Artemis 2 LIVE: Artemis 2 astronauts report ‘burning smell’ from Orion toilet

The four astronauts of NASA’s Artemis 2 mission just notched a major milestone: They’re closer to the moon than they are to Earth.

Jacki Mahaffey, a Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) at Johnson Space Center in Houston, radioed the news to the quartet around midnight EDT (0400 GMT) on Saturday morning (April 4).

NASA Artemis 2 flight director Judd Frieling confirmed today that the Artemis 2 astronauts will become the farthest humans from Earth when they fly around the moon on Monday, April 6. Our spaceflight editor Mike Wall has our full story on the Artemis 2 astronauts upcoming distance record.

HOUSTON — Hey, Space Fans! Hello from NASA’s Johnson Space Center here as we continue our coverage of the Artemis 2 mission to the moon.

Today has been a slower pace day here as the astronauts settle into their cruise to the moon. (I have a whole story about it, check it out!)

Artemis 2 Commander Reid Wiseman touched base with Mission Control today (April 1) at about 1 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT), letting everyone know that the crew was up — even before the day’s designated wakeup song began playing.

“Pause for a moment with the crew of Artemis II as they look back at our home planet, seen through the window of the Orion capsule. That’s us, together, looking back at the astronauts journeying to the moon, for all of humanity,” NASA wrote in a post sharing the photos on their Instagram account.

A second photo shows Earth just peeking through the spacecraft’s window in a stark reminder of just how far Artemis 2 is traveling away from our planet.

Brett Tingley

The four astronauts of NASA’s historic Artemis 2 mission are now officially on their way to the moon.

The mission’s Orion spacecraft successfully performed a critical engine burn Thursday evening (April 2) called a translunar injection that put them on a course to fly a looping trajectory around the moon’s far side before lunar gravity sends them flying back towards Earth. Artemis 2 will be the first time that astronauts have flown so far from our planet since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The Artemis 2 astronauts are in good health and good spirits as they journey toward the moon, according to mission team members.

“As far as the crewmembers, they’re doing great,” Judd Frieling, Artemis 2 ascent flight director, said during a press briefing on Thursday evening (April 2). “There’s no indication that they’re having any problems at all.”

NASA’s Artemis 2 Orion spacecraft successfully performed its translunar injection burn, or TLI, ina 5 minute, 55 second maneuver that sent the probe beyond Earth orbit — the first time astronauts have done so since Apollo 17 in 1972.

The Artemis 2 Orion spacecraft has ignited its main engine to begin a nearly 6-minute translunar injection burn that will send its four-astronaut crew to the moon and back.

HOUSTON — NASA Artemis 2 flight controllers in Mission Control here at the Johnson Space Center just held the final poll to say Go or No Go for the trans-lunar injection burn to head to the moon.

All systems are GO. The manuever is set for 7:49 p.m. EDT (2349 GMT).

HOUSTON — It’s almost time! We’re now just under 1 hour away from the critical trans-lunar injection burn to head for the moon. That maneuver is scheduled for 7:49 p.m. EDT (2349 GMT) to send the Artemis 2 mission to the moon.

The burn will last about 5 minutes and 49 seconds and use the orbital manuevering engine on the Orion’s European Service Module. The engine is a repurposed space shuttle Orbital Manuevering System engine that flew to space on 19 missions aboard three different space shuttles earlier in its life.

HOUSTON — With NASA’s Artemis 2 moon mission now committed for a trip around the moon, the four astronauts aboard are settling into what will be a 10-day trip.

Artemis 2 commander Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover are setting up a new exercise flywheel device, which you can see above, that will be their primary exercise tool for the flight. As part of a demonstration of the device on this mission, the astronauts will trade off working out on it for 30 minutes a day. It works like a zero-gravity rowing machine, with the astronauts strapping their feet into stirrups while pulling on the flywheel handle.

Hey, Space Fans, NASA just told the Artemis 2 astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft Integrity that they can press ahead with a major engine burn today called the Trans-Lunar Injection maneuver. That burn, which is expected at 7:49 p.m. EDT (2330 GMT), will last 5 minutes and 49 seconds, raise the Orion ship’s speed by about 1,274 feet per second. That’s fast enough to fling the crew on a figure-eight path around the moon known as a free-return trajectory.

