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President Donald Trump on Wednesday celebrated the planned launch of Artemis II, which is sending astronauts around the moon for the first time in more than five decades.
The mission, led by NASA, lifted off Wednesday evening and carries four astronauts on a flight path that loops around the moon before returning to Earth.
“Tonight at 6:24 P.M. EST, for the first time in over 50 YEARS, America is going back to the Moon! Artemis II, among the most powerful rockets ever built, is launching our Brave Astronauts farther into Deep Space than any human has EVER gone,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“We are WINNING, in Space, on Earth, and everywhere in between — Economically, Militarily, and now, BEYOND THE STARS,” he added. “Nobody comes close! America doesn’t just compete, we DOMINATE, and the whole World is watching. God bless our incredible Astronauts, God bless NASA, and God bless the Greatest Nation ever to exist, the United States of America!”
Artemis II is the first crewed mission in NASA’s Artemis program and will test systems designed to support future lunar landings.
The United States last sent astronauts to the moon in 1972 during the Apollo 17 mission.
RSBN previously reported that the Senate confirmed billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman as NASA’s administrator.
“We are in a great competition with a rival that has the will and means to challenge American exceptionalism across multiple domains, including in the high ground of space,” Isaacman told the Senate Commerce Committee ahead of the vote.
“This is not the time for delay but for action, because if we fall behind, if we make a mistake, we may never catch up, and the consequences could shift the balance of power here on Earth,” he added.
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz expressed his support for Isaacman ahead of the vote, emphasizing America’s need to remain the leader in space exploration.
“I know Mr. Isaacman will be a strong leader who sees that Artemis 2 launches safely, successfully, and without delay,” Cruz said. “He must then turn to Artemis 3, landing Americans on the Moon before China, which is aiming to send its own taikonauts there by 2030. NASA cannot take its eye off the ball.”
