Technologies

NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission: How to Watch and What to Know

This will be the first time that humans have traveled all the way to the moon since the early 1970s.

Are you ready for a bona fide moon shot? The upcoming Artemis II mission is one of the most exciting space excursions in recent memory. It’ll be the first time humans have flown to the moon since December 1972, when the landmark Apollo program wrapped up, and NASA began shifting focus toward the space shuttles that would stay closer to home in Earth orbit.

Artemis II is a chance for NASA to gather valuable new data from a spaceflight of this magnitude and to continue testing its new Space Launch System rocket and the Orion spacecraft that will carry the astronauts. The 10-day mission will be a flyby for those four humans — an actual moon landing is planned for the follow-up Artemis III mission — but there will be plenty of drama nonetheless.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

The launch is scheduled for no earlier than Feb. 8 and no later than Feb. 13. NASA has the rocket in place and is rigorously testing it to ensure it’s ready for the journey. Orion is in its final preparation stages, and apart from some final tests, everything is ready to go. The mission is crewed by commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. Wiseman, Glover and Koch are American. Hansen is Canadian and will be the first from his country to travel to the moon.

While we don’t yet know the exact launch date, we do know what’s going to happen. After liftoff, the Orion spacecraft will maneuver into orbit, head to the moon, slingshot around it, and return home as Earth’s gravity pulls it back. This launch is now over eight years in the making, and the big moment is very close.

The Artemis II launch in February

On the launch date, Artemis II will lift off from Launch Complex 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Space Launch System, NASA’s super heavy-lift rocket and the primary launch vehicle for the Artemis program, will produce more than 8.8 million pounds of thrust to launch Orion and the crew into space.

In the initial minutes, the spacecraft will shed components such as rocket boosters and hardware used specifically for the launch phase.

How to stream the launch

The earliest possible launch date (PDF) of Artemis II is Feb. 8, and the launch window lasts until Feb. 13. Should Artemis II miss this launch window, the next ones are March 6-11, April 1-6 and April 30. The time of day varies, but NASA is aiming for an evening liftoff, so prepare to watch either at or after dinner.

NASA is streaming the launch on its usual platforms. They include its YouTube channel, its free on-demand streaming app NASA Plus, and the agency’s social media pages on Facebook and X. It also should be livestreamed on Twitch, and with the partnership NASA signed with Netflix in 2025, it’ll likely be livestreamed on Netflix as well.

What will happen first

Approximately eight minutes after launch, the spacecraft will separate from the lower stage, leaving only the Orion capsule and the upper-stage rocket, while the expendable lower stage will splash down into the Atlantic Ocean and sink to the bottom.

Over the next few hours, the spacecraft will reach its orbit around Earth, in an orbital pattern that makes it easier for the astronauts to return home if something goes wrong. (The Artemis I mission flew successfully in 2022, but was uncrewed.) It will remain there until the second day of the mission.

Days 1-2: Testing systems

Once in high orbit, the crew will engage the manual controls and begin testing the systems on board, including life support and communications. Once everything is deemed OK, the upper-stage rocket will perform what’s known as a translunar injection burn before detaching, sending Orion streaking toward the moon.

Day 3-5: Travel time

The crew will have a couple days’ travel time to get all the way out to the moon, a distance of over 225,000 miles. (It’s about the same amount of time as driving nonstop from New York City to Los Angeles, a trip of less than 3,000 miles.) By comparison, the International Space Station is only about 250 miles away from Earth. During this time, the crew will be busy performing tests, practicing procedures, and trying out the mission technology.

Day 6: The dark side of the moon

The Artemis II crew reaches lunar orbit on Day 6, flying around the far side of the moon and preparing for their return journey. It will be a rare in-person look at the dark side of the moon, and, depending on which day the mission launches, the Artemis II crew may also break the record for the longest journey made by humans away from the Earth when they hit the far point of their loop around the moon. That record — 248,655 miles — was set during the Apollo 13 mission.

The crew is expected to lose communication with Earth during this time. They’ll photograph the far side of the moon before reestablishing communications and heading home.

Day 7-9: Homeward bound

The Orion will drift around the moon and begin its homeward trajectory under the influence of Earth’s and the moon’s gravity.

Day 10: Splashdown

The final day of the mission will see Orion and its crew return to Earth. Orion will enter orbit at high speed, generating heat up to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This will thoroughly test those improvements that NASA made to Orion’s heat shields. Once reentry into the atmosphere is complete, the crew will deploy Orion’s parachutes and drop into the Pacific Ocean. The US Navy will pick them up roughly two hours later.

Artemis III: Planned lunar landing

The Artemis II mission is a vital building block in the long sequence of events that will put humans back on the surface of the moon. Data collected and tests conducted on the mission will be used to prepare the Artemis III mission, which would be the first crewed lunar landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.

SpaceX is building the system the crew will use to land on the moon, and Houston-based company Axiom Space is developing the space suits they will wear.

Artemis III is scheduled to launch in mid-2027.

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”