Lockheed Martin has completed development and testing of NASA's Orion spacecraft for the Artemis II mission and officially handed it over to NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems.
This marks a key milestone in the Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon and eventually reach Mars. The Artemis II mission, scheduled for early 2026, will be the first crewed Orion flight, carrying four astronauts—including one from Canada—on a 10-day journey beyond the Moon. The upgraded spacecraft now includes critical life-support systems, enhanced controls, laser communications, and a launch abort system. Orion will next undergo final launch preparations at Kennedy Space Center.