NASA Artemis II flight day 3: Astronauts travel away from Earth in Orion spacecraft – WPLG Local 10

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Published: April 3, 2026 at 12:47 PM
Tags: NASA, Artemis II, Orion, Kennedy Space Center, Florida, Cape Canaveral, Astronauts, Moon, Science, Tech, Education, Space Exploration
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The four Artemis II astronauts were traveling away from Earth and toward the moon on Friday in NASA’s Orion spacecraft.
On Thursday night, the crew of Orion’s Integrity capsule fired the main engine to propel the spacecraft out of the Earth’s orbit and toward the moon.
On Monday, the crew will be observing the moon for six hours. They will focus on craters, lava, cracks, and ridges of the moon’s outer layer.
There will be a solar eclipse for about an hour toward the end of the flyby, so the sun will be hidden from view as it moves behind the mostly dark moon.
The crews’ observations will then focus on flashes of light from meteoroids striking the moon’s surface, dust lofting above, deep space targets, and the solar corona and outermost atmosphere.
Once Integrity traces a figure eight around the far side of the moon, the crew will be returning home to a splashdown on April 10 in the Pacific Ocean.
Watch NASA’s 24/7 coverage of Artemis II
NASA’S flight day 3 agenda
The first of three smaller engine firings, called the outbound trajectory correction, will ensure Orion is staying on target for its path around the moon.
In the morning, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Jeremy Hansen prepared for the burn, which was scheduled for after the crew’s midday meal.
The rest of the day will include a variety of checkouts and demonstrations.
NASA Pilot Victor Glover, Hansen, and NASA Astronaut Christina Koch, a mission specialist and engineer from Michigan, are set to demonstrate CPR.
NASA Cmdr. Reid Wiseman will work with Glover on the medical kit, including the thermometer, blood pressure monitor, stethoscope, and otoscope.
In the second half of the day, Koch will test Orion’s emergency communications system on the Deep Space Network.
The crew will rehearse the choreography for flight day 6’s scientific observation of the moon.
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Saira Anwer joined the Local 10 News team in July 2018. Saira is two-time Emmy-nominated reporter and comes to South Florida from Madison, Wisconsin, where she was working as a reporter and anchor.
The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.

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