When will Artemis 2 reach the Moon? Where is Artemis II now? Check Artemis 2 tracker

Artemis 2 tracker: The four astronauts aboard the Artemis II have reached orbit. They will circle the Earth for about 25 hours before catapulting toward the moon. Astronauts blasted off from Florida on Wednesday on NASA's Artemis II mission, a 10-day trip around the moon that would be the farthest humans have ever traveled and a major step toward returning people to the lunar surface this decade. The flight around the moon is humanity’s first lunar voyage in more than half a century and the leadoff in NASA’s push toward a lunar landing in two years.

Astronauts on Artemis 2

Carrying three Americans and one Canadian, the 32-storey rocket rose from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center where tens of thousands gathered to witness the dawn of this new era. Crowds also jammed the surrounding roads and beaches, reminiscent of the Apollo moonshots in the 1960s and ’70s. It is NASA’s biggest step yet toward establishing a permanent lunar presence.


Five minutes into the flight, Commander Reid Wiseman saw the team’s target: “We have a beautiful moonrise, we’re headed right at it,” he said from the capsule. On board with him are pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada's Jeremy Hansen. It was the most diverse lunar crew ever with the first woman, person of color and non-U. S. citizen riding in NASA’s new Orion capsule.

How Long Will It Take Artemis 2 to Get to the Moon?

Artemis II will hurtle several thousand miles beyond the moon, hang a U-turn and then come straight back. No circling around the moon, no stopping for a moonwalk — just a quick out-and-back lasting less than 10 days. NASA promises more boot prints in the gray lunar dust, but not before a couple practice missions.

Artemis II is the opening shot of NASA's grand plans for a permanent moon base. The space program is aiming for a moon landing near the lunar south pole in 2028.

The astronauts will stick close to home for the first 25 hours of their 10-day test flight, checking out the capsule in orbit around Earth before firing the main engine that will propel them to the moon.

They won’t pause for a stopover or orbit the moon like Apollo 8’s first lunar visitors did so famously on Christmas Eve 1968, reading from Genesis. But they stand to become the most distant humans ever when their capsule zooms past the moon and continues another 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) beyond, before making a U-turn and tearing straight home to a splashdown in the Pacific.

Once settled in a high orbit around Earth, the astronauts got ready to assume manual control and practice steering their capsule around the rocket’s detached upper stage, venturing within 33 feet (10 meters). NASA wants to know how Orion handles in case the self-flying feature fails and the pilots need to take control.

Four days later during the lunar flyby, the moon will appear to be the size of a basketball held at arm’s length. The astronauts will take turns peering through Orion’s windows with cameras. If the lighting is right, they should see features never before viewed through human eyes. They’ll also catch snippets of a total solar eclipse, donning eclipse glasses as the moon briefly blocks the sun from their perspective and the corona is revealed.