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The Artemis II moon mission will see four astronauts go on a 685,000-mile, 10-day journey around the moon. Here is what the timeline looks like:
Day 1 is launch day. The astronauts lift off aboard NASA’s newest spacecraft, Orion, which will sit atop the Space Launch System rocket. The spacecraft will reach initial orbit and then high-Earth orbit to make a push toward the moon.
Days 2 through 4 are transit days, with the journey to the moon taking three days. Over the course of the journey, the crew will continue to evaluate Orion’s systems and practice emergency procedures, in addition to other activities.
Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen stop for a group photo during a visit to NASA’s Artemis II SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft, March 30, 2026, at Launch Complex 39B of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Fla.
Bill Ingalls/NASA/AFP via Getty Images
On day 5, Orion will enter the lunar sphere of influence, meaning the moon is the main gravitational pull. On day 6, the crew will come its closest to the moon while traveling the farthest from Earth, according NASA.
Days 7 through 10 will see the astronauts make their way back to Earth before re-entering Earth’s atmosphere at high speed, up to 25,000 miles per hour.
The Orion spacecraft will deploy a series of parachutes once through the heat of re-entry to slow down and it will splash down in the Pacific Ocean The U.S. Navy will recover the capsule.
-ABC News’ Mary Kekatos
