Skip to main content
Irene Klotz
Mark Carreau
February 18, 2026
Following a checkout in high Earth orbit, the Orion spacecraft will fire its engines to put itself on a path toward the Moon. The burn sets up the free-return trajectory for Orion’s splashdown eight days later. Credit: NASA
NASA used its first Space Launch System rocket to send an uncrewed Orion spacecraft on a 25-day test flight around the Moon in late 2022, kicking off its Artemis lunar exploration campaign. On Artemis II, the agency will attempt to broaden Orion’s operational envelope by adding a flight crew, with…
NASA’s Flight Plan For The Crewed Artemis II Mission is available to both Aviation Week & Space Technology and AWIN subscribers.
Subscribe now to read this content, plus receive critical analysis into emerging trends, technological advancements, operational best practices and continuous updates to policy, requirements and budgets.
Already a subscriber to AW&ST or AWIN? Log in with your existing email and password.
