How to watch live NASA’s Artemis I space launch on Monday

For the first time in almost 50 years, space exploration returns to the moon.

On August 29, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will launch its Orion unmanned spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket for the Artemis I mission around the moon.

The launch will take place in a two-hour window after 8:33 a.m. Monday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Forty-two days and 2.1 million kilometers later, Orion’s orbit around the moon will end with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near California.

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will host a special event for employees and their families in honor of the launch at its headquarters in Longueuil – and Canadians can celebrate with them online.

WHERE CAN I WATCH ARTEMIS I LIVE

Montrealers can watch the historic launch on many platforms:

• CSA live stream on YouTube;

• CSA live stream on Facebook;

• NASA live stream on YouTube (starting at 6:30 p.m. ET);

• NASA live stream on Twitch;

• Live updates from NASA Artemis on twitter.

Meanwhile, CSA President Lisa Campbell will be in Florida to witness the launch, along with Canada’s Minister for Innovation, Science and Industry, François-Philippe Champagne.

CANADIAN PLAN FOR THE MOON IN 2024

Canada will make history when the Artemis program reaches its next stage.

If Monday’s unmanned test flight goes well, one lucky Canadian astronaut will orbit the moon in 2024 as part of the four-person Artemis II crew.

“This marks the beginning of a new era, and Canada is front and center throughout this new phase,” said David Saint-Jacques, a Quebec-born CSA astronaut who flew to the International Space Station (ISS) as a flight engineer in the year 2018.

He is one of four CSA astronauts who could venture into space on the Orion spacecraft.

“Back in the ’70s, as a kid, I was so impressed with the Apollo missions and it really pushed me to become an explorer,” he told CTV News. “We spent a lot of time learning about life in space on the ISS, and now we’re ready to take all that knowledge with us to return to the moon — and settle there forever.”

The chosen astronaut would be the first Canadian to go into space and also the first non-American to be sent on a mission to the moon.

“These historic missions should inspire young Canadians to become the next generation of scientists, engineers and explorers,” Minister Champagne’s office told CTV News.

And those opportunities didn’t just fall out of the sky, as Canada is a major contributor to space exploration.

The self-made robotic system Canadarm3, for example, will in the near future maintain the US-led Lunar Gateway station itself. This proposed space station will be a key element of the Artemis program, NASA said.

Canada is also designing a rover for lunar exploration and providing healthcare and food production technologies for space, according to the CSA.

“Fifty years after the end of the Apollo program, mankind is returning to the moon, and Canada is at the forefront of this exciting journey,” added Champagne’s office.

And after the moon, the next station is Mars. Saint-Jacques said he believes this milestone will come sooner than expected.

“The crew members who will go to Mars are already born, I believe.”