Orion’s Missions
Learn more about the Orion spacecraft’s different flights.
Artemis II
April 2026
Four astronauts will fly around the Moon to test NASA’s foundational human deep space exploration capabilities, the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, for the first time with crew.
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Artemis I
Nov. 16, 2022 6:47 a.m. UTC
Artemis I was the first integrated flight test of NASA’s Deep Space Exploration Systems: the Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, with the upgraded Exploration Ground Systems at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
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Ascent Abort-2
July 2, 2019 7:00 a.m. EDT
On July 2, 2019, NASA conducted a successful test known as Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2), which tested the Orion launch abort system (LAS), a critical safety system that sits atop Orion at launch and during ascent. If an emergency occurs during launch, the LAS pulls Orion and its crew away from the rocket for a safe landing in the Atlantic Ocean.
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Exploration Flight Test 1
Dec. 5, 2014 7:05 a.m. EST
On Dec. 5, 2014, Orion lifted off from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket and splashed down approximately 4.5 hours later in the Pacific Ocean.
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Pad Abort-1
May 6, 2010 7:00 a.m. MDT
On May 6, 2010, at the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) near Las Cruces, New Mexico, NASA conducted a successful flight test known as Pad Abort-1, a test of the Orion launch abort system (LAS), a critical safety system that sits atop Orion at launch and during ascent.
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