Huntsville, we are go for relaunch…of the downtown art trail that is. The Secret Artemis II Trail. 

Thanks to Teledyne Brown Engineering, Downtown Huntsville, Inc. announces a new trail ready for you to explore in downtown Huntsville! 

Huntsville has played a significant role in NASA’s mission to explore space for seven decades, and the Secret Artemis Trail has been created to celebrate just that. Twelve one-foot-tall rockets have been hidden around downtown for you to find.

Download your trail card here, or pick one up at the Huntsville/Madison County Visitor Center^® to start your downtown exploration today. The general locations are listed on the back, but you'll have to work to find where the rockets are. Bring your family, friends, and coworkers if they are up for the challenge. Come downtown for the hunt, then stay to experience all of what Huntsville has to offer!!​

About the Artemis Mission

Artemis II is NASA's vital 10-day crewed test flight, sending four astronauts (Wiseman, Glover, Koch, Hansen) around the Moon to test the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft's life support and systems in deep space. This mission marks humanity's first return to lunar orbit in over 50 years and paves the way for future Moon landings and Mars missions. It uses a free-return trajectory, utilizing gravity to loop around the Moon and return to Earth for splashdown, confirming critical hardware for long-term lunar presence. Huntsville, Alabama, through NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), plays a key role in Artemis II by designing, building, and testing essential hardware, most notably the Orion Stage Adapter (OSA) connecting the Orion capsule to the SLS rocket, housing CubeSats, and providing vital engineering, testing, and launch support for the Space Launch System (SLS). Huntsville's contributions ensure the powerful rocket and Orion spacecraft operate correctly for the first crewed lunar mission, making it central to returning humans to the Moon.

Artemis II Facts:

• Mission Type: Crewed Lunar Flyby.

• Crew: 4 astronauts: Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Christina Koch (Mission Specialist), Jeremy Hansen (Canadian Space Agency).

• Duration: Approximately 10 days.

• Vehicle: NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft.

• Objective: Test Orion's life support, navigation, and deep-space capabilities with crew aboard.

• Trajectory: A free-return path around the Moon, similar to Apollo 8/13, using Earth-Moon gravity for return.

• Significance: First crewed mission of the Artemis program, proving systems for sustained lunar presence and Mars exploration.

Artemis II builds upon the uncrewed Artemis I, demonstrating the technology and procedures necessary to land the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon, establish a long-term lunar presence, and prepare for missions to Mars.

Artemis I Facts:

• The Space Launch System (named Artemis) stands 322 feet tall
• That's 17 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty
• The Launch Vehicle Stage Adapter was designed and built in Huntsville, AL, by TBE​
• Artemis is the twin sister of Apollo and the goddess of the Moon in Greek mythology
• This rocket will return astronauts to the moon by 2024