Not on the Space Coast? Here’s when you’ll see and hear NASA’s Artemis II launch tonight across Florida
WESH TWO. NEWS STARTS NOW. RIGHT NOW AT NOON. THE COUNTDOWN IS ON. ARTEMIS TWO IS SET TO LAUNCH FROM THE SPACE COAST IN JUST A MATTER OF HOURS. WESH TWO IS YOUR SOURCE FOR COMPLETE TEAM COVERAGE ALL DAY. WE HAVE CREWS SPREAD OUT ON THE GROUND AND IN THE AIR FOR THIS HISTORIC DAY. AS ASTRONAUTS PREPARE TO RETURN TO THE MOON THIS AFTERNOON, WE WANT TO START AT KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, WHERE WESH TWO SPACE COAST REPORTER MEGAN MORIARTY IS. SHE JOINS US LIVE. MEGAN, THE EXCITEMENT IS BUILDING AS WE GET CLOSER TO LAUNCH TIME. I CAN’T BELIEVE WE’RE HERE. WE’RE MORE THAN SIX HOURS OUT. AND IT’S JUST A REALLY EXCITING TIME. SO RIGHT NOW WE ARE ALMOST FINISHED FUELING THAT ROCKET. AND AFTER THAT WE WILL GO INTO WHAT THEY CALL THE REPLENISH STAGE. AND WHAT THEY’RE GOING TO BE DOING IS CONTINUING TO KIND OF JUST TOP OFF THAT FUEL. SO WE STAY AT 100% UP UNTIL LIFTOFF. NOW, DURING THIS TIME, YOU’RE GOING TO HEAR SOMETIMES THEY’LL SAY HOLD. THAT SHOULD NOT CONCERN ANYONE. THEY HAVE THESE HOLDS BUILT IN. SO THERE’S A LITTLE BIT OF WIGGLE ROOM. AND WHAT THOSE HOLES ARE FOR IS FOR EVERYONE TO KIND OF TAKE A STEP BACK, LOOK AT THE SENSORS, MAKE SURE THAT WE’RE NOT SEEING ANY LEAKS. YOU KNOW, HYDROGEN LEAKS ARE ALWAYS A CONCERN. TAKE A LOOK AT ALL THE SENSORS ON THE ROCKET ON THE HARDWARE. IT ALSO GIVES EVERYONE A CHANCE TO JUST CHECK IN, MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE STILL LOOKING GOOD FOR A 624 LAUNCH WINDOW IN ABOUT 45 MINUTES OR SO, THE ASTRONAUTS ARE GOING TO BEGIN PUTTING ON THEIR SPACESUITS. SO THAT’S A REALLY EXCITING TIME. SO WE HAVE ASTRONAUTS REID WISEMAN, CHRISTINA COOK, VICTOR GLOVER AND JEREMY HANSEN. THIS IS A HISTORIC LAUNCH FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS, AS WE KNOW, BUT THEY’RE GOING TO BE HEADING OUT TO LAUNCH PAD 39 B AROUND 2:00 THIS AFTERNOON. THEY’RE EXPECTED TO BREAK A WORLD RECORD. THEY’RE GOING TO BE TRAVELING AROUND THE MOON FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 50 YEARS, BUT THEY’RE EXPECTED TO BREAK THE RECORD OF APOLLO 18 GOING FURTHER THAN WE HAD BEFORE. SO THEY WILL SEE PARTS OF THE MOON THAT NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN BEFORE. AND I’VE BEEN ABLE TO ASK SOME QUESTIONS AND TALK WITH THESE CREW MEMBERS AHEAD OF LAUNCH. THEY ARE JUST A VERY CONFIDENT BUNCH. THEY FEEL VERY CONFIDENT IN THIS LAUNCH. THEY’VE ALWAYS BEEN POISED, CALM AND COLLECTED, AND THEY HAVE QUITE THE PERSONALITY. THEY BRING A LOT TO THE TABLE. THE LAST TIME THAT WE GOT TO CHECK IN WITH THEM HERE, WHAT MISSION SPECIALIST CHRISTINA COOK HAD TO SAY ABOUT ASTRONAUTS ON LAUNCH DAY. I THINK OF IT AS A TRAIN. WE ARE ON THE TRAIN RIGHT NOW. THE SYSTEM IS GOING TO GET US ALL THE WAY TO THAT CAPSULE, AND IT’S GOING TO GET US LAUNCHED AND OUT TO SPACE. AND OUR JOB IS JUST TO DO WHAT WE’VE BEEN TRAINED FOR AND LET THE TRAINING TAKE OVER. SO JUST REMEMBERING THAT WE’RE HERE TO FULFILL THAT MISSION, THAT IS WHAT