Artemis 2 (Space Launch System)
1 April 2026
Launch Complex 39B
Kennedy Space Center
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NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. on 1 April 2026 sending four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft on a planned test flight around the Moon and back. The successful launch is the beginning of an approximately 10-day mission for NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen. The flight will test the Orion spacecraft's systems for the first time with a crew onboard in space.
The Crew Access Arm moves away from the Orion spacecraft to clear the path for the rocket. A view inside the White Room where the close-out crew helped to get the crew into the spacecraft and seal the hatches can be seen. Note the numbered Emergency Egress Baskets on the gantry at left used by the crew to escape the pad quickly in case of an emergency.
Lift off!
Note the four slidewire Emergency Egress Baskets that are part of the Artemis Emergency Egress System have started sliding down the 1,335 foot long cables that lead away from the pad. Should there be an emergency at the pad that requires the crew to leave as quickly as possible the astronauts would enter the baskets and slide down the wire to safety. The baskets are sliding away to prevent damage to them from the rocket's liftoff forces.
 
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