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| Science & Technology |
| NASA counts down for first crewed lunar mission in half a century |
| 2026-04-01 |
| [Reuters] NASA is set to launch four astronauts as soon as Wednesday evening on a 10-day flight around the moon, marking the most ambitious U.S. space mission in decades and a major step toward returning humans to the lunar surface before China's first crewed landing. NASA mission managers on Monday polled "go" to launch the Artemis II mission's towering, 322-ft (98-m) Space Launch System (SLS) rocket topped with the astronauts' Orion crew capsule as early as 6:24 p.m. EDT (2224 GMT) on Wednesday. It will launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida just one pad away from where the last moon-bound astronauts of the U.S. Apollo program lifted off more than half a century ago. The Artemis II crew includes NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, who landed in Florida from Houston on Friday. They had been in a two-week quarantine leading up to liftoff and spent time with their families over the weekend at the Kennedy Space Center's beach house, a spot where astronauts rest before blasting off into space. Related: Artemis II 01/11/2024 One giant step BACKWARDS: NASA delays its eagerly anticipated return to the moon due to 'safety concerns' - with the crew now not landing on the lunar surface until 2026 Artemis II 05/20/2023 Elections Have Consequences - NASA picks Bezos's Blue Origin to develop Artemis V moon lander |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
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| Posted by: Frank G 2026-04-01 21:26 |
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| Posted by: Skidmark 2026-04-01 13:13 |
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