NASA to fly piece of Wright Brothers' plane on Artemis 2 moon mission

NASA rolls out the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 2 moon mission on Jan. 17, 2026.

NASA's Artemis 2 mission won't just send a quartet of astronauts around the moon — a trove of aerospace artifacts will make the trip as well.

A piece of the Wright Brothers' plane will fly on Artemis 2's Orion spacecraft, for example, as will an American flag that reached orbit on the first and final space shuttle missions, NASA announced on Jan. 21.