Artemis II Lunar Flyby LIVE Updates: Orion astronauts get message from Apollo 8 astronaut, flyby to begin soon
NASA's Artemis II mission, launched on April 1, 2026 from Kennedy Space Center (Launch Pad 39B), conducted a lunar flyby on April 6 — the first time humans have been in the vicinity of the Moon since Apollo 17 in December 1972.
The four-member crew — NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen (Canada) — aboard the Orion spacecraft executed a free-return flyby trajectory around the Moon.
Orion passed within approximately 4,070 miles of the lunar surface at closest approach (~7:02 PM EDT, April 6).
The spacecraft broke the Apollo 13 distance record, reaching a maximum distance of 252,760 miles from Earth — surpassing Apollo 13's 248,655 miles set in April 1970 by over 4,100 miles.
During the flyby, the crew witnessed a solar eclipse from space as Orion aligned with the Moon and Sun, viewing the darkened Moon and the solar corona.
Splashdown is planned in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego on April 10, completing a ~10-day mission.
NASA's Artemis Programme Architecture
The Artemis programme is NASA's flagship effort to return humans to the Moon and establish a sustained lunar presence, serving as a stepping stone to human Mars missions. It represents a major expansion from the Apollo era, with an international and commercial partnership model.
Key Details
- Space Launch System (SLS): A super heavy-lift rocket (expendable) that carries the Orion spacecraft; it is the world's most powerful rocket currently operational.
- Orion Spacecraft: Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) built by Lockheed Martin; designed to carry up to 4 astronauts beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) for missions up to 21 days.
- Lunar Gateway: A small lunar-orbiting space station planned in Near-Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO); will serve as a staging hub for surface missions — participating agencies include ESA, JAXA, CSA.
- Human Landing System (HLS): SpaceX's Starship HLS and Blue Origin's Blue Moon are selected to land astronauts on the lunar surface.
- Artemis I (2022): Uncrewed test flight of SLS-Orion; Artemis II (2026): First crewed flight (lunar flyby); Artemis III (planned ~2027–28): First crewed lunar landing since 1972, targeting the lunar south pole.
Artemis II is the essential verification mission — testing all life-support, communication, and navigation systems with crew aboard before committing astronauts to a lunar landing on Artemis III.
Space Race 2.0 — Strategic and Commercial Dimensions of Lunar Exploration
The renewed push to the Moon is not merely scientific — it reflects geopolitical competition over the Moon's strategic resources, particularly the Lunar South Pole where water-ice is known to exist in permanently shadowed craters (confirmed by India's Chandrayaan-1 in 2008).
Key Details
- Water-ice at the lunar poles can be electrolysed into hydrogen and oxygen — rocket propellant — enabling the Moon to serve as a refuelling depot for deep-space missions (the "lunar resource economy").
- The Artemis Accords (2020): US-led bilateral agreements on peaceful, transparent, and interoperable space exploration; India signed in June 2023, becoming the 27th signatory.
- China's Chang'e programme and Russia's Luna programme are developing independent lunar capabilities; China plans crewed Moon landing by 2030.
- The Outer Space Treaty (1967) prohibits national appropriation of the Moon or any celestial body; the Artemis Accords operate within this framework but have been criticised by Russia and China for creating US-aligned norms.
Artemis II's success directly advances US strategic positioning in lunar competition with China, while India's signature on the Artemis Accords means it aligns with the US-led framework for managing future lunar resource utilisation.
India's Lunar and Deep Space Programme
India has become a significant space power with the Chandrayaan series and the successful Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme in development.
Key Details
- Chandrayaan-1 (2008): Confirmed presence of water molecules on the Moon using the Moon Impact Probe and NASA's M3 instrument.
- Chandrayaan-2 (2019): Orbiter operational; Vikram lander crashed during descent.
- Chandrayaan-3 (2023): Vikram lander soft-landed at the lunar south pole (August 23, 2023) — India became the 4th country to soft-land on the Moon and the 1st to land near the south pole.
- Gaganyaan: India's first crewed orbital mission; G1 uncrewed test completed, crewed mission targeted for 2026.
- LUPEX (Lunar Polar Exploration Mission): India-Japan joint mission to explore water-ice at the lunar south pole, planned for the late 2020s.
- ISRO is also involved in preliminary discussions for contributing modules to the Lunar Gateway.
Artemis II's flyby underscores the global acceleration of lunar exploration; India's growing capabilities and Artemis Accords membership position ISRO for deeper international collaboration in the emerging lunar economy.
- Mission: NASA Artemis II — first crewed lunar flyby since Apollo 17 (December 1972)
- Launch date: April 1, 2026, Kennedy Space Center, Launch Pad 39B
- Launch vehicle: Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1
- Spacecraft: Orion MPCV (Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle)
- Crew: Reid Wiseman (NASA), Victor Glover (NASA), Christina Koch (NASA), Jeremy Hansen (CSA/Canada)
- Closest approach to Moon: ~4,070 miles (~6,550 km)
- Maximum distance from Earth: 252,760 miles (~406,900 km) — new human distance record
- Previous record: Apollo 13, April 1970 — 248,655 miles (Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, Fred Haise)
- Last human lunar visit before Artemis II: Apollo 17, December 1972 (Harrison Schmitt, Eugene Cernan)
- Mission duration: ~10 days; splashdown April 10, Pacific Ocean near San Diego
- Artemis Accords signed: India signed June 2023 (27th signatory)
- Chandrayaan-3 south pole landing: August 23, 2023 — 4th country to soft-land on Moon, 1st near south pole