UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Historic mission

Q1. The Artemis programme, under which Artemis II conducted a crewed lunar flyby in 2026, is led by which one of the following space agencies?

  • A. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
  • B. European Space Agency (ESA)
  • C. Roscosmos
  • D. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Q2. Artemis II (2026) was the first crewed mission to travel beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17. Approximately how many years separated these two crewed lunar missions?

  • A. 44 years
  • B. 50 years
  • C. 54 years
  • D. 64 years

Q3. The European Service Module that provides propulsion, power and life support to the Orion spacecraft flown on Artemis II is supplied by which agency?

  • A. NASA
  • B. European Space Agency (ESA)
  • C. Canadian Space Agency (CSA)
  • D. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)

Q4. By reaching about 406,771 km from Earth, the Artemis II crew broke the record for the farthest distance travelled by humans — a record that had stood since which earlier mission?

  • A. Apollo 11 (1969)
  • B. Apollo 13 (1970)
  • C. Apollo 15 (1971)
  • D. Apollo 17 (1972)

Q5. The Space Launch System (SLS), the super heavy-lift rocket that launched Orion on Artemis II, was developed and is operated by which agency?

  • A. SpaceX
  • B. NASA
  • C. European Space Agency (ESA)
  • D. United Launch Alliance

Q6. The Orion spacecraft on Artemis II — the first crewed flight of the SLS–Orion system — carried a crew of exactly how many astronauts?

  • A. 2
  • B. 3
  • C. 4
  • D. 6

Q7. When the Artemis Accords were established in October 2020, how many founding signatory nations signed them?

  • A. 8
  • B. 13
  • C. 27
  • D. 28

Q8. Which one of the following best describes the Artemis Accords?

  • A. A legally binding treaty registered with the United Nations governing lunar mining rights
  • B. A non-binding set of principles designed to guide civil space exploration and use
  • C. A military-space mutual defence pact among spacefaring nations
  • D. A commercial procurement contract between NASA and private launch providers

Q9. The 2004 Vision for Space Exploration, which sought to return crews to the Moon, was to be implemented through the Constellation programme by which agency?

  • A. United States Space Force
  • B. NASA
  • C. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
  • D. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)

Q10. Consider the following as elements of the US policy lineage that led to the Artemis programme: 1. Vision for Space Exploration (2004) — announced by President George W. Bush, directing NASA to return crews to the Moon. 2. Constellation programme — the initiative created to implement that vision, later cancelled in 2010. 3. Space Policy Directive-1 (2017) — which revived the goal of returning humans to the Moon. 4. Apollo programme — the 2017 policy directive that formally launched the Artemis programme. Which of the above is/are NOT correctly identified?

  1. Vision for Space Exploration (2004) — announced by President George W. Bush, directing NASA to return crews to the Moon.
  2. Constellation programme — the initiative created to implement that vision, later cancelled in 2010.
  3. Space Policy Directive-1 (2017) — which revived the goal of returning humans to the Moon.
  4. Apollo programme — the 2017 policy directive that formally launched the Artemis programme.
  • A. 1 and 2
  • B. 2 and 3
  • C. 3 and 4
  • D. 4 only

Q11. Under NASA's revised Moon-to-Mars plan adopted in 2026, which single mission is now slated to carry out the first crewed lunar landing of the Artemis programme?

  • A. Artemis II
  • B. Artemis III
  • C. Artemis IV
  • D. Artemis V

Q12. Consider the following statements comparing the Apollo lunar missions with Artemis II: 1. Apollo 17, the last Apollo crewed lunar landing, took place in 1972, whereas Artemis II, flown in 2026, was the first crewed lunar mission in over 50 years. 2. Unlike the Apollo lunar landing missions, Artemis II did not land on the Moon but conducted a crewed flyby. 3. Artemis II surpassed the record for the farthest distance humans have travelled from Earth, a record previously held by Apollo 11. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Apollo 17, the last Apollo crewed lunar landing, took place in 1972, whereas Artemis II, flown in 2026, was the first crewed lunar mission in over 50 years.
  2. Unlike the Apollo lunar landing missions, Artemis II did not land on the Moon but conducted a crewed flyby.
  3. Artemis II surpassed the record for the farthest distance humans have travelled from Earth, a record previously held by Apollo 11.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3