Artemis II crew undergoes intense training ahead of moon mission

NASA's Artemis II crew of four astronauts has been training at Johnson Space Center with flight simulators and dozens of scenarios as final preparations continue for an early February, roughly 10-day mission to loop around the moon and return.

Final preparations are underway for NASA's Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight around the moon in more than 50 years. The flight is scheduled for early February and will carry four astronauts on a roughly 10-day loop around the moon and back. The crew includes commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. Trainers at Johnson Space Center in Houston have been running simulations to test the crew and mission control under pressure. Training details: - The Artemis II crew consists of three American astronauts and one Canadian astronaut and will loop around the moon and return to Earth. - Trainers use flight simulators at Johnson Space Center to present realistic, high-pressure scenarios. - Scenarios range from small sensor failures to fires and other emergencies, and trainers observe crew responses inside the capsule. - Lisa Voiles is identified as the chief training officer involved in the program, and Judd Frieling is slated to oversee ascent as a flight director. - Both the crew and mission control have completed dozens of simulations and months of troubleshooting exercises. Summary: The simulations aim to teach the crew and flight controllers how to adapt to unexpected problems and to validate procedures under stress. The mission is on track for an early February launch and will test systems during the planned 10-day lunar loop.