Frequently asked questions – Artemis II

The historic Artemis II mission is the first crewed test flight of Artemis, a multi-mission campaign set to create a durable lunar presence and pave the way for human exploration of Mars. Artemis II marks the first time a Canadian astronaut will take part in a lunar mission.

Artemis II is currently scheduled to launch in April 2026. The exact date may vary depending on mission readiness and other factors. Follow us on social media to get the latest updates on the mission.

In December 2024, NASA announced updates to upcoming Artemis missions, including schedule changes for Artemis II and Artemis III, to allow teams to continue to prepare Orion with the heat shield already attached to the capsule. The agency’s decision comes after an extensive investigation of an Artemis I heat shield issue showed the Artemis II heat shield can keep the crew safe during the planned mission with changes to Orion’s trajectory as it enters Earth’s atmosphere. Crew safety is and will remain NASA’s number one priority – the mission will not fly until everything is ready.

NASA is now targeting April 2026 for Artemis II, the first crewed Artemis mission. Jeremy Hansen and Jenni Gibbons, Canada's backup for Artemis II, continue to train and will be ready whenever required.

The mission will last nearly 10 days. See Vlog 14: Over 1,000,000 kilometres in nearly 10 days or Artemis II: First crewed flight to the Moon since Apollo – infographic to learn more about the mission timeline.

The Artemis II crew will test the Orion's systems, perform various science and operational tasks, perform a lunar flyby and take photos of the Moon’s surface before returning to Earth.

Artemis II will demonstrate the capabilities of the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (SLS) with a human crew, paving the way for Artemis III, which aims to land astronauts on the Moon, and future Artemis missions. It is a vital step in establishing a sustainable human presence on the Moon.

For more than 60 years, Canada has been a longstanding partner in international space exploration endeavours. Thanks to its reliable and proven space robotics expertise, Canada will be contributing Canadarm3, a highly autonomous robotic system, to Gateway.

In return for Canada’s robotics contribution, Canada secured a range of opportunities for lunar science, technology demonstration and commercial activities, as well as two astronaut flights. One is on Artemis II. The other will be on Gateway. Both flights involve testing new systems and new technologies as well as conducting science, in preparation for lunar surface exploration.

Like the Apollo program, which took place from the 1960s to 1972, the Artemis campaign begins with missions around the Moon before landing on the lunar surface. However, the Apollo missions were limited to the equatorial regions of the Moon because at the time the rocket didn’t have enough power to get to the South Pole. Artemis is now targeting this region because we have since discovered that there is water ice in the permanently shadowed regions of the craters at the South Pole thanks to new research tools and techniques that were not available at the time of Apollo.

Artemis includes the construction of Gateway, to which Canada is contributing a next-generation robotic system called Canadarm3.

And while the Apollo program was the result of a race against Russia to first land on the Moon, Artemis is an international collaboration led by NASA, with contributions from the European Space Agency, the CSA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and the participation of several companies. Artemis builds the expertise for a lasting return to the Moon. As a matter of fact, NASA, in coordination with the U.S. Department of State and seven other initial signatory nations including Canada, established the Artemis Accords in 2020. With many countries and private companies conducting missions and operations around and on the Moon, the Artemis Accords provide a common set of principles to enhance the governance of the civil exploration and use of outer space.

The Artemis II crew includes CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist), and NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot), and Christina Koch (mission specialist). This mission marks the first time a Canadian astronaut will fly to the Moon. CSA astronaut Jenni Gibbons has been assigned as Jeremy Hansen’s backup. This key role secures a seat for Canada on the historic Artemis II mission in the event that he would be unable to participate in the mission. Andre Douglas is the NASA backup astronaut.

Jeremy Hansen will serve as a mission specialist on the Artemis II mission . While the commander and pilot will take care of the launch and landing operations, the whole crew will split all the other operations. Since Artemis II is a test flight, the four astronauts intend to try as many things as they can to offer four different perspectives on the tasks, including manual piloting, system monitoring, communications, taking photos of Earth and the Moon, and science operations.

Backup astronauts are trained to replace members of the prime crew in the event that something happens and one of them is unable to complete the mission. They are typically trained in a similar way to be prepared to take on the same duties and responsibilities, sometimes with very little advanced notice.

Being part of this very select team will make Jenni a key contributor to define and validate crew training requirements and processes for future Moon missions. She is also training to act as a capcom in support future missions to the Moon and as astronaut support person, who buckles the crew into Orion and prepares them for launch.

Artemis II astronauts, including CSA astronauts Jeremy Hansen and Jenni Gibbons, his official backup, undergo rigorous training to prepare for Artemis II.

The Artemis II crew primarily trains at NASA’s Johnson Space Center where there is an Orion simulator, a mock-up of the crew module as well as rocket and spacecraft hardware. They also train at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on launch pad and countdown operations.

The crew visits NASA centres and other locations based on the type of training. For example, CSA astronauts Jeremy Hansen and Jenni Gibbons and NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Raja Chari took part in a geology field training expedition at Mistastin Lake, a crater in Labrador formed by a meteorite impact millions of years ago. The crater is known to have rocks similar to those found on the Moon. The whole crew also travelled to Iceland for geology training.

Geology training equips the crew to decipher lunar geology during Artemis II to prepare them for lunar observations and photography during the Moon flyby. As the first crew of the Artemis campaign, the astronauts also contribute to determining the full training flow for future Artemis missions. Geology training will prepare future Moon explorers to choose the best rock samples to bring back with them to maximize the scientific return back on Earth.

The Artemis II crew will travel aboard the Orion spacecraft, which will be carried by the SLS.

Aboard Orion, Artemis II astronauts will have access to specially packaged food and drink that is easy to store and consume in a microgravity environment.

Aboard Orion, the astronauts will have limited free time due to their busy schedule and the short duration of the mission (nearly 10 days). However, the crew will still have some time to relax, which is important to keep them healthy and focused.

For most of the mission, the four crewmembers aboard Orion will sleep at the same time in sleeping bags attached to the walls of the spacecraft.

Yes, there's Wi-Fi in space. Aboard Orion, the Artemis II astronauts will be able to stay connected with Earth most of the time.

On Orion, the crew will use the Universal Waste Management System. That's the fancy NASA name for the space toilet.

Inside the Orion spacecraft, the astronauts will make sure they stay fit by doing a 30-minute workout nearly every day.

In space, it is not possible to take a shower or do laundry. The astronauts aboard Orion will need to use products such as baby wipes, liquid soap with a bit of water on a washcloth, and no-rinse shampoo to stay clean.