Mission controllers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston beamed up the day’s wake-up song, “Green Light” by John Legend featuring André 3000 to end the crew’s planned sleep period. The song was accompanied by recorded messages from NASA personnel and centers wishing the crew good luck.

Artemis 2’s Orion capsule conducted another engine burn in Earth orbit this morning (April 2), successfully raising its perigee, or closest point to our planet. The burn lasted 43 seconds and helped set Orion up for a bigger and more important operation later today — the translunar injection (TLI) burn, which will send the spacecraft and its four astronauts on a figure-eight path around the moon and back to Earth.

The TLI will occur at around 8:12 p.m. EDT (0012 GMT on April 3) and last about six minutes, if all goes according to plan.

The Artemis 2 crew  — NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and the Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen  — just wrapped up communications with mission controllers in Houston before entering their second sleep period of the mission.

After a successful launch on April 1 (and a slight toilet issue), the four-person crew is now in Earth orbit aboard the Orion spacecraft, settling in for their first night of sleep as ground teams continue to check the vehicle’s systems.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Well, Space Fans, it has been a long day here at the Kennedy Space Center, and even more so for the Artemis 2 astronauts now headed to the moon.

Artemis 2 pilot Victor Glover spent about an hour manually flying the Orion spacecraft around the upper stage of the Space Launch System rocket that launched him and his crew into orbit. Glover reported what seemed like a smooth handling by the Orion spacecraft.

Close to three and a half hours into the Artemis 2 mission, pilot Victor Glover took control of Orion after the capsule separated from the Space Launch System rocket’s Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, or ICPS. Glover will now manually pilot Orion around ICPS, carrying out a series of maneuvers designed to test the spacecraft’s propulsion systems and ability to operate in close proximity to another object in space.

“I see it. Look at that, woohoo! I see the ICPS and the moon in the field of view,” Glover said during NASA’s live broadcast of the mission.

These tests, known as proximity operations or “prox ops,” are a key part of this test flight and will evaluate Orion’s ability to fly near and interface with future Artemis program hardware such as the lunar lander that will eventually be chosen for NASA’s planned moon landings.

NASA will hold a press conference today (April 1) at 8:05 p.m. EDT (0005 GMT on April 2) to discuss the launch of its Artemis 2 moon mission. The four-astronaut Artemis 2 lifted off today at 6:35 p.m. EDT (2235 GMT). You can watch it live here at Space.com.

Now in the vacuum of space, the Orion spacecraft has successfully unfurled its four solar arrays, which will power the spacecraft through the rest of the Artemis 2 mission. Orion’s solar arrays provide more than 11 kilowatts of energy to the spacecraft — about the equivalent needed to provide electricity for two houses.

“We see four SAWs deployed and latched,” Orion commander Reid Wiseman radioed to mission control as it occurred.

“The weather continues to cooperate and has now been upgraded to 90% go for launch,” NASA officials wrote in an update.

Mike Wall

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla — NASA is working a battery temperature issue on the Launch Abort System of the Artemis 2 rocket, with less than 1 hour remaining for today’s historic astronaut lanuch to the moon.

NASA commentator Derrol Nail said the issue just popped up as the weather forecast imporived to a promising 90% “go” for launch.

There still aren’t any problems with Artemis 2’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket or Orion capsule in the leadup to today’s planned launch, but something has cropped up: NASA just announced that the Eastern Range, the Atlantic range managed by the U.S. Space Force, is currently working a flight termination system (FTS) issue.

The FTS is a safety system designed to destroy a rocket if it veers off course during launch. All rockets have them. (Orion has its own emergency-escape system, which would jet the capsule and its crew to safety in the case of such an eventuality.) The Eastern Range is apparently investigating an issue that could affect the sending of an FTS signal to the SLS in an emergency scenario and has asked for assistance from the Artemis 2 launch team, according to NASA.

Mike Wall

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla — With the Artemis 2 astronauts strapped inside their Orion spacecraft seats and the close out crew shutting the hatch, NASA’s big moon launch is starting to feel real.

Here at the Kennedy Space Center, the moon feels positive thoughout the press site and NASA has not reported any serious issues with the SLS rocket, Orion capsule or crew.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Things are really moving fast here at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for today’s Artemis 2 launch to the moon.

The four Artemis 2 astronauts are now entering their Orion spacecraft, where they’ll be strapped in, then undergo communication and final suit checks for launch.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — As we wait for the Artemis 2 astronauts to board their Orion spacecraft, here’s a blast from the past.

