What rocket is launching Artemis II?

Artemis II is launching on the Space Launch System Block 1B.

Who is launching Artemis II?

Artemis II is being launched by National Aeronautics and Space Administration, a government launch provider founded in 1958.

Where is Artemis II launching from?

Artemis II is launching from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA.

What orbit is Artemis II heading to?

Artemis II is heading to Lunar flyby.

Is the Space Launch System Block 1B reusable?

No — the Space Launch System Block 1B is an expendable launch vehicle.

Where is the Kennedy Space Center?

NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center is on Merritt Island, Florida, immediately north of Cape Canaveral. Named for President Kennedy in 1963, it has been the United States' primary human-spaceflight launch site since the 1960s.

Which rockets launch from the Kennedy Space Center?

SpaceX leases Launch Complex 39A for Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy and crewed Dragon missions, while NASA launches the Space Launch System for the Artemis Moon programme from Launch Complex 39B.

Did Apollo and the Space Shuttle launch from Kennedy?

Yes — the Launch Complex 39 pads sent every Apollo Moon mission and every Space Shuttle crew on their way, including Apollo 11 in 1969 and the first shuttle flight, STS-1, in 1981.

What's the difference between the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral?

They are separate, neighbouring sites. Kennedy is NASA's centre on Merritt Island; Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, just to the south, is run by the U.S. Space Force. Together they make up Florida's Space Coast.

Can you watch a launch from the Kennedy Space Center?

The closest public viewing is from the ticketed Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, which runs launch-day bus packages. Free off-site views are best from Playalinda Beach and the Titusville riverfront.

