#Wholesome2023: NASA Named First Woman, Black Man As Astronauts For Its Moon Mission

Among the many happy stories of 2023, one came from NASA. The crew assigned for NASA's lunar mission includes astronauts Christina Koch, the first woman on such a mission, and Victor Glover, the first African American on a lunar mission.

They will join Reid Wiseman and Jeremy Hansen to fly a capsule around the Moon, known as Artemis II, in late 2024 or early 2025. Although they won't land on the Moon, their mission sets the stage for future crewed lunar landings, contributing to NASA's Artemis program.

NASA

Christina Koch, 44, made history as the first woman astronaut assigned to a mission, and Victor Glover named the first black astronaut on a lunar mission. Koch, already holding the record for the longest continuous spaceflight by a woman, and a participant in NASA's first three all-female spacewalks, will serve as a mission specialist for Artemis II lunar flyby. The mission aims to fly a capsule around the Moon in late 2024 or early 2025, setting the stage for future crewed lunar landings.

"The Artemis II crew represents thousands of people working tirelessly to bring us to the stars," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said on stage. "This is humanity's crew."

Artemis II is a significant milestone in NASA's renewed focus on lunar exploration. While it won't involve a lunar landing, it will serve as the first crewed flight of the Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon and establish a sustainable presence for future missions.

NASA

This step is crucial in preparing for more ambitious goals, including human exploration of Mars. The mission represents a continuation of humanity's exploration of space and a leap toward deeper space exploration objectives.

Artemis II marks a critical step in NASA's Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon and pave the way for future crewed missions. The mission will orbit the Moon and test the Orion spacecraft's life-support systems and other essential components with astronauts on board.

This demonstration is crucial for validating the spacecraft's readiness for deep space exploration, including future lunar landings and preparations for human missions to Mars. The success of Artemis II will contribute valuable insights and data for the continued development of NASA's lunar exploration capabilities.

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Artemis II is set to break new ground by venturing approximately 6,400 miles beyond the Moon's far side, which will be the closest approach humans have made to the lunar surface since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

The spacecraft will then reach a point over 230,000 miles away from Earth at its farthest distance. This ambitious trajectory aims to test and demonstrate the capabilities of the Orion spacecraft in deep space, providing essential data for future lunar exploration missions and advancing human space exploration objectives.

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