NASA's Artemis II Launch - Photo Credit: Axios On the evening of April 1, 2026, as the sun dipped below the Florida horizon, NASA’s most powerful rocket ever built roared to life. At precisely 6:35 p.m. EDT, the Space Launch System (SLS) lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center, carrying four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft on a daring 10-day journey around the Moon. The thunderous ascent marked the first time humans have ventured beyond low-Earth orbit s