An international team of astronauts that will crew the first manned space flight to orbit the moon in more than 50 years was introduced by representatives from NASA and the Canadian Space Administration in Houston on April 3.
Three American and one Canadian astronaut will fly to the moon and back aboard Artemis II in 2024, the second preparatory flight for a planned lunar landing in 2025.
G. Reid Wiseman, a captain in the U.S. Navy will be the commander of Artemis II. The mission’s pilot is Victor Glover Jr., also a Navy captain. Flight specialists are American engineer and veteran astronaut Christina Hammock Koch and Jeremy Hansen, a colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces and former fighter pilot.
Children wait for the Artemis II crew announcement at Ellington airport in Houston, Texas, on April 3, 2023. (Mark Felix/AFP via Getty Images)The introduction was made by NASA Director Bill Nelson and Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry, at Ellington Field, part of the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Among the several hundred people present for the pep rally-like announcement were Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), Brian Babin (R-Texas), and Lizzie Fletcher (D-Texas), along with approximately 40 American, Canadian, and Japanese astronauts and dozens of Houston-area school children.
“We choose to go back to the moon and then on to Mars. And we’re going to do it together because, in the 21st century, NASA explores the cosmos with international partners,” Nelson said.
“We will unlock new knowledge and understanding. We’ve always dreamed about what more is ahead. Why? Because it’s in our DNA.”
The Artemis program is a United States-led joint effort involving the European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Canadian Space Agency, and dozens of private companies to return to the moon for scientific discovery, economic benefit, and the inspiration of a new generation of explorers, according to the NASA website.
The Artemis I mission successfully launched an unmanned spacecraft to orbit the moon and return between Nov. 16 and Dec. 11, 2022.
Anna Kikina of Roscosmos (L), Koichi Wakata of JAXA, Josh Cassada, and Nicole Mann of NASA on the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module on March 1, 2023. (NASA via AP)Artemis II will carry its crew of four to orbit the moon and stress test the ship’s systems in preparation for the eventual establishment of a permanent base camp on the lunar surface. The ultimate goal of the program is to pave the way for a human mission to Mars.
Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, Blue Origin, Dynetics, and Aerojet, along with a host of other companies, are making major components of current and future mission systems, including the Space Launch System, Orion space capsule, and planned space platform, and lunar base camp.
Wiseman was the lead engineer on the International Station from May through November 2014, spending more than 165 days in space and spacewalking for 13 hours.
“There are three words that we keep saying this program,” Wiseman said. “We’re going!”
Glover piloted NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1, which landed in May 2021 after 168 days in space. He has been a flight engineer on the space station and has made four spacewalks. He likened the Artemis missions to one leg in a relay race of space exploration.
“You may often hear people say human spaceflight is a marathon, not a sprint,” Glover said.
“Human spaceflight is like a relay race. And that baton has been passed from generation to generation and from crew member to crew,” he said, recalling the various programs in the history of space flight.
“And we understand our role in that,” Glover said. “And when we have the privilege of having that baton, we’re going to do our best to run a good race to make you proud.”
Members of the US Navy and NASA Landing and Recovery Team use a crane to remove a test version of the Orion capsule from the water after practicing retrieving astronauts from it on Feb.06, 2023, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)Hansen holds degrees in space science and physics from the Royal Military College of Canada. He was selected by the Canadian Astronaut Recruitment Campaign ins 2009. He is the first Canadian to lead a NASA astronaut class.
“It is not lost on any of us that the United States could choose to go back to the moon by itself. But America has made a very deliberate choice over decades to curate a global team. And that in my definition is true leadership,” Hansen said.
Koch was a flight engineer aboard the space station and holds the record for the longest continuous time in space by a woman, 328 days.
“It will be a four-day journey going a quarter of a million miles. Continuing to test out every bit of Orion going around the far side of the Moon heading home, going through the Earth’s atmosphere at over 25,000 miles per hour, and splashing down in the Pacific. So am I excited? Absolutely!” Koch said.
“But my real question is are you excited?” she said, indicating the school children in attendance. “I see you, and I asked that because the one thing I’m most excited about is that we are going to carry your excitement, your aspirations your dreams with us on this mission.”
NASA’s Space Launch System, the rocket powering the Artemis I and II spacecraft, has been derided for its high cost, more than $23 billion over 12 years, and dubbed the “Senate Launch System” by critics.
The launch of Artemis I was canceled twice before the successful attempt in November. Delays were caused by a faulty engine temperature reading and a hydrogen leak.
The Artemis II mission is currently scheduled for November 2024. Dates for subsequent Artemis missions have not yet been announced.