NASA has named a crew of astronauts for the Artemis II Moon mission, the first time humans will venture beyond a few hundred miles off the planet since Apollo 17 in 1972. The mission aims to chart a path for putting humans on Mars and help answer questions about the formation of the solar system.
The astronaut corps for Artemis includes a much wider diversity of backgrounds compared to the Apollo program, which saw only white men, mostly test pilots, make the trip. Artemis program's astronauts reflect a much wider range of society. After its experience on the moon, NASA plans to use the gained knowledge and expertise to advance a mission placing humans on Mars.
Meet the Artemis II Astronauts
The New York Times reported that the Artemis II crew includes Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. Koch is making a history to be the first woman to go beyond low-Earth orbit, while Hansen will be the first non-American to space travel that distance.
The mission is a major step for NASA's objectives as water ice found in deep dark craters near the Moon's south pole could supply water and oxygen for future astronauts as well as fuel for missions into the outer space.
However, the four astronauts aboard Artemis II will not land on the moon. Their mission is to take a 10-day journey around the Moon to demonstrate the systems capability of Orion capsule.
The news outlet quoted NASA administrator Bill Nelson saying, "Together, we are going - to the Moon, to Mars, and beyond." Harrison Schmitt, the last surviving astronaut from Apollo 17, said that many people do not fully realize that the world is now about three generations away from making history being in deep space and that perhaps is the most important part of the mission.
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Artemis Program: What To Expect From the Artemis II Mission
NASA's Artemis II mission is set to be the second in the Artemis program. The first mission, Artemis I, was an uncrewed test of NASA's giant new rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS), and the Orion astronaut capsule.
Artemis II will have four astronauts aboard to test Orion's life support systems, giving NASA confidence for the more complex Artemis III mission, which will see two astronauts landing near the moon's south pole.
Although the Artemis II is a crewed mission, astronauts aboard will not be landing on the lunar surface. That mission is scheduled for Artemis III, which is estimated to be on 225. Nonetheless, the crew is still excited and is not disappointed.
As per Live Science, the Artemis mega Moon rocket is NASA's most powerful launch vehicle designed to return astronauts, robots, and supplies to the moon for the first time in more than fifty years. It is composed of the SLS, which is a multi-stage rocket that can carry various additional modules on top of it like the Orion crew vehicle, which houses astronauts during the flight.
NASA is currently targeting late 2025 for the first Moon landing in more than fifty years. However, the mission's delay to 2026 or later, as predicted by the NASA Inspector General, seems inevitable.
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