On 3 May, the fully assembled Orion spacecraft for Artemis II began its journey to the Multi-Payload Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The spacecraft is shown in transport, with its protective fairing panels clearly visible and proudly bearing the ESA and NASA logos.

This milestone marks the end of Orion’s assembly and testing phase, and the start of launch preparations for the first crewed mission to orbit the Moon in over 50 years. ESA’s European Service Module, just underneath the fairing panels, will provide power, propulsion and life support essentials for the four astronauts flying around the Moon and back.

At the Multi-Payload Processing Facility, engineers will load Orion with propellants and other essential fluids in preparation for its 10-day mission, the first of several final steps before stacking Orion atop NASA’s powerful Space Launch System rocket.

Read more about Europe’s role in Artemis II and what’s next for Orion here.