NASA has officially named the crew for the Artemis 2 mission, which will be the first crewed flight to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. The astronauts are NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and the Canadian Space Agency's Jeremy Hansen. The mission will perform a lunar flyby, testing the Orion spacecraft's systems with a crew aboard.
Originally targeting a launch in late 2024, the Artemis 2 mission has been delayed. As of early 2026, NASA has not set a new official launch date, with ongoing work on the Orion spacecraft's life support systems and other technical reviews cited as reasons for the postponement.
The mission is a critical precursor to Artemis 3, which aims to land astronauts on the lunar surface. The Artemis program represents a significant international effort, involving partnerships with the European Space Agency, the Canadian Space Agency, and others, to establish a sustainable human presence on and around the Moon.