We took a look at what was hot the last time astronauts launched to the moon in 1972 on NASA’s Apollo 17 moon landing flight.

The Artemis 2 astronauts have emerged from the Astronaut Crew Quarters of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, another key milestone in the leadup to launch. Walkout occurred at 1:49 p.m. EDT (1749 GMT).

“It’s a great day for us, a great day for this team,” Artemis 2 Commander Reid Wiseman said to a round of applause. The four astronauts will now take a ride to Launch Complex 39B, which will take about 15 minutes.

Technicians are performing leak checks on the Artemis 2 astronauts’ spacesuits, and making sure that their air and power systems are functioning normally.

“The bright orange spacesuits are designed to protect them on their journey and feature many improvements from head to toe to the suits worn on the space shuttle,” NASA officials wrote in an update today (April 1). NASA reengineered many elements to improve safety and range of motion for Artemis astronauts, and instead of the small, medium, and large sizes from the shuttle era, they are custom fit for each crew member.”

The four Artemis 2 astronauts have received their final weather briefing, and everything still looks good: Officials with NASA and the U.S. Space Force say there’s an 80% chance that Mother Nature will cooperate for today’s planned launch at 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT).

Artemis 2 team members have also completed the “fast fill” of liquid oxygen in the Space Launch System rocket’s upper stage and have moved on to the “topping” process. That’s another key milestone that keeps everything on track for an on-time liftoff.

Mike Wall

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The upper stage of NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket is now in the fast-fill phase for liquid oxygen after being fully loaded with liquid hydrogen earlier today. The core stage of the Space Launch System is fully fueled and being topped off periodically, which NASA calls replenish mode.

So far, the fueling process appears to have gone extremely smoothly. No glitches or hiccups to report so far, which is a good sign. NASA has been mired with liquid hydrogen leaks in the past, but the last fueling test for Artemis 2 indicated that those issues were fixed.

The Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket first stage is now fully fueled with the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen needed for launch today. It is in replenish mode currently. The upper stage is fueled with liquid hyydrogen, with liquid oxygen loading about 30% complete and rising.

So far, fueling has continues extremely smoothly for today’s Artemis 2 astronaut launch to the moon. Liftoff is set for 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT).

NASA’s towering Artemis 2 mission rocket has been fully loaded with the liquid hydrogen propellant it will need for liftoff.

The fueling process, which NASA calls tanking, is continuing with the liquid oxygen needed for liftoff. The core stage of the Space Launch System rocket is nearly fully loaded, while liquid oxygen has not yet been loaded onto the upper stage, called the interim cryogenic propulsion stage, or ICPS for short.

Want an in-depth breakdown of each day of the flight? Here’s what the Artemis 2 astronauts will be doing on each day of NASA’s historic moon mission.

Brett Tingley

The four Artemis 2 astronuats received a “go” to wake up in this hour, with NASA now just about 8 hours away from the Artemis 2 launch to the moon today at 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT).

Fast fill of the liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellant for Artemis 2’s massive Space Launch System rocket is underway.

Artemis 2 is set to launch today at 6:24 p.m. EDT from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, sending four astronauts on the first crewed journey toward the moon since 1972.

It’s official, the countdown to NASA’s Artemis 2 launch is officially underway.

The countdown clock for Artemis 2 began ticking down toward an April 1 liftoff today, March 30, at 4:44 p.m. EDT (2044 GMT) as NASA flight controllers begin final checks of flight and ground systems for launch. Liftoff remains set for April 1 at 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT).

NASA will hold an Artemis 2 L-2 press conference on Monday at 5 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT). The briefing will follow a key mission meeting to assess the mission’s readiness for an April 1 launch attempt. NASA officials attending the press conference include Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya, John Honeycutt, chair of NASA’s mission management team, Artemis Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson and Chief Flight Director Emily Nelson.

The briefing will begin about 15 minutes after NASA’s initial call to stations and the official start of the Artemis 2 countdown clock, scheduled to begin at 4:44 p.m. EDT (2144 GMT) this afternoon.

A powerful X1.4 solar flare erupted late on March 29, peaking at 11:19 p.m. EDT (0319 GMT on March 30) and triggering a strong (R3) radio blackout according to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

NASA will keep a close eye on space weather conditions, as disruptions like this could affect Artemis 2 preparations. Space weather can also pose a risk to astronauts, so forecasters and NASA teams are working closely together to monitor solar activity.

