For roughly the next 24 hours, the crew will test their spacecraft in orbit around Earth. Tomorrow, if all goes well, they will push on toward the Moon. The astronauts will eventually fly as close as 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles) from the lunar surface before swinging back around and returning to Earth. When the crew passes around the far side of the Moon, they are expected to set a new record for the farthest humankind has ever traveled from our home planet: over 400,000 kilometers (252,000 miles).
Artemis II is testing the astronauts’ crew capsule, Orion, and their launch vehicle, the Space Launch System, in preparation for future missions of the Artemis program. NASA intends to land astronauts on the Moon with Artemis IV in 2028, eventually building toward a base with a sustained human presence. So far, the Space Launch System and Orion appear to have performed without issues.
While on their voyage, the crew is also conducting research to learn more about the hazards that come with traveling so far from Earth. They are collecting data on space radiation, microgravity, and the effects each has on the human body. NASA is also studying how confinement and isolation will affect the four astronauts, as they spend the next 10 days in a crew capsule that is only the size of a moving van.