NASA is counting down to the Artemis II rocket launch from Kennedy Space Center, with liftoff scheduled for around 6:24 p.m. EDT on Wednesday.

Launch preparations have begun for the Artemis II mission, NASA’s planned lunar fly-around by four astronauts that will be the first moon trip in 53 years.

The countdown clock for a Wednesday launch attempt of NASA’s Artemis II mission began ticking at 4:44 p.m. Monday at Kennedy Space Center. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket using a fleet-leading booster for

Check back for live FLORIDA TODAY Space Team launch updates on this page, starting about 90 minutes before today’s SpaceX Falcon 9 launch window opens.

NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket lifted off from Launch Complex 39B in Florida at 6:35 p.m. EDT, marking the start of a historic journey into deep space.

What time is Artemis II launch at Kennedy Space Center? NASA SLS may be seen across most of Florida after liftoff. Did your city make visibility map?

The Artemis II astronauts have captured our blue planet’s brilliant beauty as they zoom ever closer to the moon. NASA released the crew’s first downlinked images Friday, 1 1/2 days into the first astronaut moonshot in more than half a century.

Now more than halfway to the moon, the Artemis II astronauts prepared for their historic lunar fly-around to push deeper into space than even the Apollo astronauts. On the downside, their toilet is on the blink again.