NASA will launch the Artemis II mission on April 1, sending four astronauts on a nine-day journey around the moon and back, marking the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The mission will test Orion’s systems in deep space without landing on the moon, aiming to surpass the Apollo 13 distance record and gather valuable data for future lunar exploration. Artemis II is a key step toward NASA’s goal of establishing a sustainable human presence on the moon, with subsequent missions planned to achieve crewed lunar landings by 2028.