NASA’s Artemis II team successfully executed a critical maneuver, propelling the Orion spacecraft towards the moon after its launch into deep space just a day earlier.

This pivotal operation, known as the translunar injection burn, lasted several minutes and was essential for pushing the spacecraft beyond Earth’s orbit. This maneuver set Orion on a course to loop around the moon before returning to Earth.

“After the successful TLI, we’re feeling great on our journey to the moon,” shared Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hanson with mission control. “We want to thank everyone globally who contributed to making Artemis a reality. During every moment of that burn, we felt the strength of your dedication. Humanity has again demonstrated its capabilities, and it’s your vision for the future that propels us on this lunar voyage.”

According to NASA, this burn has positioned Orion on a “free-return trajectory,” a path that allows the spacecraft to swing around the moon and head back to Earth naturally, without needing significant additional propulsion.

The Artemis II mission commenced on Thursday, with Orion embarking on its journey following a nearly five-minute engine burn, charting a course beyond Earth’s orbit towards the moon for an approximately eight-day round trip.

During the mission, Orion surpassed expectations in crew-directed maneuvers. Orion Program Manager Howard Hu noted that the spacecraft was highly responsive to astronaut input, particularly highlighting U.S. pilot Victor Glover, who “performed exactly as required.”

The milestone marks the moment the Artemis II mission transitions from Earth orbit operations to deep space travel, sending astronauts farther from Earth than any crewed mission in more than 50 years.

Hanson and Glover, as well as astronauts Reid Wiseman and Christina Koch of the U.S. launched Wednesday evening aboard the Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The four-person crew lifted off at 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday, marking the first crewed mission beyond low Earth orbit since 1972 and a major step in NASA’s efforts to return humans to the moon.

NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft lifts off from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center on April 1, 2026 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Prior to the translunar injection, the crew completed a perigee raise burn to position the spacecraft in the correct orbital geometry for the maneuver, ensuring the engine firing would place Orion precisely on its intended path.

With the burn now complete, Orion will spend the next several days traveling toward the moon, with NASA planning a series of smaller trajectory correction maneuvers to keep the spacecraft on course.

As the spacecraft approaches the moon, it will enter the lunar sphere of influence, the point at which the moon’s gravity becomes stronger than Earth’s pull, allowing Orion to swing around the far side before beginning its return journey.

From left to right, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch participate in a media gather, Wednesday, May 17, 2023, outside of the Canadian Embassy in Washington. Wiseman, Glover, Koch, and Hansen, who will fly around the Moon on NASA’s Artemis II flight test, visited Washington to discuss their upcoming mission with members of Congress and others. (Keegan Barber/NASA)

Although Artemis II will not land on the lunar surface, the mission is designed to test critical systems needed for future moon landings and deep space exploration.

NASA has described Orion as the most powerful spacecraft it has built for human spaceflight, capable of carrying astronauts farther into space than at any point since the Apollo era.

The mission follows the uncrewed Artemis I test flight and is intended to pave the way for future missions, including plans to return astronauts to the lunar surface in the coming years.

NASA has said the broader Artemis program aims to establish a long-term human presence on the moon and lay the groundwork for eventual missions to Mars.

The Artemis II crew is expected to travel around the moon over several days before returning to Earth for a planned splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.