Canadians across the nation celebrated the launch of the Artemis II mission on Wednesday, a significant event featuring Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, the first non-American to travel beyond low Earth orbit. The Orion spacecraft, carrying Hansen and three NASA astronauts, lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. Eastern time. This 10-day mission marks humanity's return to the moon for the first time in over 50 years and is expected to take astronauts farther into space than ever before. Watch parties were held in various cities, including Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary, fostering a sense of national pride and inspiring curiosity about space exploration for future generations.