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NASA's Artemis II crew enters quarantine ahead of Moon mission
19 Mar 2026

The four-member crew of NASA's Artemis II mission has officially entered quarantine to ensure their health ahead of the historic Moon mission.

The astronauts began their isolation at 3:30am IST on Thursday.

This is part of the preparations for NASA's first crewed lunar mission in over five decades.

Artemis II crew members, their roles
Crew composition

The Artemis II crew consists of NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, as well as Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency.

They will be in quarantine for a few days to minimize outside contact and reduce the risk of illness before launch.

About five days prior to liftoff, they will move to Kennedy Space Center for continued isolation at special crew quarters near the launch site.

SLS rocket, Orion spacecraft to roll out to launch pad
Mission preparations

Engineers are gearing up to roll out the massive Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft to Launch Pad 39B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The rollout is scheduled for 5:30am IST on Friday, March 20.

The 11-million-pound rocket stack will be moved by NASA's crawler-transporter 2 at a speed of about one mile per hour, with the journey from the Vehicle Assembly Building to launch pad taking nearly four hours.

Significance of Artemis II mission
Mission significance

The Artemis II mission, scheduled to launch on April 1, will take astronauts on a journey around the Moon and back.

This will lay the groundwork for future lunar landings as part of NASA's Artemis program.

The mission is a major leap toward bringing humans back into deep space exploration and creating a long-term presence on and around the Moon.