The Orion space capsule was launched into a high orbit around the moon on Friday, on the 10th day of the Artemis 1 mission, the American space agency (NASA) said, quoted by AFP.

“During the evolution in this high orbit, flight controllers will monitor the operation of some critical systems of the Orion capsule and perform checks related to the existing conditions in deep space,” NASA officials said.

The Orion capsule, which is expected to send crews of astronauts to the moon in the coming years – the first humans to set foot on the lunar crust since the last Apollo mission in 1972 – is now floating in a high lunar orbit more than 40,000 miles from the natural Earth’s satellite.

At that distance, it would take at least six days for the capsule to complete half a lunar orbit before it begins its return journey to Earth.

This first unmanned test flight of the Orion capsule was designed for NASA engineers to ensure safe use of the spacecraft.

The launch of the Orion capsule into the Pacific Ocean is scheduled for December 11 after a 25-day space flight.

The future of Artemis-2, which will send a crew of astronauts around the Moon without landing, and Artemis-3, which will mark the return of humans to the lunar crust, will depend on the success of this mission. These missions will take place in 2024 and 2025, respectively.