Back to Launches

Artemis II

Human Exploration

Success

National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA)Government

Space Launch System Block 1BLunar flybyorbit

Flight Timeline

T-49:50:00Launch Team On Stations
T-49:40:00Countdown Start
T-49:40:00Prop Load Preparations
T-45:30:00Orion Power On
T-42:20:00Core Stage Power On
T-42:10:00ICPS Power On
T-39:45:00RS-25 Preparations
T-35:45:00ICPS Power Off
T-33:30:00Orion Batteries Charging
T-31:30:00Core Stage Batteries Charging
T-20:15:00ICPS Power On
T-15:00:00Pad Closeout
T-14:15:00Rocket Cavity Inerting
T-13:15:00GLS Activation
T-12:35:00Built-In Hold
T-10:50:00Orion Cold Soak
T-10:50:00GO for Prop Load
T-10:40:00Core Stage LH2 Chill
T-10:40:00Core Stage LOX Transfer Chill
T-10:25:00Core Stage LOX Prop Chill
T-9:55:00Core Stage LH2 Slow Fill
T-9:50:00Resume T-Clock
T-9:40:00Core Stage LOX Slow Fill
T-9:30:00Core Stage LOX Fast Fill
T-9:25:00Core Stage LH2 Fast Fill
T-9:05:00ICPS LH2 Chill
T-8:30:00ICPS LH2 Fast Fill
T-8:00:00Core Stage LH2 Topping
T-7:55:00Core Stage LH2 Replenish
T-7:45:00ICPS LH2 Vent & Relief Test
T-7:20:00ICPS LH2 Topping
T-7:05:00ICPS LH2 Replenish
T-6:40:00Core Stage LOX Topping
T-6:40:00Orion Comms On
T-6:40:00ICPS LOX Prop Chill
T-6:30:00ICPS LOX Fast Fill
T-6:10:00Stage Pad Rescue
T-6:10:00Closeout Crew Assemble
T-6:05:00Core Stage LOX Replenish
T-6:00:00Weather Check
T-5:45:00ICPS LOX Vent & Relief Test
T-5:30:00ICPS LOX Topping
T-5:10:00ICPS LOX Replenish
T-5:10:00All Stages Replenish
T-5:10:00Built-In Hold
T-5:10:00Closeout Crew To White Room
T-4:40:00Flight Crew To Pad
T-4:00:00Orion Boarding
T-3:40:00Hatch Closure
T-3:10:00Hatch Seal Checks
T-2:20:00Hatch Closeouts
T-1:40:00LAS Hatch Closure
T-1:10:00TPS Scan
T-50:00Pad Clear
T-50:00Test Director Briefing
T-40:00Built-In Hold
T-25:00Orion Comms Transition
T-17:00Ready Poll
T-15:00Visors Down
T-14:00Short Purge
T-10:00Terminal Count
T-08:00Crew Access Arm Retract
T-06:00Tank Press
T-06:00Orion Pyros Arm
T-06:00Orion Internal Power
T-05:57Core Stage LH2 Replenish End
T-05:20LAS Available
T-04:40LH2 High Flow Bleed Check
T-04:30FTS Arm
T-04:00Core Stage LOX Replenish End
T-04:00Core Stage APU Start
T-03:30ICPS LOX Replenish End
T-03:10Purge Sequence 4
T-02:02ICPS Internal Power
T-02:00Booster Internal Power
T-01:30Core Stage Internal Power
T-01:20ICPS Terminal Count
T-00:50ICPS LH2 Replenish End
T-00:33GO for Launch
T-00:30Core Stage Terminal Count
T-00:12Hydrogen Burnoff Igniters
T-00:10Core Stage Engine Start
T-00:06Ignition
T+00:00Booster Ignition
T+00:00Liftoff
T+00:09Tower Clear
T+00:56Supersonic
T+01:10Max-Q
T+02:08SRB Separation
T+03:18Launch Escape Jettison
T+08:06MECO
T+08:18Stage 2 Separation
T+08:28ICPS RL10 Nozzle Extension
T+20:00Orion Solar Arrays Deployment
T+49:00Perigee Raise Burn
T+1:47:57Apogee Raise Burn
T+3:24:15Orion Separation
T+4:35:00Proximity Operations End
T+4:52:00Orion Separation Burn
T+5:00:00ICPS Disposal Burn
T+5:04:00CubeSats Deployment
T+13:44:00Perigee Raise Burn
T+25:37:00Translunar Injection Burn
T+47:25:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+48:07:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+50:05:00Crew CPR Demo
T+53:25:00DSN Comms Test
T+72:12:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+75:40:00Lunar Flyby Imaging Plan Review
T+77:45:00Lunar Flyby Imaging Plan Review
T+92:30:00Spacesuits Demo
T+101:23:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+102:59:00Orion Enters Lunar SOI
T+118:00:00Lunar Flyby
T+121:23:00Lunar Closest Approach
T+121:26:00Max Distance To Earth
T+139:47:00Orion Exits Lunar SOI
T+141:10:00Lunar Flyby Debrief
T+148:23:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+169:50:00Radiation Shielding Demo
T+172:20:00Manual Piloting Demo
T+191:15:00Orthostatic Intolerance Garment Test
T+194:10:00Orthostatic Intolerance Garment Test
T+196:33:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+212:33:00Orbital Trajectory Correction Burn
T+214:30:00Crew Entry Preparations
T+217:13:00Orion Service Module Jettison
T+217:16:00Orion Raise Burn
T+217:33:00Atmospheric Entry
T+217:46:00Orion Splashdown
T+217:53:00Orion RCS Safing
T+218:01:00Orion Power Off

Launch time

Wednesday, April 1, 2026 at 10:35 PM

Success

90% weather Go

At a glance

Status: Launch Successful
Provider: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Type: Government
Vehicle: Space Launch System Block 1B
Orbit: Lunar flyby
Pad: Launch Complex 39B
Location: Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
Designator: 2026-069
Weather: 90% Go

