Apollo vs. Artemis: NASA’s New Moon Mission Explained

by | Mar 29, 2026 | Miami News

NASA’s Artemis II mission, targeting an April launch, marks humanity’s first crewed lunar trip since 1972. Unlike Apollo 8’s 10 lunar orbits, Artemis II will use a safer free-return slingshot trajectory around the moon. The crew is also more diverse, including a woman, a person of color, and a Canadian astronaut. The first crewed moon landing has shifted to Artemis IV, now planned for 2028, as NASA races to beat China to the lunar south pole.