Artemis II lifts off: NASA sends astronauts on first lunar voyage in decades

NASA's Artemis II moon rocket lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39-B Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Cape Canaveral, Florida

Astronauts , from left, Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, of Canada, Pilot Victor Glover, Commander Reid Wiseman and Mission Specialist Christina Koch leave the Operations and Checkout Building.

Artemis II set sail from the same Florida launch site that sent Apollo's explorers to the moon 53 years ago. 

The solid rocket boosters on NASA's Artemis II moon rocket fall away after lifting off from the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39-B.

Carrying three Americans and one Canadian, the 32-story rocket rose from NASA's Kennedy Space Center.