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NASA’s Artemis II Mission Leaves Earth Orbit for Flight around Moon

For the first time in more than 50 years, astronauts on a NASA mission are bound to fly around the Moon after successfully completing a key burn of Orion’s main engine.

With the approximately six-minute firing of the spacecraft’s service module engine on Thursday, known as the translunar injection burn, Orion and its crew of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen accelerated to break free of Earth’s orbit and began the outbound trajectory toward Earth’s nearest neighbor.

“Today, for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972, humans have departed Earth orbit. Reid, Victor, Christina, and Jeremy now are on a precise trajectory toward the Moon. Orion is operating with crew for the first time in space, and we are gathering critical data, and learning from each step,” said Dr. Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Each milestone we reach marks meaningful progress on the path forward for the Artemis program. While we have eight intensive days of work ahead, this is a big moment, and we’re proud to share it with the world.” 

NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1, sending the four astronauts on a planned 10-day test flight around the Moon and back.

After reaching space, Orion deployed its four solar array wings, enabling the spacecraft to receive energy from the Sun, while the crew and engineers on the ground immediately began transitioning the spacecraft from launch to flight operations to start checking out key systems.

About 49 minutes into the test flight, the SLS rocket’s upper stage fired to put Orion into an elliptical orbit around Earth. A second planned burn by the stage propelled Orion, which the crew named “Integrity,” into a high Earth orbit extending about 46,000 miles above the Earth for about 24 hours of system checkouts. After the burn, Orion separated from the stage, flying free on its own.

The crew then conducted a manual piloting demonstration to test Orion’s handling qualities using the ICPS (interim cryogenic propulsion stage) as a docking target.

At the conclusion of the demonstration, Orion executed an automated departure burn to safely back away from the ICPS, after which the stage performed its own disposal burn and re-entered Earth’s atmosphere over a remote region of the Pacific Ocean.

Prior to its re-entry, four small CubeSats were deployed from SLS rocket’s Orion stage adapter.

Other tasks completed so far include a transition to the Deep Space Network for communications, the crew becoming acclimated to the space environment, completing their first rest periods, performing the first flywheel exercise, restoring the spacecraft’s toilet to normal operations, and configuring the spacecraft for the translunar injection burn.

During a planned lunar flyby on Monday, April 6, the astronauts will take high resolution photographs and provide their own observations of the lunar surface, including areas of the far side of the Moon never seen directly by humans. Although the lunar far side will only be partially illuminated during the flyby, the conditions should create shadows that stretch across the surface, enhancing relief and revealing depth, ridges, slopes, and crater rims that are often difficult to detect under full illumination.

Following a successful lunar flyby, the astronauts will return to Earth and splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.

As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA will send Artemis astronauts on increasingly challenging missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Follow the latest mission progress, including more images from the test flight, at:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-ii

-end-

Cheryl Warner / Rachel Kraft
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov / rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov

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Lauren E. Low

Artemis II Astronauts Launch to Moon

NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft lift off in this April 1, 2026, image. NASA’s Artemis II mission will take NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy on an approximately 10-day journey around the Moon and back aboard their Orion spacecraft.

See more launch day photos.

Image credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

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Monika Luabeya

Réunion Island Lava Reaches the Sea

Located 700 kilometers (440 miles) east of Madagascar, Réunion Island is the product of a long-lived mantle hotspot on the floor of the Indian Ocean. The island first emerged above the ocean’s surface about 2 million years ago. It remains active today, with frequent eruptions from Piton de la Fournaise, a shield volcano on the island’s eastern side.

Since the 17th century, the volcano has had more than 150 documented eruptions. The most recent began within the Enclos Fouqué caldera on February 13, 2026, with the opening of four fissures that fueled sustained lava fountains reaching 10 to 50 meters (30 to 160 feet). Throughout February and March, basaltic lava spilled down the volcano, advancing through forested and grassy areas toward its eastern side.

This thermal satellite image shows lava flowing east toward the ocean on March 28, 2026. The signal reveals the amount of heat emanating from surfaces on Earth based on detections of thermal radiation in two wavelengths. Warmer areas are mapped in yellow and cooler surfaces in blue. The thermal data were overlaid on a digital elevation model of the island.

“The hottest areas, shown as the brightest tones, correspond to the eruptive vent, the active lava channel, and the flow front,” said Adele Campus, a University of Turin volcanologist. From the vent, lava flows downslope for several kilometers, often through lava tubes. “The places where lava re-emerges at the surface through breakouts appear as localized hotspots,” she added. Campus and colleagues analyzed more than two decades of NASA and NOAA satellite observations in a 2025 study, identifying key trends and patterns in the volcano’s thermal activity and rate of lava effusion.

On March 13, lava cut through the island’s Route Nationale 2 (RN2). By March 16, it had begun to spill into the Indian Ocean, producing acidic plumes of steam and volcanic gases, known as laze, according to the Observatoire Volcanologique du Piton de la Fournaise (OVPF). Scientists on the ground measured lava temperatures of 1,100 to 1,130 degrees Celsius (2,010 to 2,070 degrees Fahrenheit) as lava neared the ocean. Thermal surveys also showed that water temperatures exceeded 36°C (97°F) up to 600 meters from the entry point, according to OVPF. As of March 24, materials entering the ocean had created a new lava delta that extended the coastline by 190 meters.

