The Artemis II crewed lunar mission lifts off from Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday. Four astronauts blasted off aboard a massive NASA rocket April 1 on a long-anticipated journey around the Moon, the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years. With an intense roar that reverberated far beyond the launchpad, the enormous orange-and-white rocket carried three Americans and one Canadian away from Florida's Kennedy Space Center at approximately 6:35 pm local time, according to an AFP journalist onsite. "We're going to the Moon!" yelled a spectator. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

In this handout provided by NASA, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Artemis II commander, left, Victor Glover, Artemis II pilot, Christina Koch, Artemis II mission specialist, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, Artemis II mission specialist, right, stop for a group photograph as they visit NASA's Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft, on March 30, 2026 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. NASA is aiming for an early April launch date for the first crewed moon mission in 50 years. Bill Ingalls/NASA/Getty Images hide caption

The SLS rocket carrying the crew of NASA's Artemis II mission to the moon thunders into the sky. Bill Ingalls/NASA hide caption

Artemis II crew members — mission specialist Christina Koch (left) and commander Reid Wiseman (right) — listen as pilot Victor Glover speaks to the media after arriving at the Kennedy Space Center on March 27, 2026 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The astronauts' planned 10-day mission will take them around the Moon and back to Earth. Joe Raedle/Getty Images hide caption

NASA employees brief the media on Thursday at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. about the delayed Artemis II mission. The news conference focused on revisions and fixes being done to the rocket components. Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Smoke rises over Konarak naval base in southern Iran on Sunday. The base was one of hundreds of targets of U.S. and Israeli forces throughout the country. Planet Labs PBC hide caption

The mobile launcher containing the Artemis II Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft arrives at the Vehicle Assembly Building after a rollback that lasted over ten hours at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on February 25, 2026. NASA teams detected issues with the helium flow and removed the rocket from the launchpad. Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

A report by a NASA review panel says a error in pointing software caused the Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft's solar panels to face away from the sun. Lockheed Martin hide caption

A day after NASA said it was eyeing a potential March 6 launch date for the Artemis II lunar mission, the space agency now says new complications could derail all of the March launch dates. The rocket, seen here at the Kennedy Space Center launch pad on Friday, may need to be rolled back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for additional tests. Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NASA says it's planning a March 6 launch date to send four astronauts on a trip around the moon on the Artemis II mission. Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

This view from the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft shows Boeing's Starliner docked to the International Space Station on July 3, 2024. NASA hide caption

In this image from video provided by NASA, a SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying Americans Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France's Sophie Adenot and Russia's Andrei Fedyaev, approaches the International Space Station for docking on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. NASA/AP hide caption

The four members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission pose for a portrait at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif. From left: Russian cosmonaut and Mission Specialist Andrey Fedyaev, NASA astronauts Jack Hathaway and Jessica Meir, pilot and commander respectively, and European Space Agency astronaut and Mission Specialist Sophie Adenot. SpaceX via NASA hide caption

NASA has delayed the launch of its Artemis II lunar fly-by mission by at least a month. Testing of the rocket and capsule, shown here on the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida Sunday, revealed a number of issues. The launch, with four astronauts, would be the first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years. Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft are seen at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Sunday. Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

A Blue Origin New Shepard rocket launches from West Texas on March 31, 2022. Blue Origin has announced its stopping human space launches for at least two years as it focuses on helping NASA return humans to the moon. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

The space shuttle Challenger lifts off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Jan. 28, 1986, in a cloud of smoke with a crew of seven aboard. The shuttle exploded shortly after this photo. Thom Baur/AP hide caption

The space shuttle Challenger is destroyed shortly after lifting off from Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Tuesday, Jan. 28, 1986. All seven crew members died in the explosion, which was blamed on faulty o-rings in the shuttle's booster rockets. Bruce Weaver/AP hide caption

This screengrab from video provided by NASA TV shows the SpaceX Dragon capsule departing from the International Space Station shortly after undocking with four NASA Crew-11 members inside on Wednesday. AP/NASA hide caption

The four SpaceX Crew-11 members gather for a portrait last Friday wearing their pressure suits inside the International Space Station. NASA is returning the crew a month early because one has an undisclosed medical condition. Clockwise from bottom left are, NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Kimiya Yui. NASA hide caption

NASA announced it would bring the four members of its Crew-11 mission back to Earth early. One of them has a medical condition. The crew, shown here at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. on August 1, 2025, is (from left): Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, NASA astronaut and mission commander Zena Cardman and JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui. Gregg Newton/AFP via Getty Images hide caption