As millions around the world watched the Artemis II launch online and on television, thousands gathered around Florida to watch it in person. CBS News' Rob Marciano has more.

Florida

Thousands of people gathered at various locations in Florida and southern Georgia to witness the Artemis II launch, while millions watched the event online. The mission marks a nine-day journey for the Artemis II crew around the far side of the moon, with attendees including families, children, and people who traveled from across the country.

Spectators experienced a range of emotions due to weather concerns and a resolved mechanical issue before liftoff. The event created a communal atmosphere, with many visitors making significant efforts to be present for this historic moment, and large crowds remained on site well after the launch.

Crowds gather to watch Artemis II launch in Florida

As millions around the world watch the launch online, thousands gathered in locations around Florida and southern Georgia to try and get a glimpse of history for themselves as the Artemis 2 crew embarked on its nine-day mission around the far side of the moon. CBS News National Weather correspondent Rob Marciano joins us from one of those launch watch locations. So you were about eight or nine miles away. I saw moms were pulling their kids out of school. We saw future Commander Jack. What were some of your takeaways? There are a lot of kids here. There are a lot of old kids here, meaning adults. There are a lot of grandparents here that wish their grandkids were with them. It was amazing, yeah. So we're on the western side of the lagoon, and just on the other side of the lagoon, about seven, eight miles away, is the launch pad. We saw it, everything happened from here. We felt it, we saw it, and we certainly heard it. But it was a myriad of emotions throughout the day because there was a chance that weather would get involved and we had some showers come through, so people were scrambling that. Then we had that snafu with the mechanical that they solved, thankfully, and then it went off. And so it was all this communal energy. We're all rooting for the same thing, and people coming in from all over the country. You mentioned the girls I interviewed. They were from Colorado Springs. Their parents pulled them out of school to come here. They flew in last night, got to their hotel at one in the morning. Dad dragged him here to be here at 7 a.m., so they got a good spot, exhausted. And if it didn't go off, they were going home back tomorrow because they had track meets in school to get back to. So that's such a blessing for them and so many people that made the commitment to travel here from all ends of the country. So that part of it certainly was amazing to see on this end. And now, sun's setting. We're gonna have a full moon rise on that side of Cape Cod. The show doesn't end here. Show doesn't end here, Lindsay. We'll be here all night long, riding the emotional wave. Don't you have to be on TV again in, like, 12 hours? Yeah, it's not till 7. Yeah, well, that's in 12 hours. Got plenty of time. No, we'll see how long we last. But the traffic is pretty bad. You're not going anywhere if you leave right now, regardless. So you got to hang around for a couple hours. There's a lot of people here. All right, Rob. Thank you so much.

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Breakdown