CONTRIBUTES TO WHAT THEY SAY. AND I FOUND IT TO BE TRUE. THE ASTRONAUTS ARE THE CALMEST PEOPLE ON LAUNCH DAY. I AGREE WITH THAT. I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE NERVOUS. WE’RE REALLY EXCITED. A FUN FACT MISSION SPECIALIST JEREMY HANSEN, HE’S FROM CANADA. THIS WILL BE HIS FIRST TIME EVER IN SPACE. IMAGINE THAT. YOUR FIRST TIME EVER GOING TO SPACE AND YOU GET TO BE ON THIS HISTORIC MISSION. THE OTHER THREE ASTRONAUTS HAVE DONE SPACEWALKS. THEY’VE BEEN TO SPACE BEFORE. BUT AGAIN, THIS IS A BIG DEAL FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED. WE’RE GOING TO CHECK BACK IN IN ANOTHER 30 MINUTES TO LET YOU KNOW HOW EVERYTHING IS GOING. SO STAY WITH WESH TWO, COVERING THE SPACE COAST LIVE AT KENNEDY SPACE CENTER. MEGHAN MORIARTY, WESH TWO NEWS. ALL RIGHT, I’M LOOKING AT THE SKY THERE BEHIND HER. SO FAR IT’S BEEN A MOSTLY BEAUTIFUL DAY FOR A LAUNCH. BUT CHECK OUT WHAT CHOPPER TWO FOUND OVER THE SPACE COAST ABOUT A HALF HOUR AGO. YEAH, THAT’S A LOT OF RAIN THERE ON THE LENS. THE RAIN SHOULDN’T PLAY A ROLE THOUGH TODAY, BUT THE WIND. THAT’S AMAZING. YEAH. RIGHT NOW, NASA’S WEATHER TEAM SAYS CONDITIONS ARE 80% FAVORABLE FOR LAUNCH AND FIRST WARNING. METEOROLOGIST ERIC BERTA CONTINUES OUR LIVE TEAM COVERAGE THIS AFTERNOON FROM KENNEDY SPACE CENTER. ERIC. HOW ARE THINGS LOOKING FOR THE LAUNCH RIGHT NOW? IF IT WAS GO NO GO AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME, IT WOULD BE A NO GO BECAUSE OF WEATHER AT THE MOMENT, THE CRITERIA IS BEING VIOLATED. THIS IS THE HIGH RESOLUTION SATELLITE IMAGERY. THE WORD IS TEN MILES. YOU CANNOT HAVE LOW LEVEL CUMULUS CLOUDS WITHIN TEN MILES OF THE LAUNCH PAD AT LIFTOFF. AND WE ABSOLUTELY NOT ONLY HAVE THAT, BUT WELL OFF THE SHORELINE. WE’VE GOT A VERY LARGE CLUSTER OF CUMULUS CLOUDS THAT ARE ABOUT TO MOVE IN. AND WHEN WE TAP INTO OUR LIVE RADAR, WE’RE ALSO WATCHING LOTS OF RAINS IN THE AREA. SO AT THE MOMENT WE’RE GLAD THAT WE’RE NOT TRYING TO LIFT THIS THING OFF FOR NOW. LATER ON, THOUGH, THE EXPECTATION IS THAT ALL OF THIS WILL MOVE INLAND AND WE WILL CLEAR THINGS OUT SO THEY DON’T FORECAST FOR BEFORE THEY FORECAST FOR THE LAUNCH WINDOW. AND DURING THAT LAUNCH WINDOW, WE ARE STILL LOOKING AT AN 80% CHANCE OF GOOD WEATHER, THOUGH, WITH AN ONSHORE WIND AND A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A SOUTHERLY COMPONENT THAN WHAT WE SAW YESTERDAY. WE DO THINK THAT THERE’S PROBABLY GOING TO BE MORE CLOUDS IN THE VICINITY. WE’RE JUST HOPING THAT THAT SEA BREEZE CAN PUSH IN AND CAN CLEAR THE CLOUDS OUT. NOW, WHAT WE’RE GOING TO DO HERE IN JUST A COUPLE OF MINUTES IS WE’RE GOING TO DIAL INTO OUR WESH FUTURECAST MODEL AND TRY TO FINE TUNE AND SEE HOW THINGS WILL PLAY OUT LATER ON. PLUS, WE’LL CHECK THE WINDS. SO FOR THAT, WE’LL SEE YOU IN JUST A COUPLE OF MINUTES. NOW LET’S TURN THINGS OVER TO METEOROLOGIST MARQUISE MEDA INSIDE THE STUDIO WITH THE REST OF OUR FORECAST. ALL RIGHT. TODAY’S LAUNCH IS BRINGING PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO CENTRAL FLORIDA. WE’LL CERTAINLY GET TO MARQUISE IN JUST A