis II will not land on the lunar surface, This proves a critical step in preparing for future missions, including Artemis III, which aims to land astronauts on the Moon. The Artemis program as well serves as a proving ground for technologies and capabilities needed for eventual crewed missions to Mars.

Victor Glover will become the first person of color, Christina Koch the first woman, and Jeremy Hansen the first person not from the United States to travel around the Moon. The flight is expected to accept the crew farther from Earth than any previous crewed mission, with a planned flyby distance of 6,400 miles (10,300 kilometers). Re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere is projected to occur at a record speed of approximately 25,000 miles per hour (40,000 km/h).

The Artemis II mission will be recovered by the U.S. Navy using a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock, with a planned landing in the Pacific Ocean on approximately March 15, 2026.