NASA's Artemis 2 crew launches on first crewed lunar flyby in 50 years
Four astronauts blasted off aboard a massive NASA rocket Wednesday on a long-anticipated journey around the moon, the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years.
With a thunderous roar that reverberated far beyond the launchpad, the enormous orange-and-white rocket carried three Americans and one Canadian away from Florida's Kennedy Space Center at approximately 6:35 p.m. (2235 GMT) local time.
NASA teams and spectators alike were ecstatic as the spacecraft ascended into a radiant sky atop a cascade of flames.
The team, who donned bright orange suits with blue trim as the mission began, includes Americans Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch along with Canadian Jeremy Hansen.
"We have a beautiful moonrise. We're headed right at it," said Wiseman, the mission commander.
U.S. President Donald Trump praised "our brave astronauts," calling the successful launch "quite something" at the top of his televised address on the war against Iran.
The astronauts are now in orbit around Earth, where they will remain while performing various checks to ensure the reliability and safety of a spacecraft that has never carried humans before.
They successfully completed "promixity operations" demonstrations, which tested how their Orion capsule can move relative to another spacecraft and included various maneuvers that mimic what would be needed to dock with a lunar lander.
The Artemis 2 lunar mission lifts off from Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The current era of American lunar investment has been portrayed as an effort to compete with China, which is aiming to land humans on the Moon by 2030.