Why This Mission is Kind of a Big Deal
We haven't sent humans to the moon in over 50 years, but Artemis II isn't just a nostalgia trip—it’s a record-breaker. This 10-day mission is the ultimate stress test for the Orion’s life-support systems, paving the way for us to actually land on the lunar surface in the coming years.
The "Firsts" and "Mostests" of Artemis II:
- The Farthest Journey: The crew will travel about 250,000 miles from Earth, venturing further into deep space than any human in history.
- Breaking the Glass Ceiling (and the Atmosphere): Christina Koch is making history as the first woman on a lunar mission.
- A Historic Pilot: Victor Glover is the first Black astronaut assigned to a moon mission.
- Oh, Canada!: Jeremy Hansen is the first Canadian (and first non-American) to ever leave low Earth orbit for the moon.
- The Longest Total Solar Eclipse seen from Deep Space: Artemis II is poised to set the record for the longest total solar eclipse witnessed by human eyes in deep space. It’s the ultimate "right place, right time" moment—a 250,000-mile journey that just happens to intersect with the shadow of the Moon.
The goal? To prove that Orion can keep humans safe, hydrated, and breathing in the harsh environment of deep space so we can eventually build a permanent base on the moon and, one day, head to Mars.
*Stay tuned for updates (posted in reverse chronological order) - fun, comical, and cool things I've observed in watching the Artemis II mission to the moon!*
Friday 3 April: Solar Opposites
During the press conference this afternoon, two beautiful photos were shown which were taken by Reid.
The first photo shows the Northern Lights (top right, green) and the Southern Lights (bottom left). This was something I only learned about a couple years ago when I sought to see the Aurora Borealis in Fairbanks. Because of the magnetic poles, there are mirrored phenomenon called Aurora Australis, or the Southern Lights. When I went to Tasmania, then, I monitored solar activity in hopes of seeing them. Indeed, I left Hobart the day before a spectacular showing visible from southern Tasmania. 😭
The second shot is just a beautiful graphic of the Earth and the Terminator line.
Friday 3 April: Say, "Cheese!"
The moon makes its first clear appearance on the onboard camera of the Orion spacecraft
As the crew began to get ready for the day, Christina asked CAPCOM about the storage location for the electric shaver, and added, "Asking for a friend."
Friday 3 April: We Slept In!
Remember that Seinfeld episode in which Kramer is supposed to wake up the guy before his race?
Yeah, that just happened, but in space. 😱 Gives a whole new meaning to, "Out of sight, out of mind." 🤦🏼♀️
The Artemis II crew was supposed to be woken up by a song around 1 Day 18 Hours into the mission. 25 minutes after that point, this happened:
Reid
Houston, Integrity on one, post sleep
CAPCOM
Good morning, Victor, go ahead
Reid
It must just be our speed. It's Reid changing the octave of my voice, I guess. Hey, just want to make sure you guys didn't juggle the schedule at all; we are just starting our post sleep now. We don't need to start working, but we do need to get some times done.
CAPCOM
Alright Reid, sorry about that. And sounds good.
Reid
And whenever you want to do some wake up music, we could use some post wake up music.
*four bars play and then the song cuts off before it gets to the lyrics about waking up and looking around at the sky*
Wake up song: "In a Daydream" by Freddy Jones Band
This resonates with me so much. I'm naturally an early riser, a when I'm on vacation with someone, I wake up early and try to be patient but start to get antsy. "Are you awake yet? Well you are now! Let's gooooo!"
Hear the whole exchange here:
Thursday 2 April: Point of No (Immediate) Return
Love these words from CAPCOM: "Integrity, Houston has completed the poll for TLI, when the engine ignites, you embark on humanity's lunar homecoming arc and set the course to return integrity and her crew safely home. Houston is go for TLI."
Thursday 2 April: Wake Me Up Before You Go Go
Here's a fun thing to do with the Artemis live feed: Use your favorite AI chatbot to ask how many hours and minutes ago the Artemis crew was last woken up (or whatever milestone you're interested in). Rewind the live feed by that many hours and minutes (looks like it maxes out at 12 hours) so you can see what you may have missed (or want to watch again).
A little more than 9 hours ago at the time of writing, the crew woke up to "Give Me a Green Light" by John Legend with some nice messages from the ground crews. See screenshot!
Before that, they were awoken to "Sleepyhead" by Young & Sick, but that's too many hours ago to rewind to now.
Thursday 2 April: Crescent Earth
I loved the view the crew woke up to right before the perigee raise burn early Thursday morning!
Wednesday 1 April: Toilet Troubles: A New Meaning of "No-Go"
It turns out that even in deep space, the most critical system check involves a plunger—or the high-tech equivalent. We officially hit a "character-building" milestone when the Collins-made Universal Waste Management System (UWMS) decided to stop cooperating, proving that space travel is 10% orbital mechanics and 90% dealing with things that shouldn't be floating.
The issue wasn't a software glitch; it was a stubborn mechanical failure in the separator pump. This critical component is responsible for separating liquids from air in microgravity. When it seized up, the system effectively became a "no-go" zone to prevent a localized environmental disaster inside the capsule.
While the situation felt like it came directly out of an episode of The Big Bang Theory, we didn't need Howard Wolowitz—we had Christina Koch. Channeling her inner "Space Plumber," Christina spent nearly five hours elbow-deep in the Orion’s service panel. She had to perform a delicate "surgical" replacement of the pump and internal filters while hovering in the cramped quarters of the cabin.
Thanks to Christina's space plumbing prowess, the crew of Artemis 2 can once again go #1.
Wednesday 1 April: No Foolin'
The SLS roared to life at 6:35 p.m. EDT on April 1, 2026, piercing the Florida sky to finally send the Orion and her crew toward their lunar homecoming. The countdown wasn't without its drama, however, as teams had to navigate a "No-Go" hold just minutes before the terminal count due to a technical issue with the Flight Termination System that kept everyone on the edge of their seats until the very last second.
It was a beautiful launch, and you can find plenty of coverage for it, of course. Here are two unique ones I liked.
And a 360° degree view:
Meet Rise!
The tradition of the Zero Gravity Indicator is as old as human spaceflight itself, beginning in 1961 when Yuri Gagarin tucked a small doll into his Vostok 1 capsule. These "stowaways" serve as the world's most charming telemetry sensors; once the engines cut and the spacecraft enters orbit, their sudden weightless dance provides a low-tech, visual confirmation that the crew has officially escaped Earth's pull. Over the decades, everything from Snoopy to Baby Yoda has taken the trip, but for Artemis II, the crew is sharing the cabin with a special guest named Rise.
Designed by eight-year-old Lucas Ye, Rise is a round, blushing moon mascot wearing a very clever baseball cap that represents our home planet. The crown of his hat is a plush Earth, while the visor is dusted with stars. Rise isn't just a passenger, though—he's a digital historian. Tucked inside a small zipper on his back is a micro-SD card carrying over three million names from NASA’s "Fly Your Name" program. His name is a direct tribute to the iconic Earthrise photo from Apollo 8, and as Orion streaks toward the lunar far side, Rise will be the first one to let us know we’ve arrived by performing his signature slow-motion backflips for the onboard cameras.
Let me know!
What has been your favorite wake up song or photo so far?
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