NASA's Artemis II successfully launches from Kennedy Space Center

History made at Pad 39B! After a flawless countdown and an 90% "Go" weather forecast, the Artemis II mission is officially on its way to the Moon. The SLS rocket, carrying NASA’s Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with the Canadian Space Agency’s Jeremy Hansen, thundered away from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39B at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1, 2026. The Artemis II crew will spend a day in orbit around Earth checking their capsule before firing the main engine that will propel them to the moon.