Return of the Americans to the Moon: 3 things to know about the Artemis 1 mission

The big day is approaching for NASA. More than half a century following Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the Moon, the Artemis program should mark the return of Americans to this star. The first milestone in this epic, the Artemis 1 mission will take off on August 29 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Orion capsule, once propelled by NASA’s giant rocket – Space Launch System, SLS – will go to the Moon, where it will place itself in orbit before returning to Earth. The mission is scheduled to last 42 days in total. However, Artemis 1 will not yet have an astronaut on board. Or at least not the ones we think. It is only in 2024, during the Artemis 2 mission, that astronauts will be on board without landing on the Moon, they will simply go around it. This honor will be reserved for the crew of Artémis 3, a mission scheduled for 2025 at the earliest. In the meantime, a look back at three highlights of this historic launch.