00:10Four astronauts have launched aboard a powerful NASA rocket on a historic journey around the
00:16moon, the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years. The mission, called Artemis
00:222, lifted off from Kennedy Space Center at around 6.35 pm local time. It marks a major
00:29step in NASA's plan to return humans to the lunar surface. The astronauts are flying aboard
00:37NASA's Orion spacecraft, launched by the Space Launch System, the most powerful rocket
00:43ever built by NASA. Unlike the Apollo missions, Artemis 2 will not land on the moon. Instead,
00:51it will loop around it and return to Earth, testing systems for future lunar landings.
00:58In the final minutes before launch, the rocket stood motionless on the pad. Inside Orion's
01:05quail, a break, four astronauts trapped in, waiting. Outside, crowds gathered to witness
01:10a moment not seen since the 1970s. A reminder, this mission carries more than just astronauts.
01:21moments later, a burst of flame and power as the rocket lifted off the launch pad. Carrying
01:29three American astronauts and one Canadian on a journey beyond Earth's orbit.
01:41spectators erupted in cheers as the rocket climbed into the sky. For many, it was the first time
01:46witnessing a mission to the moon in their lifetime. The last crewed mission to travel around the
01:59moon was Apollo 17-inch 1972. Since then, no humans have ventured this far into space.
02:07Artemis 2 changes that. This mission is a critical step in NASA's Artemis program, which aims to
02:17return astronauts to the moon and eventually send humans to Mars. It is also a global effort,
02:24with international partners playing a key role. Hours into the mission, the crew begins its journey
02:30toward the moon. Let me begin by congratulating the team at NASA and our brave astronauts on the
02:38successful launch of Artemis 2. It was quite something. It will be traveling further than any
02:45manned rocket has ever flown and will very substantially pass the moon, go around it and come back home
02:52from a distance that has never been done before. Artemis 2 is not a landing mission, but it is a
02:59crucial
03:00test, one that brings humanity closer to returning to the lunar surface and beyond. For the first time
03:08in more than half a century, humans are once again on their way to the moon.
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