US President Donald Trump has shared a message on his TruthSocial platform ahead of the planned launch.

He says: "For the first time in over 50 YEARS, America is going back to the Moon! Artemis II, among the most powerful rockets ever built, is launching our Brave Astronauts farther into Deep Space than any human has EVER gone.

"We are WINNING, in Space, on Earth, and everywhere in between — Economically, Militarily, and now, BEYOND THE STARS. Nobody comes close! America doesn’t just compete, we DOMINATE, and the whole World is watching."

He also says "God bless" to the astronauts.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

The astronauts have just entered the Orion crew capsule, which they named Integrity.

They chose the name to reflect the values they believe will carry them safely to the Moon and back – trust, respect, candour and humility – not just within the crew, but across the huge team of engineers, technicians and mission planners who have built and prepared the spacecraft.

The crew will begin configuring Orion for flight: powering up and checking flight computers and displays, confirming life‑support systems and running through communications checks with mission control.

They will rehearse emergency procedures, review the timeline and then monitor the final stages of the countdown as the Space Launch System is fuelled below them.

From this point on, Orion becomes both cockpit and - if there is a successful launch home – the place where they will work, eat and sleep during their ten‑day journey out around the far side of the Moon and back to Earth.

Image source, NASA

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

In the white room at the end of the crew access arm, just outside the hatch, the astronauts have stopped to sign mission patches – one of Nasa’s small but deeply felt launch‑day rituals.

This cramped, clean space is where the closeout crew strap them into their seats and run final checks, making it the last place the astronauts stand on Earth before climbing aboard.

Adding a signature to the emblem for this specific flight, which they will wear on their suits for the entire journey, is a way of personally "claiming" the mission at the moment it finally becomes real after years of training, and a quiet thank‑you to the pad workers looking on, many of whom keep these signed patches or boards as mementos of the launch they helped send into space.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

The astronauts have arrived at the launch pad, waving from their convoy of Nasa vans as they pass good-natured crowds lining the road into the launch complex.

Families, space workers and spectators gathered along the route, holding signs and phones aloft to wish the crew good luck on the first mission to carry humans back towards the Moon in more than half a century.

From here, the four Artemis II astronauts will head inside for final checks in the suit‑up facility, where technicians will run last‑minute medical and communications tests.

After that, they’ll ride back out to the pad and make their way up the gantry to board Orion – the spacecraft that will take them around the lunar far side and safely home again.

Leyla Khodabakhshi
Reporting from the Kennedy Space Center

The astronauts’ farewell was short and sweet - they didn’t stay out for long before heading on. There were some emotional moments. Mission specialist Jeremy Hansen looked visibly moved as the crew was met by loved ones and others who had gathered to see them off.

The crew also stopped briefly to acknowledge Nasa’s chief Jared Isaacman before heading off.

We can bring you some more images now of the astronauts as they were greeted by family members and the media after suiting up.

They are now making their way to the launch pad.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The four astronauts have begun heading to the launch pad ahead of the launch window which is scheduled to open shortly after 23:20 BST (18:20 local time).

You can watch live above.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

Minutes before heading to the launch pad, the Artemis II crew have been playing cards in the suit‑up room – a small, light‑hearted moment that is in fact a long‑standing Nasa tradition.

Seated in their orange launch and entry suits, with technicians making final checks, the astronauts gathered around a low table for a quick game.

This ritual dates back at least to the space shuttle era and has since been adopted across Nasa’s human spaceflight programme, from missions to the International Space Station to today’s Moon mission.

The rules are simple but symbolic: they keep playing until the commander loses a hand, taking the bad luck so the team can leave on a positive note.

We're continuing to see images of the four astronauts getting into their distinctive orange suits - known as the Orion Crew Survival System.

They will wear them during launch, re-entry and at other key moments.

It’s like a mini-wearable spacecraft, pressurised with inbuilt life-support systems.

In the event of an emergency on their way to or from the Moon, the astronauts would quickly suit up – the spacesuit is designed to keep them alive for up to six days as they make their way back to Earth.

Unlike Shuttle-era space suite, which came in off-the-shelf sizes, these are custom fitted for each crew member. That should keep them more comfortable when worn pressurised for a long time.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

Image source, NASA

As we've reported, the astronauts are suiting up now - getting ready ahead of entering the capsule in about an hour or so.

They’re all looking happy and surprisingly relaxed considering what is ahead of them.

We've just had the first images of the astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen suiting up.

Here's a brief introduction:

Image source, NASA

In the last few moments we've been getting images of the four astronauts having their suits fitted as they prepare for the upcoming launch.

As a reminder, you can follow along by watching live above.

