Artemis II LIVE: Artemis II Crew Tests Manual Controls of Orion Amid Onboard Toilet Malfunction
Artemis II launch LIVE updates: NASA’s Orion spacecraft is now orbiting Earth as astronauts perform system checks and fix onboard issues. The historic 10-day crewed mission will soon head for a Moon flyby, track every milestone and live developments on republicworld.com
- Science News
- 5 min read
NASA's Artemis II mission, which launched on Wednesday, is humanity’s first lunar voyage in more than half a century and the thrilling leadoff in NASA’s push toward a landing in two years. The mission is expected to last about 10 days, sending four astronauts on a high-speed journey around the moon and back in the first crewed lunar mission since the Apollo era.
Artemis II is designed to pave the way for future missions aimed at returning astronauts to the lunar surface later this decade. Carrying three Americans and one Canadian, the 32-story rocket rose from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center where tens of thousands gathered to witness the dawn of this new era. It is NASA’s biggest step yet toward establishing a permanent lunar presence.
Five minutes into the flight, Commander Reid Wiseman saw the team’s target: “We have a beautiful moonrise, we’re headed right at it,” he said from the capsule. On board with him are pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canada's Jeremy Hansen. It was the most diverse lunar crew ever with the first woman, person of color and non-U. S. citizen riding in NASA’s new Orion capsule.
The astronauts will stick close to home for the first 25 hours of their 10-day test flight, checking out the capsule in orbit around Earth before firing the main engine that will propel them to the moon.
2 April 2026 at 13:22 IST
What will Artemis II do?
Artemis II LIVE: According to NASA, Artemis II builds on the success of the uncrewed Artemis I in 2022 and will demonstrate a broad range of capabilities needed on deep space missions. The Artemis II test flight will be NASA’s first mission with crew aboard the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft.
2 April 2026 at 13:09 IST
Artemis II crew, mission control troubleshoot Orion spacecraft's recurring toilet issue
Artemis II LIVE: The crew of NASA's historic Artemis II mission, with support from mission control, successfully restored the Orion spacecraft's toilet system after it experienced a recurring issue following Wednesday’s launch (US local time) from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
"Ahead of the apogee raise burn on April 1, the Artemis II crew reported a blinking fault light and mission control teams successfully assessed the data and worked with the crew to troubleshoot and resolve the issue," the US space agency said in a statement.
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2 April 2026 at 12:43 IST
Artemis II completes key proximity operations test, next burn planned
Artemis II LIVE: NASA’s Artemis II crew has completed a critical proximity operations demonstration, marking an early milestone in the mission, according to a NASA blog update.
The test involved manually flying the Orion spacecraft near its upper stage to evaluate handling and navigation in close-range conditions.
With the manoeuvre complete, the mission is now preparing for the next major step, which is a perigee raise burn that will adjust Orion’s orbit and set it on course for its journey toward the Moon. The milestone is part of a series of system checks designed to validate spacecraft performance during the 10-day lunar flyby.
2 April 2026 at 12:43 IST
Tough & Competent: Meet The Mission’s Flight Control Team In Houston
Artemis II LIVE: The flight control team in Artemis Mission Control in Houston is on console and commanding Orion and SLS after liftoff and all the way through splashdown, monitoring every system and every milestone to keep the crew safe.
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2 April 2026 at 13:10 IST
Signal acquired: NASA Confirms Orion Communicating With Deep Space Network
Artemis II LIVE: Engineers at NASA have confirmed that the Orion spacecraft is communicating with the Deep Space Network. For the first time in over 50 years, we’re receiving a signal from a spacecraft carrying humans toward the Moon.
2 April 2026 at 11:59 IST
‘Historic & Deeply Personal’: Shubhanshu Shukla Says Mission Carries Hopes Of Millions
Artemis II LIVE: Shubhanshu Shukla hailed the launch of Artemis II as a moment that felt both historic and deeply personal. “I remember standing on those very grounds for the first time, feeling humbled by what it represents… And today, it becomes the starting point for yet another chapter in our shared story of exploration,” he wrote on X.
2 April 2026 at 11:52 IST
‘America Doesn't Just Compete, We Dominate’: Trump Hails Artemis II Mission
Artemis II LIVE: In a post on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump extended his support to the Artemis II crew, framing the mission as a testament to American leadership.
2 April 2026 at 11:48 IST
Artemis II Crew Completes Proximity Ops Demonstration
Artemis II LIVE: The Artemis II crew has successfully completed the proximity operations demonstration, an important early test objective for the mission.
2 April 2026 at 11:45 IST
First Pictures Of Artemis II Launch
Artemis II LIVE: Check out the first pictures of the Artemis II launch from NASA’s remote cameras.
2 April 2026 at 11:42 IST
Google Doodle celebrates Artemis II launch
2 April 2026 at 11:36 IST
ISS Crew Spots Rocket Trail After Historic Liftoff
Artemis II LIVE: Astronauts aboard the ISS watched Artemis II launch live on NASA TV and later spotted the rocket’s trail over the Pacific. The stunning view from orbit shows how the spacecraft cut through Earth’s atmosphere, watch this rare perspective.
2 April 2026 at 11:36 IST
Watch Liftoff Here
Artemis II LIVE: The Artemis II mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center at 6:35pm ET (2235 UTC), propelling four astronauts on a journey around the Moon. Watch the liftoff here:
2 April 2026 at 11:35 IST
Orion Spacecraft Separates From Rocket Upper Stage
Artemis II LIVE: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on Wednesday (local time) confirmed the successful separation of the Orion spacecraft from the upper stage of the rocket as part of the Artemis II mission and stated that the "proximity operations" test is currently underway.
In a post on X, NASA stated that astronauts aboard Orion are manually piloting the spacecraft in a manner similar to what would be required during docking with another spacecraft, marking a key milestone in the mission.
Published By : Deepti Verma
Published On: 2 April 2026 at 11:37 IST