NASA Is Hoping To Return to the Moon in 2026 — Details on Artemis 2 Mission

NASA is gearing up for a historical mission. The space agency has said that it plans to send astronauts to the moon in an operation being dubbed the Artemis 2 moonshot.

If successful, this will be the first time the space agency sends a crew to the moon in more than 50 years. A representative shared the exciting update during a press conference, where she addressed plenty of questions about the planned mission, including when it could possibly take place and what it would entail.

Of course, there's a lot that could happen between the announcement and the launch date, especially if the government shutdown and continued battles over funding begin to erode the space agency's budget.

Additionally, the readiness of the flight crew (and, the weather) are among some other factors that could leave the future of this mission up in the air... pun intended. For now, here's everything we know about NASA's plan to return to the moon, including who could be going along for the ride.

In September 2025, NASA shared plans to send a crew of astronauts to the moon during a press conference, according to Space.com. The plan is to have the mission led by astronaut Reid Wiseman, and Victor Glover will serve as pilot. NASA's Christina Koch will also be on board as a mission specialist, and Canada's space agency will send its own mission specialist, Jeremy Hansen.

NAS says that Artemis 2 will launch from the Space Launch System megarocket. From there it will head towards the moon.

However, space fans shouldn't expect a "one small step for man" moment, as the astronauts won't actually take part in a moon landing. Instead, Artemis 2 will take part in a "free-return" trajectory, which will allow it to leave Earth, fly around the moon without actually entering the moon's orbit, and then make its way back without stopping on the surface.

In fact, they will go at least 5,000 miles past the moon, which is significantly higher than other missions have gone.

While some may find the fact that the astronauts won't actually touch down on the moon a little anticlimactic, there is still some history being made thanks to the timing between moon launches and the fact that they're going so much further past the moon as they slingshot around.

So, when will all of this actually take place? The original plan involves a Feb. 5, 2026 launch, according to NASA. Apparently, there is just a five-day window they can use for this launch, so timing will be tight.

If the weather doesn't hold off, and conditions aren't good for the February launch, there will be another five days in March, and an additional five days in April that the space agency will be able to play with. However, they do note that April 26, 2026 is the last possible date they can safely make things happen.

Once they do make it up there, the astronauts will be gone for about 10 days before making their return.