'We are going!' NASA announces crew of Artemis II moon mission

HOUSTON (CBSNewsTexas) - There are three words, according to NASA's Reid Wiseman, that sum up Monday's announcement of the Artemis II crew: "We are going!"

"The Artemis II crew represents thousands of people working tirelessly to bring us to the stars. This is their crew, this is our crew, this is humanity's crew," said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson during an April 3 press conference. "NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch, and CSA astronaut Jeremy Hansen, each has their own story, but, together, they represent our creed: E pluribus unum – out of many, one. Together, we are ushering in a new era of exploration for a new generation of star sailors and dreamers – the Artemis Generation." 

Navy Capt. Wiseman is one of four astronauts who will rocket around the moon aboard the Orion spacecraft on their 10-day Artemis II mission. It's the first crewed flight test and a critical step toward establishing a long-term human presence on the moon. 

Wiseman is a NASA veteran, having served as Flight Engineer aboard the International Space Station for Expedition 41 from May through November of 2014. He also commanded the undersea research mission NEEMO21, and most recently served as Chief of the NASA Astronaut Office. He will serve as Artemis II mission commander. 

The 47-year-old has won numerous awards, including: Air Medal with Combat V (five awards), Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with Combat V (four awards), Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal and other campaign and service awards.

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Mission Specialist 1 Christina Hammock Koch will take the 10-day Artemis II flight test that will launch on the agency's powerful Space Launch System rocket. Its goal is to prove the Orion spacecraft's life-support systems, and validate the capabilities and techniques needed for humans to live and work in deep space.  

"We're gonna ride the rocket for eight minutes into Earth orbit. We will stay there and test all systems on Orion, and then if everything checks out we will head to the moon," she explained during the press conference. "The one thing I am most excited about is we are going to carry your excitement, your aspirations, your dreams. Artemis II – your mission."

A record-breaker, Koch was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2013. She served as flight engineer on the International Space Station (ISS) for Expedition 59, 60 and 61. Koch set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman with a total of 328 days in space and participated in the first all-female spacewalks.

Her awards include: the Neil Armstrong Award of Excellence, Astronaut Scholarship Foundation, 2020; Astronautics Engineer Award, National Space Club & Foundation, 2020; Global ATHENA Leadership Award, ATHENA International, 2020. NASA Group Achievement Award, NASA Juno Mission Jupiter Energetic Particle Detector Instrument, 2012; Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Invention of the Year nominee, 2009; United States Congress Antarctic Service Medal with Winter-Over distinction, 2005; NASA Group Achievement Award, NASA Suzaku Mission X-ray Spectrometer Instrument, 2005.

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Another NASA veteran, and native Texan, Pilot Victor J. Glover, is another crew member. 

"I feel like Denzel should be up here talking to you, but you just got us," he joked during Monday's announcement. Then added on a more serious note, "I pray the we can serve as inspiration for peace not only to cooperating nations, but to our own nation."

The F/A-18 pilot and graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School was selected as an astronaut in 2013 while serving as a Legislative Fellow in the United States Senate.

He served as pilot and second-in-command on the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, named Resilience, which landed May 2, 2021. SpaceX Crew-1 and Expedition 64 (November 15, 2020 to May 2, 2021) was the first post-certification mission of SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft – the second crewed flight for that vehicle – and a long duration mission aboard the International Space Station. Glover also served as Flight Engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 64. He contributed to many things, according to NASA, while aboard the station including scientific investigations, technology demonstrations, growing crops and taking hundreds of pictures of Earth. He completed 168 days in orbit and participated in four spacewalks.

He has earned the following awards: The Defense Superior Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, NASA Distinguished Service Medal, and NASA Space Exploration Medal. Ontario High School 1994 athlete of the year; Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, Service to the Community Award and community service notation on transcripts; Distinguished Graduate and Regimental Commander, U.S. Navy Officer Candidate School; Onizuka Prop Wash Award, United States Air Force Test Pilot School; Distinguished Graduate, Air Command and Staff College; named one of Jet Magazine's inaugural 40 under 40 in 2013.

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Canadian rookie Mission Specialist 2 Jeremy Hansen is making his first space flight as a member of the crew. He is also the first ever Canadian to travel to the moon. 

"America has made a deliberate choice to curate an international team. That is American leadership," said Hansen. "We are going to the moon together… let's go!"

A colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces and former fighter pilot, Hansen holds a Bachelor of Science in space science from Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario, and a Master of Science in physics from the same institution in 2000, with a research focus on Wide Field of View Satellite Tracking. He was one of two recruits selected by CSA in May 2009 through the third Canadian Astronaut Recruitment Campaign and has served as Capcom in NASA's Mission Control Center at Johnson and, in 2017, became the first Canadian to be entrusted with leading a NASA astronaut class, leading the training of astronaut candidates from the United States and Canada.

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"For the first time in more than 50 years, these individuals – the Artemis II crew – will be the first humans to fly to the vicinity of the Moon. Among the crew are the first woman, first person of color, and first Canadian on a lunar mission, and all four astronauts will represent the best of humanity as they explore for the benefit of all," said Director Vanessa Wyche, NASA Johnson. "This mission paves the way for the expansion of human deep space exploration and presents new opportunities for scientific discoveries, commercial, industry and academic partnerships and the Artemis Generation."

NASA said it will use innovative technologies through Artemis missions, to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before.The space agency plans to collaborate with commercial and international partners and establish the first long-term presence on the moon. 

Ultimately the space agency will use knowledge gleaned from "on and around the moon to take the next giant leap: sending the first astronauts to Mars."

In:
• Moon
• Artemis Program
• NASA