NASA is now just two days away from the launch of its Artemis 2 moon mission on April 1 — a mission that’s set to push humans farther into space than ever before.

With the Artemis 2 astronauts at their launch site for NASA’s first crewed moon mission in over 50 years, we’re just days away from the historic liftoff. So you’ll want to know how and when to tune in for the flight.

Luckily, we have you covered with our detailed overview:
What time is NASA’s Artemis 2 mission to the moon?

Artemis 2 astronauts will arrive at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida today, March 27, ahead of their mission to fly around the moon.

The crew have been in quarantine since March 20, when SLS was rolled from the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to the pad at Launch Complex-39B (LC-39B), and will spend the days leading up to their mission continuing that quarantine at KSC.

It’s official, space fans, NASA is less than one week away from the launch of Artemis 2.

The first astronaut mission to the moon since NASA’s Apollo 17 in 1972 is on track for a launch on Wednesday, April 1, at 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Our Spaceflight Editor Mike Wall has our latest update on what you need to know in or 1 week away from Artemis 2 story.

NASA has begun rolling its Artemis 2 moon rocket back to Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. The Artemis 2 stack — a Space Launch System rocket topped with an Orion crew capsule — began moving toward the pad from KSC’s huge Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at 12:20 a.m. EDT (0420 GMT) on Friday (March 20). That was about 4.5 hours later than originally planned, a delay caused by high winds in the area.

The 4-mile (6.4 kilometers) trek from the VAB to Pad 39B is expected to take up to 12 hours. You can watch the whole journey here at Space.com, courtesy of NASA.

As of Thursday morning (March 19), NASA is still aiming for this evening to begin the rollout of SLS from the Vehicle Assembly Building, back to the launch pad.

Following the completion of some last minute work ahead of its departure, engineers are targeting 8 p.m. EDT (0000 GMT, March 20) for first motion of the SLS and mobile launch platform crawler-transporter 2 vehicle.

The four Artemis 2 astronauts entered quarantine at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Wednesday (March 18) at 6 p.m. EDT (2200 GMT; 5 p.m. local time). The quartet “will limit their exposure to others for the next week in Houston, before flying to Kennedy approximately five days before launch, to continue their quarantine from the astronaut crew quarters there,” NASA officials said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

“Kennedy” is Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, Artemis 2’s launch site. If all goes to plan, the mission will launch on April 1 from KSC’s Pad 39B, kicking off a 10-day mission around the moon.

NASA’s Space Launch System rocket tasked with launching the Artemis 2 mission is ready for transportation from the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center, back to Launch Complex-39B.

The Artemis 2 launch director issued the “go” order for SLS to begin its journey from Launch Complex-39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center this morning (Feb. 25) at 9:38 a.m. EST (1438 GMT), with first motion confirmed about 10 minutes later, according to a NASA blog post Wednesday morning.

The Artemis 2 Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, standing at Launch Complex-39B since its arrival Jan. 17, is about to begin the slow journey back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) for repairs.

NASA had targeted a launch window beginning March 6 for the earliest opportunity to launch SLS with its Orion spacecraft carrying the astronauts of Artemis 2 on a 10-day mission around the moon, but a helium issue that arose after the rocket’s most recent fueling test has prompted a rollback to the VAB and a push of the mission’s launch window to April.

Teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center continue work at Launch Complex-39B to prepare the Artemis 2 Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and mobile launch platform (MLP) to roll the vehicle back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for repair, with first motion expected tomorrow morning (Feb. 25) at 9 a.m. EST (1400 GMT).

In the meantime, the Artemis 2 crew, assuredly not launching during their mission’s March window, are released from their pre-launch quarantine and free to move about the world as their astronaut schedules permit. Tonight, that schedule will be taking them to the U.S. Capitol for President Trump’s State of the Union address, according to an Axios report.

NASA has set a target time for the rollback of its Artemis 2 moon rocket — 9 a.m. EST (1400 GMT) on Wednesday (Feb. 25).

At around that time, Artemis 2’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion capsule will begin the 4-mile (6.4 kilometers) trek from Launch Pad 39B to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The duo will make the journey, which could take up to 12 hours, atop NASA’s massive Crawler Transporter-2 vehicle.

