The United States crewed spacecraft ‘Artemis II’, aimed at lunar exploration, successfully launched on the 1st (local time). It is the first time in half a century that a spacecraft carrying people has been launched toward the Moon. The plan to land people on the Moon in 2028 has gained full momentum.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Artemis II at 6:35 p.m. that day (7:35 a.m. on the 2nd, Korea time) from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Artemis II is configured with the ‘Space Launch System (SLS)’ rocket to break free of Earth's gravity, topped by the ‘Orion spacecraft’, the area where the astronauts live. The total length reaches 98ｍ.

Four astronauts boarded Artemis II: Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. NASA said Artemis II entered its planned flight trajectory after liftoff.

The launch was delayed by 11 minutes from the schedule. A minor equipment anomaly was found in the flight termination system inside the Artemis II vehicle, and the emergency escape system showed a signal indicating a high battery temperature. NASA resolved both issues relatively quickly.

This launch is highly meaningful for humanity. It marks the resumption of human lunar exploration 54 years after Apollo 17 visited the Moon in 1972.

Artemis II will not land on the Moon, but it is expected to approach to about 6,500㎞. Through official materials, NASA explained, “The astronauts will be able to see terrain such as lunar slopes and meteor impact craters through the windows of Artemis II”.

Artemis II will fly in space for a total of 10 days. Based on the results from this launch, NASA will conduct an in-orbit docking test between spacecraft next year to verify maneuvering capability. After that, in 2028, two people are to be landed on the Moon.

The Artemis II launch took place two months later than originally scheduled. It was initially planned for February, but the schedule slipped to last month after liquid hydrogen propellant leaked at the interface between ground facilities and the Artemis II vehicle. Last month, an additional issue of insufficient helium circulation inside the vehicle was confirmed, and the launch date was postponed again to this month.

Jared Isaacman, a NASA director, emphasized that “Artemis II has led humanity back to the Moon for the first time in over 50 years” and that “it will serve as the foundation for the giant leaps to come”.