MOMENT, BUT WE’RE GOING TO STAY ON FOR NOW. YEAH, BECAUSE NANCY SPECTATORS ARE HOPING TO WITNESS HISTORY WHEN THE ROCKET LIFTS OFF FROM LAUNCH PAD 39 B WESH TWO CHRISTINA WATKINS CONTINUES OUR LIVE TEAM COVERAGE THIS AFTERNOON. SHE IS THERE WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE ALREADY PICKING OUT THEIR SPOTS TO WATCH THIS HISTORIC DAY. CHRISTINA. YOU GUYS, I WANT YOU TO PICTURE THIS. YOU’RE TAILGATING FOR A COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME. OR MAYBE YOU’RE ENJOYING A BEACH DAY. THAT IS THE VIBE HERE AT SPACE VIEW PARK IN TITUSVILLE. PEOPLE HAVE BEEN PACKING THIS AREA SINCE DARK AND EARLY THIS MORNING. LIKE YOU MENTIONED, FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, WANTING TO WITNESS THIS HISTORIC MISSION. SO WE KNOW THIS MISSION LOOKS AHEAD TO THE FUTURE OF SPACE. AND RIGHT NOW I HAVE A VERY EXCITING INTERVIEW. WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE FUTURE, WE HAVE A FUTURE ASTRONAUT. THIS IS MR. JACK. HI, JACK. HI. HOW ARE YOU? GOOD. SO THIS IS FOR BIGBANG. OKAY. SEE? SO THIS STARTED THE WHOLE UNIVERSE AND OUR SOLAR SYSTEM. LIKE THIS STARTED OUTER SPACE. LIKE THIS. FORMED LIKE SO. THIS IS AMAZING. CAN CAN WE SHOW OUR VIEWERS YOUR OUTFIT? BECAUSE YOU ARE READY TO GO ON THIS ARTEMIS ROCKET. LOOK AT THIS. TELL ME ABOUT IT. SO THIS IS PURSUIT TO GO ON THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, WHICH IS ALREADY ORBITING EARTH. YOU KNOW HOW TO GET THERE. OUR SPACESHIP. THAT IS HOW THAT IS SO AWESOME. THEY ARE VISITING US FROM ATLANTA, GEORGIA. THEY DROVE IN LAST NIGHT. THAT IS JUST ONE OF MANY FAMILIES HERE AT SPACE VIEW PARK ENJOYING THIS ATMOSPHERE. COMING UP TODAY AT 1230. I’M SO EXCITED TO SHOW YOU HOW PEOPLE ARE STAYING BUSY BECAUSE WE STILL HAVE SEVERAL MORE HOURS TO GO UNTIL THAT LAUNCH WINDOW OPENS. GUYS, I’LL SEND IT BACK TO YOU. I THINK ASTRONAUTS, JACK, THEY’RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT TODAY’S LAUNCH. WELL, WITH THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE EXPECTED TO HEAD TO THE SPACE COAST TO WATCH THE ROCKET BLAST OFF, YOU CAN EXPECT TRAFFIC CONGESTION TO BE A VERY BIG ISSUE, BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE LAUNCH THIS AFTERNOON WITH TWO SANIKA DANGE CONTINUES OUR LIVE TEAM COVERAGE. SHE IS IN CHOPPER TWO WITH THE BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF HOW TRAFFIC IS LOOKING AT THIS HOUR. SANIKA. GOOD NEWS FROM CHOPPER TWO. WITH JUST HOURS TO GO UNTIL THAT HISTORIC ARTEMIS TWO LAUNCH, WE’VE BEEN MONITORING THE ROADS FROM THE SKIES FOR THE LAST HOUR OR SO, AND NO TRAFFIC TO SPEAK OF. REALLY NO ISSUES ON THE ROAD. WE HAVE BEEN MONITORING THE A MAX BREWER BRIDGE TO U.S. 1 TO 528, AND EVERYTHING HAS BEEN MOVING QUITE SMOOTHLY, NOT JUST SMOOTHLY. IN FACT, THERE ARE SOME ROADS THAT LOOK DOWNRIGHT EMPTY. SO IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO HEAD TO THE COAST RIGHT NOW, YOU’RE IN GOOD SHAPE. OBVIOUSLY, WE ARE STILL ABOUT SIX HOURS FROM LAUNCH. THERE WILL BE LOTS OF CENTRAL FLORIDIAN LOCALS WHO ARE LIKELY TO BE HITTING