NASA plans to roll its Artemis 2 moon rocket off Kennedy Space Center‘s (KSC) Launch Pad 39B on Wednesday (Feb. 25). The agency had been eyeing Tuesday (Feb. 24) for the operation, but Mother Nature didn’t cooperate.

“Cold temperatures and high winds are expected Tuesday, and rolling on Feb. 25 gives teams enough time to complete preparations at the launch pad that were limited today by high winds in the area,” NASA officials wrote in an update on Monday evening (Feb. 23).

NASA is now preparing to return its towering Artemis 2 moon rocket back to its hangar after more than a month at the launch pad due to a helium system issue on the rocket’s upper stage.

The decision, which came yesterday (Feb. 22), means the Artemis 2 mission’s launch of four astronauts to the moon will be delayed at least a month until April 1 at the earliest. It was previously set for March 6. You can read about the delay in detail in our full story by Space.com editor Mike Wall below:

After more than 11 hours, NASA’s might Artemis 2 moon rocket has arrived at it new launch pad home for the first time.

The Space Launch System rocket that will launch NASA’s Artemis 2 astronauts around the moon arrived at its pad at Launch Complex 36B at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida at 6:42 p.m. EST (2342 GMT), more than 11 1/2 hours after leaving its Vehicle Assembly Building hangar.

NASA has now passed the five-hour mark of today’s Artemis 2 moon rocket roll out to the launch pad. We should be just over halfway to the pad, or slightly more than halfway, depending on if NASA’s progress is following its eight-hour schedule or 10-hour plan. Here’s a wrap on how things havce gone so far:

NASA rolls Artemis 2 rocket to the pad ahead of historic moon launch

NASA’s Artemis 2 moon rocket, the second-ever Space Launch System booster, is slowly making progress along the 4-mile journey to its Florida pad at Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

It’s a slow roll for the Artemis 2 SLS. NASA’s giant Crawler Transporter 2 carrier vehicle is carrying the 11 million pound stack at about 1 mile an hour. That’s it’s top speed. The massive carrier vehicle was originally built to move NASA’s Saturn V rockets in the Apollo era, and later moved space shuttles to the pad as well.

As we near the 2-hour mark of NASA’s up to 10-hour move of the Artemis 2 rocket to its Florida launch pad, the 322-foot-tall Space Launch System is fully visible and has exited its massive Vehicle Assembly Building hangar.

Above is an amazing image from Space.com’s Josh Dinner at the Kennedy Space Center as he’s monitoring the rollout to Pad 39B.

NASA reports that the towering Artemis 2 Space Launch System rocket is officially on the move.

First motion for today’s rollout occurred at 7:04 a.m. EST (1204 GMT) as the huge rocket began its daylong trip to the launch pad. It is about 4 miles to Pad 39B from NASA’s 52-stroy Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), where the SLS for Artemis 2 was stacked and assembled.

With NASA’s Artemis 2 moon rocket is ready to roll out to the launch pad, you may be wondering if you’ll be able to watch it live online on Saturday, Jan. 17. Well, yes. Yes, you can.

NASA’s livestream of the Artemis 2 roll out will begin at 7 a.m. EST (1100 GMT) and will be available in the window at the top of this page. You can also watch it directly from NASA via YouTube.

NASA’s Artemis 2 moon rocket rollout preview press conference has ended.

You can see a replay in the window below.

NASA officials say the Artemis 2 moon rocket is ready to head out to its Florida launch pad early tomorrow, but it will be a slow trip.

The Artemis 2 Space Launch System will take between 8 to 10 hours to make the 4-mile trip from NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Pad 39B. Once the the rocket makes it to the pad, NASA will then connect it to pad infrastructure for fueling atop its Mobile Launch Platform.

NASA’s press conference on the Artemis 2 moon rocket has begun. You can watch it live on this page, as well as on NASA’s YouTube here.

Speaking during the event are:

• John Honeycutt, Artemis II mission management team chair
• Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director, Exploration Ground Systems
• Jeff Radigan, Artemis II lead flight director, Flight Operations Directorate
• Lili Villarreal, landing and recovery director, Exploration Ground Systems
• Jacob Bleacher, chief exploration scientist, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate

Hello, Space Fans! NASA is one day away from its historic rollout of the Artemis 2 rocket that will carry four astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years.

The Artemis 2 rocket, NASA’s second Space Launch System booster, is currently scheduled to head out to Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT). It should take several hours for the towering 322-foot rocket to reach the launch pad.