Artemis II is the second scheduled mission of
NASA's
Artemis program and the first scheduled crewed mission
of
NASA's
Orion spacecraft, currently planned to be launched by
the Space Launch System (SLS) in November 2024. The crewed Orion spacecraft
will perform a lunar flyby test and return to Earth.
Artemis II is planned to be the first crewed
spacecraft to travel to the Moon, or beyond low Earth orbit, since
Apollo 17 in 1972. The mission
profile is similar to
Apollo
8.
Orion is a partially reusable crewed spacecraft
used in
NASA's
Artemis program. The spacecraft consists of a Crew
Module (CM) space capsule and the European Service Module (
ESM). Capable of supporting a crew of six beyond low
Earth orbit,
Orion can last up to 21 days undocked and up to six
months docked. It is equipped with solar panels, an automated docking system,
and glass cockpit interfaces modeled after those used in the Boeing 787
Dreamliner. A single AJ10 engine provides the spacecraft's primary propulsion,
while eight R-4D-11 engines, and six pods of custom reaction control system
engines, provide the spacecraft's secondary propulsion. Although compatible
with other launch vehicles,
Orion is primarily intended to launch atop a Space
Launch System (SLS) rocket, with a tower launch escape system.