THE ROADS AFTER LUNCH, SO THEY MAY CERTAINLY GET MORE BUSY THAN MONITORING THAT, ESPECIALLY WITH AN ESTIMATED 400,000 VISITORS EXPECTED. AND THAT’S ACCORDING TO THE SPACE COAST OFFICE OF TOURISM. YOU ARE GOING TO STILL WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU’RE BUDGETING OUT SOME EXTRA TIME, AND YOU DO HAVE SOME TRAFFIC ADVISORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT STARTING IN TITUSVILLE. THE A MAX BREWER BRIDGE MAY CLOSE AS A PRECAUTION TO PEDESTRIAN SAFETY. IT WILL REOPEN AFTER THE LAUNCH. IF YOU ARE WATCHING FROM THAT BRIDGE, YOU ARE ASKED TO LEAVE BY DRIVING NORTH ON U.S. ONE. THE SAME GOES IF YOU ARE ANYWHERE NORTH OF HARRISON STREET. SOUTH OF HARRISON STREET WILL GO DOWN US ONE TO COCO, THEN YOU CAN HOP ON. 528 AND BY THE WAY, THERE WILL BE NO U-TURNS LEFT ON STATE ROAD. 528 OR GEORGE KING BOULEVARD AFTER THE LAUNCH ON THE A1A IN COCOA BEACH, YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO TURN LEFT ONTO WESTBOUND STATE ROAD 520 AND ISLAND. SEVERAL ROADS AROUND THE MERRITT ISLAND NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE WILL BE CLOSED TODAY. THAT IS OF COURSE, A LOT OF INFORMATION. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, SANIKA, WE’LL GET BACK TO YOU SHORTLY. THE HELICOPTER, I THINK, WAS COMPETING WITH HER TO BE ON THE AIR. SO WE’LL GET THAT FIXED AND WE’LL GET BACK TO SANIKA. IF YOU’RE PLANNING TO WATCH TONIGHT’S LAUNCH, TITUSVILLE IS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE YOUR BEST BET. OF COURSE, THERE ARE SEVERAL PARKS RIGHT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MAX BREWER BRIDGE, INCLUDING SAND POINT, SPACE VIEW, AND SCOTT. SOME PEOPLE MAY WATCH FROM THE BRIDGE ITSELF OR AT PARRISH PARK. OUR LOCAL LAWMAKERS GEARING UP TO WATCH THE LAUNCH AS WELL. SENATOR ASHLEY MOODY POSTING ON X, A SENATOR FOR THE SPACE STATE. I’M INCREDIBLY PROUD TO SEE FLORIDA CONTINUE TO LEAD OUR COUNTRY FORWARD. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO FALL BEHIND IN THE MODERN DAY SPACE RACE. SENATOR RICK SCOTT WISHING THE BEST OF LUCK TO THE CREW AND TEAMS, SAYING HE IS PROUD AND LOCKHEED MARTIN IS READY FOR LIFTOFF. THEY SHARED THIS GORGEOUS PICTURE OF THE ARTEMIS TWO ROCKETS LAST NIGHT, SAYING GOOD NIGHT ARTEMIS. GOOD NIGHT MOON. WE’LL SEE YOU TOMORROW. AND OF COURSE, WE CAN’T IGNORE THE DATE. THIS LAUNCH IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING ON. YEAH. HI. IT’S APRIL 1ST. APRIL FOOL’S DAY. IT’S A DAY KNOWN FOR PRANKS, AND NASA ASTRONAUTS HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO PRANK EACH OTHER IN THE PAST. IN FACT, THAT WAS BROUGHT UP DURING YESTERDAY’S NASA BRIEFING. YOU KNOW, THERE’S A LONG HISTORY DATING BACK TO THE APOLLO ERA GUYS OF PULLING PRANKS ON LAUNCH DAY WITH THE WITH THE LAUNCH TEAM AND WITH THE LAUNCH TEAM PULLING PRANKS ON THE ON THE FLIGHT CREW. AND GIVEN THAT TOMORROW IS APRIL 1ST, I WAS WONDERING IF MAYBE WITHOUT SPOILING ANYTHING, IF THERE’S BEEN ANY TALK ABOUT THAT OR WHETHER THERE’S ACTUALLY BEEN A DECISION TO NOT DO THAT AND STAY AWAY FROM THAT. SO I AM NOT AWARE OF ANY ANY PRANKS THAT ANYBODY INTENDS TO PULL ON THE ON THE FLIGHT CREW OR IN THE THE LAUNCH TEAM ITSELF. SO YOU WILL WANT TO KEEP IT RIGHT HERE ON WESH TWO. WE WILL HAVE LIVE COVERAGE OF THE ARTEMIS LAUNCH ALL DAY LONG, INCLUDING CONTINUOUS COVERAGE STARTING AT 3 P.M. AND UNTIL THE ROCKET GOES UP AT 530. YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THIS. WE HAVE A WESH TWO CHRONICLE. RETURN T
