NASA on 3rd April named the first woman and the first African American ever assigned as astronauts to a lunar mission.
- NASA introduced them as part of the four-member team chosen to fly on what would be the first crewed voyage around the moon in more than 50 years.
- Christina Koch, an engineer who already holds the record for the longest continuous spaceflight by a woman and was part of NASA’s first three all-female spacewalks, was named as a mission specialist for the Artemis II lunar flyby expected as early as next year.
- She will be joined by Victor Glover, a U.S. Navy aviator and veteran of four spacewalks who NASA has designated as pilot of Artemis II.
- He will be the first Black astronaut ever to be sent on a lunar mission.
- Other members; Jeremy Hansen and Reid Wiseman.
About Artemis 2 lunar mission
- NASA’s Artemis 2 lunar mission in 2024 will send the first astronauts around the moon in nearly 50 years. The mission will launch four astronauts around the moon on a lunar flyby aboard an Orion spacecraft using a Space Launch System rocket.
- Artemis 2 is an 8 day mission that will send three NASA astronauts and one Canadian Space Agency astronaut around the moon on a free-return trajectory.
- It is the last test flight before the Artemis 3 crewed moon landing mission in 2025.
