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SpaceNASA Today: Artemis II, SLS, Orion and the Space Station
Twenty flashcards with real numbers from nasa.gov: the 2026 Artemis II flight around the Moon, the SLS rocket, Orion and the International Space Station.
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20 cards
- When and where did Artemis II launch?
- April 1, 2026, at 6:35 p.m., from Launch Pad 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
- Who flew on Artemis II?
- NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
- How much thrust did SLS produce at liftoff?
- 8.8 million pounds.
- How heavy is the SLS rocket, and how much of the liftoff thrust comes from its boosters?
- The rocket weighs 5.75 million pounds; the twin solid rocket boosters give more than 75% of the thrust needed to lift it.
- How big are the SLS solid rocket boosters?
- Each stands 177 feet tall and makes more than 3.6 million pounds of thrust at liftoff.
- Which engines fly on the SLS core stage and upper stage?
- Four RS-25 engines on the core stage and an RL10 engine on the upper stage.
- When did the Artemis II crew break the distance record of Apollo 13?
- On April 6, 2026, passing 248,655 miles from Earth, the mark set by Apollo 13 in 1970.
- What was the farthest distance from Earth reached on Artemis II?
- 252,756 miles, the new record for human spaceflight.
- How many miles did the Artemis II crew fly in total?
- 695,081 miles, the official number.
- How close did Artemis II come to the Moon?
- 4,067 miles above the lunar surface at closest approach.
- How many images did the crew take during the April 6 lunar flyby?
- More than 7,000 images of the lunar surface and a solar eclipse.
- When and where did Artemis II splash down?
- April 10, 2026, at 5:07 p.m. PDT off the coast of San Diego; the crew was flown to the USS John P. Murtha.
- How fast were the Artemis II astronauts traveling on their way home?
- 25,000 miles per hour, protected by Orion's entry, descent and landing systems.
- What are Orion's solar array wings like?
- Four wings giving a wingspan of roughly 63 feet; each wing has 15,000 solar cells.
- Since when has the International Space Station been continuously occupied?
- Since November 2000; an international crew of seven usually lives and works aboard.
- How fast does the space station travel?
- Five miles per second, orbiting Earth about every 90 minutes: 16 orbits and 16 sunrises and sunsets in 24 hours.
- How big is the space station?
- 356 feet (109 meters) end-to-end, one yard short of a full American football field with end zones.
- How much power do the station's solar arrays produce?
- 8 solar arrays provide 75 to 90 kilowatts.
- What is Canadarm2?
- The station's 55-foot robotic arm, with seven joints and two hands, used to move modules, deploy experiments and carry spacewalkers.
- How much does the Water Recovery System cut the station's need for delivered water?
- By 65 percent: from about 1 gallon a day to a third of a gallon.
Official sources
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA Welcomes Record-Setting Artemis II Moonfarers Back to Earth (April 10, 2026; updated May 7, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Artemis II Launch Day Updates (April 1, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA's Artemis II Crew Eclipses Record for Farthest Human Spaceflight (April 6, 2026)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
International Space Station Facts and Figures
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