Not on the Space Coast? Here’s when you’ll see and hear NASA’s Artemis II launch tonight across Florida
Updated: 12:49 PM EDT Apr 1, 2026
It’s launch day on the Space Coast, with four astronauts expected to lift off from Kennedy Space Center after 6 p.m. More than 400,000 people are expected to be in Brevard County for the Moon flyby launch. For those who can’t make it out to the coast, the launch will likely be visible across the state. ARTEMIS II LINKS | LIVE TEAM COVERAGE | HOW THE ARTEMIS II MISSION WILL UNFOLD | BEST PLACES TO VIEW LAUNCH | ROAD CLOSURES ON LAUNCH DAY | MEET THE CREW | ABOUT THE PILOT | 400,000 VISITORS EXPECTED | LIVE COUNTDOWN CLOCK | ARTEMIS PROGRAM OVERVIEW | WIND COULD IMPACT LAUNCHWhen to see the launch from Orlando, across Florida First Warning Chief Meteorologist Tony Mainolfi has the timeframe across Central Florida, in seconds for tonight’s viewing. “We’ll also be monitoring those clouds to see where things may be obstructed,” he said. When you might hear the launchMainolfi says, depending on the wind and humidity, the “roar” of Artemis may be heard as far as 45 miles inland from the launch pad. “This isn’t a sonic boom as a rocket isn’t returning back to EARTH, but the rolling sound that is being produced from all of the rocket thrust,” Mainolfi said.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. —
It’s launch day on the Space Coast, with four astronauts expected to lift off from Kennedy Space Center after 6 p.m.
More than 400,000 people are expected to be in Brevard County for the Moon flyby launch.
For those who can’t make it out to the coast, the launch will likely be visible across the state.
ARTEMIS II LINKS | LIVE TEAM COVERAGE | HOW THE ARTEMIS II MISSION WILL UNFOLD | BEST PLACES TO VIEW LAUNCH | ROAD CLOSURES ON LAUNCH DAY | MEET THE CREW | ABOUT THE PILOT | 400,000 VISITORS EXPECTED | LIVE COUNTDOWN CLOCK | ARTEMIS PROGRAM OVERVIEW | WIND COULD IMPACT LAUNCH
When to see the launch from Orlando, across Florida
First Warning Chief Meteorologist Tony Mainolfi has the timeframe across Central Florida, in seconds for tonight’s viewing.
“We’ll also be monitoring those clouds to see where things may be obstructed,” he said.
WESH 2 News
When the Artemis II launch will be visible across FloridaÂ
When you might hear the launch
Mainolfi says, depending on the wind and humidity, the “roar” of Artemis may be heard as far as 45 miles inland from the launch pad.
“This isn’t a sonic boom as a rocket isn’t returning back to EARTH, but the rolling sound that is being produced from all of the rocket thrust,” Mainolfi said.
WESH 2 News
Artemis II launchÂ