CALGARY — NASA’s Artemis II mission is now entering its final pre-launch phase, with the four astronauts selected for the historic event now in quarantine — a sign historically indicating that the space agency believes liftoff could be imminent.The mission — which is the first crewed flight to the Moon since 1972 — is the second mission under NASA’s multibillion-dollar Artemis program, which aims to return humanity to deep space and ultimately establish a long-term lunar presence, including the eventual construction of a new space station orbiting the Moon.While Artemis II will not include a lunar landing, it represents a crucial step toward that goal..The roughly 10-day mission will send four astronauts aboard the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (CM-003) atop NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1 rocket, launching from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.After a successful launch, the vessel will travel around the Moon, looping roughly thousands of kilometres beyond its far side — further than any humans have ventured into space — before returning to Earth with an expected re-entry into the Pacific Ocean.The crew entered quarantine at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, on Monday, a standard protocol before any crewed spaceflight designed to minimize the risk of illness that could delay or scrub a launch.NASA is now targeting a launch as early as Feb. 6, though the window extends into early April pending final testing and reviews..The agency says Artemis II’s primary objective is to test life-support systems, navigation, communications, and overall spacecraft performance with a human crew in deep space — paving the way for a planned lunar landing on Artemis III, which US President Donald Trump has said he wants to see happen before the end of his second term.The spacecraft’s crew is commanded by Reid Wiseman, with Victor Glover serving as pilot and Christina Koch as mission specialist.Also onboard is Jeremy Hansen, a mission specialist representing the Canadian Space Agency, making him the first non-American astronaut to travel beyond low Earth orbit.Hansen was selected as a Canadian astronaut in 2009.Before joining the space program, he served as a Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18 fighter pilot at CFB Cold Lake, Alberta, and has since been promoted to the rank of colonel..The 50-year-old astronaut grew up on a farm outside London, Ontario, and has said he has dreamed of spaceflight since childhood.“This mission is a great challenge for me,” Hansen told the CBC.“The journey to the launch is extraordinary in and of itself. I’m just having such a great time working with this team and figuring things out.”The first uncrewed Artemis I mission, launched in November 2022 from Kennedy Space Center, served as a proof-of-concept test run for the current mission.That mission successfully tested the SLS rocket, Orion’s heat shield, navigation systems, and deep-space operations during a multi-week flight around the Moon before safely returning to Earth.Despite years of preparation, Hansen has acknowledged the Artemis II launch doesn’t come without risks.“Astronauts are external optimists, but there are very real risks, for sure,” he said.“They’re well managed — we work so hard to try to characterize the risks and come up with plans to mitigate them. What would likely get us is something we’ve failed to imagine.”Hansen added he has discussed those risks with his wife and children and accepts that uncertainty is part of the mission..In the coming days, NASA is planning to complete final ground preparations in Florida, including a wet dress rehearsal, which involves fuelling the SLS rocket with approximately 700,000 gallons of cryogenic propellant and running a full countdown simulation.An official launch date will not be confirmed until after that test and a formal flight readiness review.“Launching on the mission and flying around the Moon is going to be pretty extraordinary,” Hansen said.“Seeing Earth from the perspective of the Moon, it’s gonna touch my soul.”
