Blogs

The Artemis II crew successfully completed the proximity operations demonstration, concluding one of the mission’s early objectives and providing valuable data on how the Orion spacecraft, named Integrity, performs during manual close‑range maneuvering around another spacecraft. Over the course of the approximately 70‑minute activity, the crew guided the spacecraft through a series of controlled approach […]

The apogee raise burn was successfully completed, continuing to fine tune the Orion spacecraft’s orbit around Earth. The ICPS (interim cryogenic propulsion stage) ignited its RL10 engine for a precisely timed burn that increased the highest point of the spacecraft’s orbit. Ahead of the burn, the Artemis II crew began setting their spacecraft up for […]

The perigee raise maneuver was successfully completed, refining the Orion spacecraft’s orbit around Earth. The interim cryogenic propulsion stage ignited its RL10 engine for a precisely timed burn that increased the lowest point of the spacecraft’s orbit. Shortly after the burn, the spacecraft experienced a loss of communications, when the ground was not able to […]

Emmanuel Boss, Ph.D., University of Maine For 50 days during the 2026 Austral summer (January to March), the PlanktoSpace team of 18 scientists, crew members, and passengers set sail on a unique mission. Our expedition traveled 7,200 miles across the Southern Ocean aboard the Perseverance, a sailing vessel owned by a French non-profit dedicated to science and education. Because the Perseverance uses sails for most of its journey, the expedition […]

Robotics training and human research were the primary duties for the Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station on Wednesday. The orbital residents rounded out their shift with spacesuit work, cargo operations, and Earth observations.

Live launch day updates for NASA’s Artemis II test flight will be published on this page. All times are Eastern. 6:59 p.m. The Orion spacecraft’s SAWs (solar arrays wings) have fully deployed, completing a key configuration step for the Artemis II mission. Flight controllers in Houston confirmed that all four wings unfolded as planned, locking into […]

Medical tests and microbiology topped the research schedule for the Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The seven crewmates also worked on spacesuits, cargo operations, and life support maintenance.

As the Artemis II countdown moves steadily toward liftoff no earlier than 6:24 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, April 1, launch teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida continue completing a sequence of highly choreographed steps to ready the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft for the crew’s journey around the Moon.  The weather forecast for launch day […]

The countdown for NASA’s Artemis II test flight is underway at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, with members of the launch team arriving at their consoles inside the Rocco Petrone Launch Control Center. The onsite countdown clock started ticking down at 4:44 p.m. EDT to a targeted launch time of 6:24 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1. Artemis II is the first crewed launch of NASA’s SLS […]