Artemis II rocket mission to moon
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NASA rolls Artemis 2 moon rocket to launch pad | Space photo of the day for Jan. 19, 2025
Since the end of the Apollo program in 1972, NASA has been looking for ways to return back to the moon. In 2022, the space agency launched the Artemis 1 moon mission, an uncrewed spacecraft that laid the foundations for the missions coming after it.
The 322-foot (98-meter) rocket began its 1-mph (1.6-kph) creep from Kennedy Space Center’s Vehicle Assembly Building at daybreak. Thousands of space center workers and their families gathered in the predawn chill to witness the long-awaited event,
NASA approaches the next phase of its deep space return program. Artemis 2 will be the first crewed mission to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972 and will serve as a critical test for new technologies.
NASA has launched the Mars to Table Challenge, seeking Earth-independent food systems capable of sustaining astronauts on long-duration Moon and Mars missions.
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