“This eruption appears to be longer and to have produced a larger volume of lava than usual,” said Diego Coppola, a professor of volcanology at the University of Turin who coauthored the analysis with Campus. Such characteristics are often associated with the onset or end of an eruptive cycle. The most recent cycle began in 2014, culminated in 2015, and ended in July 2023. “The current activity,” he said, “likely marks the onset of a new cycle of frequent eruptive activity at Piton de la Fournaise.”

NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey and elevation data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). Story by Adam Voiland.

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March 28, 2026

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References & Resources

• Airbus Space, via X (2026, March 25) Réunion island’s volcanic heart ignites once again. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• BBC (2026, March 16) Watch: Reunion resident gets close to lava from erupting volcano. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• Global Volcanism Program (2026) Piton de la Fournaise. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• Imaz Press (2026, March 13) [Photos-Vidéos] Volcan : trois coulées traversent la route nationale 2, la lave à environ 600 mètres de l’océan. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• MSN (2026, March 25) Reunion volcano lava reaches ocean for first time in 19 years. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• NASA Earth Observatory (2023, December 30) Snow Peak, Réunion Island. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• Observatoire volcanologique du Piton de la Fournaise, via Bluesky (2026) Posts. Accessed April 1, 2026.
• Observatoire volcanologique du Piton de la Fournaise (2026) Communiqués et bulletins. Accessed April 1, 2026.

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Liftoff! NASA Launches Astronauts on Historic Artemis Moon Mission

Spurred by American ingenuity, astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II mission are in flight, preparing for the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years.

NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. EDT Wednesday, sending four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft on a planned test flight around the Moon and back.

“Today’s launch marks a defining moment for our nation and for all who believe in exploration. Artemis II builds on the vision set by President Donald J. Trump, returning humanity to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years and opening the next chapter of lunar exploration beyond Apollo. Aboard Orion are four remarkable explorers preparing for the first crewed flight of this rocket and spacecraft, a true test mission that will carry them farther and faster than any humans in a generation,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “Artemis II is the start of something bigger than any one mission. It marks our return to the Moon, not just to visit, but to eventually stay on our Moon Base, and lays the foundation for the next giant leaps ahead.”

The successful launch is the beginning of an approximately 10-day mission for NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen. As the first crewed mission of NASA’s Artemis program, among its objectives, the flight will demonstrate life support systems for the first time with crew and lay the foundation for an enduring presence on the Moon ahead of future missions to Mars.

After reaching space, Orion deployed its solar array wings, enabling the spacecraft to receive energy from the Sun, while the crew and engineers on the ground immediately began transitioning the spacecraft from launch to flight operations to start checking out key systems.

“Artemis II is a test flight, and the test has just begun. The team that built this vehicle, repaired it, and prepared it for flight has given our crew the machine they need to go prove what it can do,” said NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya. “Over the next 10 days, Reid, Victor, Christina, and Jeremy will put Orion through its paces so the crews who follow them can go to the Moon’s surface with confidence. We are one mission into a long campaign, and the work ahead of us is greater than the work behind us.”

About 49 minutes into the test flight, the SLS rocket’s upper stage fired to put Orion into an elliptical orbit around Earth. A second planned burn by the stage will propel Orion, which the crew named “Integrity,” into a high Earth orbit extending about 46,000 miles beyond Earth. After the burn, Orion will separate from the stage, flying free on its own.

In several hours, a ring on the rocket’s upper stage, which will be a safe distance away from the spacecraft, will deploy four CubeSats – small satellites from Argentina’s Comisión Nacional de Actividades Espaciales, German Aerospace Center, Korea AeroSpace Administration, and Saudi Space Agency – to perform scientific investigations and technology demonstrations.

The spacecraft will remain in high Earth orbit for about a day, where the crew will conduct a manual pilot demonstration to test Orion’s handling capabilities. The astronauts, with Mission Control Center teams at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, will continue checking spacecraft systems.

If all systems remain healthy, mission controllers will give Orion’s European-built service module a command to conduct the translunar injection burn on Thursday, April 2. This move is an approximately six-minute firing to send the spacecraft on a trajectory that will simultaneously carry crew around the Moon, while also harnessing lunar gravity to slingshot them back to Earth.

During a planned multi-hour lunar flyby on Monday, April 6, the astronauts will take photographs and provide observations of the Moon’s surface as the first people to lay eyes on some areas of the far side. Although the lunar far side will only be partially illuminated during the flyby, the conditions should create shadows that stretch across the surface, enhancing relief and revealing depth, ridges, slopes and crater rims that are often difficult to detect under full illumination. Crew observations and other human health scientific investigations during the mission, such as AVATAR, will inform science during future Moon missions.

Following a successful lunar flyby, the astronauts will return to Earth and splash down in the Pacific Ocean.

As part of Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA will send Artemis astronauts on increasingly difficult missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Follow the latest mission progress, including more images from the test flight, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/

-end-

Bethany Stevens / Rachel Kraft
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
bethany.c.stevens@nasa.gov / rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov  

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Lauren E. Low