NASA will attempt to launch its first manned mission to the Moon in more than half a century in February.

The United States aims to launch its first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years in February, two months ahead of schedule. This was confirmed today by Lakiesha Hawkins, NASA's acting deputy administrator, during a press conference on the Artemis 2 mission.

"We're accelerating the process as much as possible to be able to launch as early as February," the agency's head assured. Until now, the planned launch date was April of next year.

Hawkins noted that "this mission is a test mission," and therefore the launch date will depend on safety and the readiness of all systems. The first launch opportunity will be February 5th, in more than five months, the agency executive added. Each month, there will be a launch window of between four and eight days.

"This is a phased program," he explained. Artemis 2 aims to test several crucial systems, such as astronaut life support, that will be used on the Artemis 3 mission, scheduled to land on the satellite in 2027.

The program's goal, he noted, is to "maintain a continuous human presence" on the Moon. It will be partly to test technologies developed with private companies and international partners, including Europe, that will be able to take the first astronauts to the next step: Mars.

There's a big difference between Artemis and the legendary Apollo program. For the first time, the United States is going to the Moon in collaboration with other international partners, such as Europe and Canada, who provide technology in exchange for seats for their astronauts. "I think this is a demonstration of US leadership. Unlike the Apollo missions, we're showing that there's a clear benefit to partnering with other countries," he emphasized.

Artemis 2 It's the first manned mission in the US space program, with which it hopes to return astronauts to the Moon, 50 years after the Apollo program. And it wants to achieve this before its main rival, China, which plans to land humans on the satellite in 2030 .

Following a first uncrewed flight of the Orion capsule in 2022, this second mission is intended as a test flight in lunar orbit to validate the Orion capsule, the SLS rocket , and the procedures required for future lunar landings.

The journey of Artemis 2 will last about ten days and will carry four astronauts on a round-trip journey of more than two million kilometers. After completing two Earth orbits, the four Orion crew members will depart for the moon and circumnavigate it once. From the hatches, they will be able to view the surface of the far side of the Moon. Their closest approach to the moon will be about 7,000 kilometers. NASA has simulated the views the astronauts will experience during their journey in a time-lapse video.

The crew selected for this lunar orbit is Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover , Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. The crew members themselves will be closely monitored for sleep, movement, biological samples, and the effects of the flight on their bodies.

The Artemis 2 is also a test of fire for Europe and its space industry. The Orion capsule's service module, which provides air, water, electricity, propulsion, and temperature control, was built by European companies selected by the European Space Agency. If Artemis 2 is successful, it will mark 54 years since NASA's last manned mission to the Moon, Apollo 17 in 1972.

The US space agency has had to delay the launch of Artemis 2 twice due to various technical problems. It currently hopes to send this first crew in April 2026. The first landing in 50 years, already part of the Artemis 3 mission, will not happen before 2027 , and the mission likely won't be possible until 2028 or even the 2030s, when Chinese astronauts may have already set foot on the Moon.

One of the main problems is the Starship rocket, developed by Elon Musk's SpaceX company. Artemis 3 astronauts will travel to the satellite with a rocket and capsule configuration identical to Artemis 2, but once there, they will use the Starship rocket to land.

The spacecraft successfully completed its first complete flight without exploding in late August , after nine failed attempts. Elon Musk's company still has many complex milestones to achieve, such as in-orbit refueling. It's a technical challenge that some former NASA executives and safety experts believe will be unattainable within the planned timeframe.

NASA plans to send at least one more mission to the Moon, Artemis 4, to launch a space station that will orbit the moon. The goal of this facility will be to facilitate and support future landings and demonstrate all the technologies needed to land astronauts on Mars, which would happen in the 2030s or later.

Donald Trump 's arrival at the White House this year has dealt a devastating blow to NASA's plans. The magnate wants to cut the US agency's science budget in half . Although he has shown more support for the manned exploration program, his plan was also to cut key elements such as the future Gateway lunar station. Last July, the president had to revive the project in a political concession to Congress, where many Republican lawmakers do not want the space agency's budget cuts.

Outwardly, the Trump administration is boasting about future manned missions. At an event held this Monday, the agency introduced its newest class of astronauts. For the first time in the agency's history, among the 10 selected astronauts, there are more women than men—six and four, respectively.

Also for the first time, one of the chosen ones is already an astronaut. Anna Menon, a 39-year-old SpaceX engineer, is one of the two women who have traveled the furthest in space on the private Polaris Dawn mission, launched in 2024.

Any of these candidates “could be the first American to set foot on the surface of Mars, which is very, very cool,” said Sean Duffy , acting NASA administrator, during the event at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz said something important: “I'm particularly proud of all the women in this group, and that the United States will put the first woman on the surface of the moon in human history.”

Artemis 3 was planned to land the first woman and the first person of color on the surface of the Moon. But since Trump came to power, references to that goal have disappeared from many official websites, and whether it remains valid today remains a mystery.

The Artemis program comes at a time of heightened interest in the Moon and its resources, including the vast reserves of frozen water at the South Pole, where the Artemis 3 crew will land. This water will be crucial for supporting inhabited colonies and for making rocket fuel that could reach Mars. Western powers are competing with China to explore and exploit these resources.