Simon King
BBC Weather

While the weather forecast is still 80% favourable during the two-hour launch window, forecasters will still be closely monitoring the convective cloud - called cumulus - that has been developing over the last few hours to the east of Cape Canaveral and moving inland (circled on the satellite picture).

There have also been a few showers in the area which would be a concern.

If these cumulus clouds are still around at the start of the launch window, there’s a possibility that there could be a hold to the final countdown.

However, they should start to disappear soon after sunset and into the evening during the two-hour window.

Image source, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Rebecca Morelle
Science editor, reporting from the launch site

Image source, Getty Images

After its history-making lunar landings, the Apollo programme was cancelled in 1972.

Costs had spiralled, priorities had changed.

So attention shifted to a more budget-friendly destination: low-Earth orbit. And that’s been the focus for Nasa the last 50 years - starting with Skylab, then the Space Shuttle programme, and more recently the International Space Station.

Nasa set the Moon in its sights again in 2005 with a programme called Constellation. But it was cancelled in 2010 because of delays and cost over-runs.

But the technology developed for Constellation - namely the Orion spacecraft and the parts of the Constellation rockets - became incorporated into the Artemis programme, which formally began in 2017.

A Moon landing was originally planned for 2024, but with delays to the Artemis programme, Nasa says it's aiming for a lunar landing in 2028.

If you're looking for a deep dive, the BBC's space podcast, 13 Minutes, has a series focusing on the Artemis II mission.

It's just begun, with the first two episodes already available - and there will be daily updates focusing on the mission in the days ahead.

You can listen now on BBC Sounds, or wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

The Visual Journalism Team
BBC News

The Artemis II crew will be the first humans to return to the Moon in more than 50 years, and the 10-day journey will take them further from Earth than anyone has been before.

Although the four astronauts won’t land on the Moon's surface, they are hoping to bring a new understanding of the lunar environment and the mission will pave the way for a future landing.

They take off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida and, once their rocket is about 70,000km (45,000 miles) above the planet, the Orion spacecraft - which houses the crew - will separate from the launcher and orbit the Earth.

The astronauts must then decide whether to continue the mission - while they are close to Earth, getting back is relatively straightforward if there are any issues that cannot be fixed.

If all is well, Orion will fire its main engine to blast free of the Earth’s gravity and set a path to the Moon.

Rebecca Morelle
Science editor, reporting from the launch site

The fuelling seems to be going well so far – and there’s a sense of excitement but also calm here at the Kennedy Space Center.

In previous tanking tests, the Artemis team had problems filling the rocket with liquid hydrogen.

It’s an extremely small and light molecule, and has a tendency to leak from the smallest of gaps.

But it hasn’t posed a problem so far.

Both the core stage of the rocket and the upper stage are now 100% full of hydrogen – and the team are now finishing adding the liquid oxygen to the rocket to complete the tanking process.

It has to be full before the astronauts can get onboard and into their spacecraft – a process which starts about four hours before lift-off.

Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, reporting from the launch site

These are the scenes from a packed Kennedy Space Center newsroom.

Reporters from across the world are getting set to report the biggest space story in a generation.

Rebecca Morelle
Science editor, reporting from the launch site

Image source, Reuters

The Artemis I mission took place in 2022, and saw Nasa’s mega rocket - the Space Launch System (SLS) - and the Orion capsule fly for the first time on a 25-day mission around the Moon.

But there were no humans onboard.

For Artemis II, astronauts are very much at the front and centre of the mission. The crew will be the first people to fly in the SLS and Orion as they travel around the Moon - their mission will last about 10 days.

The plans for Artemis III have recently been overhauled by Nasa. It was originally supposed to see astronauts land on the lunar surface, and was scheduled for 2028.

Instead the crew will stay closer to home - and in 2027 they’ll fly on Orion to low-Earth orbit, and test docking with a lunar lander.

Artemis IV and V will now become lunar landing missions - and Nasa says it’s aiming for both to happen in 2028. But this is an ambitious timeline.

Two companies - Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin - are building lunar landers. But it’s not clear which one will be used for the docking test with Artemis III, or which will be selected for the first lunar landing.

Eventually, Nasa plans to build a lunar base. But plans to construct a space station called Gateway to orbit around the Moon have been paused.

Pria Rai
Presenter

It’s still eight hours until lift-off - our stream is now live from inside the BBC newsroom and we’re settling in for all the action to come.

Science journalist Jonathan Amos is with me and sharing his wisdom on all things rocket related. It’s possible he won’t stop until then... except for refuelling.

We’re going to follow the Artemis II mission all the way - join us for the ride by clicking watch live above.