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NASA picks crew for moon mission: Meet the four astronauts on Artemis II mission

Jay Cannon
USA TODAY

NASA announced Monday the crew members will join the Artemis II mission, the second installment of the agency's historic push to establish a human presence on the moon. 

The four astronauts will be the first crew members on board an Artemis space flight, after the program kicked off with the launch of an empty capsule in November 2022. 

The crew will blast off toward the moon, but they won't be landing on it – that's what Artemis III hopes to accomplish. The goal of this mission will be to orbit the lunar surface on a flight lasting approximately 10 days. The mission marks the first time crew will be aboard the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, NASA says.

NASA dropped a short trailer in anticipation of the announcement.

Here's what to know about Monday's astronaut unveiling:

Watch:NASA unveils spacesuits to be used in humans' upcoming return to the moon

This graphic depicts four astronauts to be assigned to NASA's Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight test on the agency’s path to establishing a long-term scientific and human presence on the lunar surface. Three NASA astronauts will be joined by one astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency.

Artemis II crew members

Here are the crew members scheduled to blast off on Artemis II, with additional details provided by NASA:

► Reid Wiseman: Named mission commander of Artemis II, Wiseman has previously worked on the International Space Station and served as Chief of NASA Astronauts.

► Victor Glover: Glover will pilot the Artemis II mission after logging 3,000 flight hours in more than 40 different aircraft.

► Christina Koch: A mission specialist on Artemis II, Koch visited the International Space Station in 2019 and made waves in the first all-woman spacewalk.

► Jeremy Hansen: A member of the Canadian Space Agency, Hansen is a former fighter pilot and works with NASA in training astronauts. He'll serve as a mission specialist on Artemis II.

The crew of NASA's Artemis II mission are photographed suited up for the first human spaceflight mission to the moon since 1972. From the left NASA astronaut Christina Koch, NASA astronaut Victor Glover, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, and at the center NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman.

How to watch NASA announce Artemis II astronauts

You can watch the event live at the embed at the top of this page or on USA TODAY's YouTube channel.

NASA will also be streaming it on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.

When will Artemis II launch?

NASA's budget plan for 2024 says Artemis II will launch no earlier than November 2024.

What is Artemis II?

If the late 2024 timeline holds, the four Artemis II astronauts announced on Monday will be the first to travel around the moon and back aboard NASA's Orion capsule. A Space Launch System rocket will kick off their ride.

The mission will follow a similar path to last year's uncrewed Artemis I demonstration but will be shorter in duration. Expected to last about 10 days, Artemis II will stress Orion's life support systems for deep-space missions and push the crew 6,400 miles beyond the far side of the moon. After coasting back to Earth for about four days, Orion will bring the crew home for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

This graphic shows the mission map of Artemis II, the first crewed flight of NASA’s deep space exploration system: the Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System rocket and the ground systems at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. During their mission, four astronauts will confirm all of the spacecraft’s systems operate as designed with people aboard in the actual environment of deep space, over the course of about a 10-day mission. The Artemis II flight test will pave the way to land the first woman and next man on the Moon on Artemis III.

When was the last time humans traveled to the moon?

The last time NASA, or any space agency, sent humans to the moon's surface was more than 50 years ago.

Apollo 17 launched NASA astronauts Gene Cernan, Jack Schmitt, and Ronald Evans on Dec. 7, 1972. It was the only Apollo mission launched at night.

The Apollo 17 spacecraft reentered Earth's atmosphere and splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 19, marking the last time humans traveled back from the moon – at least until Artemis II attempts to do the same.

Contributing: Emre Kelly, Florida Today

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