50 years have passed since mankind first stepped foot on the moon. Now, humanity plans to do it again. In 2017, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced its Artemis program, named after the twin brother of the God of the sun, music and poetry in Greek Mythology, Apollo, and the goddess of the moon. 

After five years and multiple delays, on Nov. 17 at 1:47 a.m. ET at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral FL., Artemis I launched into space on its way to the moon.

The Artemis I mission is unmanned. However, the launch of the Artemis I rocket — NASA’s most powerful rocket to date — paves the way for a new era of human space exploration. As the Artemis rocket launched, the Orion capsule at the top of the rocket detached, where it is expected to log roughly 1.3 million miles, farther than any other man-made spacecraft occupied by humans. Orion’s capsule trip to the moon is expected to take about 30 days and contains a specialized camera used to locate Orion in deep space, as well as provide images of Orion’s landing on the moon.

Through the Artemis missions, a path is unlocked to a new side of human space exploration which has not been seen in the past five decades. Eventually, the Artemis missions, starting with Artemis III, will allow for the first-ever woman and person of color to walk on the moon.