Social Flight Log

Apr 2, 2026, 2:01 AM
Launch success with Orion separation.
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 10:49 PM
Liftoff.
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 10:25 PM
New T-0.
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 10:15 PM
Extending hold at T-10 minutes.
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 9:33 PM
Updated launch weather.
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 4:58 PM
Official Webcast by NASA has started
Source
Apr 1, 2026, 3:05 PM
Updated launch weather.
Source
Mar 30, 2026, 8:46 PM
T-0 is accurate to the second.
Source
Mar 29, 2026, 3:08 PM
Updated launch weather, 80% GO.
Source
Mar 12, 2026, 7:06 PM
Targeting April 1st.
Source
Feb 21, 2026, 5:35 PM
Delayed to NET April due to upper stage helium leak issue.
Source
Feb 16, 2026, 9:52 PM
Reverted back to NET March 6 EST, to be confirmed.
Source
Feb 6, 2026, 7:13 PM
Moved back up to NET March 3, to be confirmed (see also https://x.com/nasaspaceflight/status/2019805496836767830.)
Source
Feb 3, 2026, 7:03 AM
Delayed to NET March, to be confirmed pending additional tests.
Source
Jan 30, 2026, 1:14 PM
Delayed to NET February 8 EST, to be confirmed.
Source
Jan 10, 2026, 12:21 AM
Refined launch window.
Source
Jan 2, 2026, 10:07 PM
Updated approximate launch time.
Source
Sep 23, 2025, 11:28 PM
Added launch window.
Source
Sep 23, 2025, 2:39 PM
NET February 5.
Source
Jul 31, 2025, 11:05 PM
Moved up to NET February.
Source
Dec 5, 2024, 6:18 PM
NET April 2026.
Source
Jan 9, 2024, 6:53 PM
NET September 2025.
Source
Mar 7, 2023, 5:29 PM
NET November 2024
Source

Primary payload

Artemis

Overview

Artemis II is the first crewed mission as part of the Artemis program. Artemis II will send a crew of 4 - 3 Americans and 1 Canadian around the moon and return them back to Earth. The mission will test the core systems of NASA's Orion spacecraft including the critical life support system, among other systems which could not be tested during Artemis I due to the lack of crew onboard.

Mission details

Artemis

Human Spaceflight

The Artemis program is a US government-funded crewed spaceflight program that has the goal of landing "the first woman and the next man" on the Moon, specifically at the lunar south pole region.

Dec 11, 2017 — ongoing

Wikipedia Info

Orbital Attempt

#7,246

NASA Mission

#142

Pad Launch

#59

Location Launch

#280

Designator

2026-069

Weather GO

90%

Weather Concerns

Cumulus Cloud Rule, Ground Winds

Launch Window

NET

Apr 1, 2026, 10:35 PM

Precision

Second

Schedule Changes

1 update

Launch Complex 39B

Total Launches

Orbital Attempts

Fastest Turnaround

28d 11h

Wikipedia Map

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

The John F. Kennedy Space Center, located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of NASA's ten field centers. Since 1968, KSC has been NASA's primary launch center of American spaceflight, research, and technology. Launch operations for the Apollo, Skylab and Space Shuttle programs were carried out from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 and managed by KSC. Located on the east coast of Florida, KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS).

Timezone

America/New_York

Local Launch Time

Apr 1, 2026, 6:35 PM

Total Launches

281

Total Landings

Coordinates

28.5242, -80.6508

View location page

Frequently asked questions

Kennedy Space Center

Space Launch System Block 1B Specs

The Space Launch System (SLS) is an American Space Shuttle-derived heavy expendable launch vehicle. It is part of NASA's deep space exploration plans including as the main launch vehicle of the Artemis program. SLS follows the cancellation of the Constellation program, and is to replace the retired Space Shuttle.

Length

111 m

Diameter

8.4 m

Launch Mass

2,948 t

Thrust

39,000 kN

Capacity

105,000 kg

Launch Cost

$2B

Reusable

Maiden Flight

2022

Fastest Turnaround

3y 4mo

Total Launches

Successful

Failed

Consecutive Success

Maiden flight: Nov 16, 2022

Wikipedia Info

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. NASA have many launch facilities but most are inactive. The most commonly used pad will be LC-39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Founded

1958

Administrator

Administrator: Jared Isaacman

Total Launches

142

Successful

122

Failed

Pending

Consecutive Success

Wikipedia Website

Flight Timeline

Overview

Mission details

Launch Window

Launch Complex 39B

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Frequently asked questions

What rocket is launching Artemis II?

Who is launching Artemis II?

Where is Artemis II launching from?

What orbit is Artemis II heading to?

Is the Space Launch System Block 1B reusable?

What is the Artemis II mission?

Where is the Kennedy Space Center?

Which rockets launch from the Kennedy Space Center?

Did Apollo and the Space Shuttle launch from Kennedy?

What's the difference between the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral?

Can you watch a launch from the Kennedy Space Center?