Artemis II Mission Update: Lunar Flyby in Progress

Mission Control reports that the Artemis II mission, launched on Wednesday, April 1st, from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is proceeding smoothly. The Orion spacecraft, carrying a crew of four astronauts – Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jenny Gibbons (currently serving as CAPCOM) – is currently four days, 18 hours, and 30 minutes into its flight.

Key Maneuvers Completed

The crew has already completed several critical milestones. These include a proximity operations demonstration where pilot Victor Glover manually flew Orion after separating from the interim cryogenic propulsion stage, simulating a docking procedure essential for future Artemis missions involving lunar lander docking. Approximately 25 hours after launch, Orion executed a Translunar Injection (TLI) burn, a 5-minute, 50-second maneuver that propelled the spacecraft towards the moon and simultaneously set it on a free-return trajectory to Earth.

Entering Lunar Sphere of Influence

On flight day 5, the crew entered the lunar sphere of influence, marking the point where the moon’s gravitational pull becomes dominant. This sets the stage for the lunar flyby. The spacecraft is currently on a trajectory that will result in splashdown in the Pacific Ocean at approximately 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday, April 10th. The Artemis II crew represents the first humans to live and work inside the Orion spacecraft.