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Artemis II Crew Arrives at Kennedy for Final Prelaunch Prep as NASA Targets April 1

The milestone signals a return to crewed deep-space flight after more than 50 years away from lunar missions.

Overview

  • The four astronauts — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen — reached Kennedy Space Center for final checks and quarantine before a possible April 1 liftoff.
  • NASA has identified daily launch opportunities from April 1 to April 6, with additional April dates reserved if weather or late tests force a delay.
  • The Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft are now at Launch Complex 39B after a rollback to the Vehicle Assembly Building for access and repairs.
  • Engineers fixed a helium flow irregularity in the SLS upper stage and repaired a fuel leak, issues NASA said required work that could not be done at the pad.
  • The roughly 10-day flight will loop around the Moon without landing and would be the first crewed lunar voyage since Apollo, laying groundwork for future surface missions.