Humanity's first crewed lunar mission in more than half a century lifted off Wednesday.
After a tense afternoon of checks and fixes, four astronauts — three Americans and one Canadian — aboard NASA's newest moon rocket began their journey at 6:35 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Over the next 10 days, the crew of the Artemis II mission will fly around the moon and back while setting a new record for the farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth.
Apollo 17, in 1972, was the last time astronauts landed on the moon.