They will travel further than any human has ever been
For the first time in half a century, four human beings have been chosen to travel beyond the moon — a threshold no person has crossed since the final Apollo missions of the early 1970s. NASA's selection of Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canada's Jeremy Hansen for the Artemis II lunar flyby reflects not only a return to deep space, but a reimagining of who belongs there. Scheduled to launch in November 2024, their ten-day journey aboard the Orion capsule is less an endpoint than a passage — one designed to carry humanity toward a permanent lunar presence and, eventually, Mars.
- Fifty years after Apollo, NASA is sending humans back toward the moon — and the weight of that gap makes this announcement feel less like a press release and more like a reckoning with lost time.
- The crew itself disrupts old templates: a record-breaking woman, the first Black pilot to fly a commercial crew mission, the first Canadian bound for deep space, and a commander who stepped aside from leadership specifically to take this seat.
- Artemis II must prove that the Orion capsule and Space Launch System can carry people safely where Artemis I went alone — a high-stakes human validation of hardware that cannot afford to fail.
- The mission is a bridge, not a destination — Artemis III, which aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface, depends entirely on what this crew learns and survives.
- Critical pieces of that next step — lunar spacesuits, a surface lander — are still being built, and NASA's own inspector general has signaled that the 2025 target for Artemis III is already slipping toward 2026 or later.
On a Monday in early April, NASA named the four people who will fly farther from Earth than any human has traveled in fifty years. Reid Wiseman will command the mission, joined by Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency — a crew that, by design, looks nothing like the all-male test pilot lineups of the Apollo era. They are scheduled to launch in November 2024 aboard the Orion capsule, lifted by the new Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center.
Wiseman, a naval aviator from Baltimore, stepped down as chief of the astronaut office in late 2022 to make himself available for this assignment. Hansen, a fighter pilot from Ontario, will become the first Canadian to venture into deep space — a milestone that carries particular pride for a nation long invested in space exploration. Glover, who piloted SpaceX's Crew Dragon in 2020, spoke at the announcement about the mission's larger stakes: 'We need to celebrate this moment in human history. It is the next step in the journey that will get humanity to Mars.' Koch, who holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman at 328 days, described her selection as leaving her speechless.
Artemis II follows the uncrewed Artemis I, which looped around the moon in late 2022 and returned safely after traveling 1.4 million miles. This time, humans will make that same arc — a ten-day journey to the furthest point any person has ever been from Earth. The mission is explicitly a rehearsal for Artemis III, which aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface, though spacesuits and a lunar lander are still in development, and delays may push that landing to 2026 or beyond.
NASA officials framed the crew selection as a reflection of a changed agency. 'They still all have the right stuff,' said Johnson Space Center director Vanessa Wyche, 'but we have requirements different than we did when we just had test pilots.' For now, these four carry the weight of a half-century's absence — strapped into a capsule pointed at the moon, with Mars somewhere further on the horizon.
On a Monday in early April, NASA announced the names of four people who will ride a spacecraft beyond the moon later this year—the first humans to venture that far into space in fifty years. Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, all NASA astronauts, will be joined by Jeremy Hansen of the Canadian Space Agency. They are scheduled to launch in November 2024 aboard the Orion capsule, riding atop a newly developed Space Launch System rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Wiseman, 47, a naval aviator from Baltimore, will command the mission. He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2009 and has already spent 165 days in orbit aboard the International Space Station, launched on a Russian rocket in 2014. He stepped down from his role as chief of the astronaut office in November 2022, which made him available for this assignment. Hansen, also 47, is a fighter pilot from London, Ontario, selected by the Canadian Space Agency in the same year as Wiseman. He will become the first Canadian to travel to deep space—a distinction that carries weight in a nation that has contributed to space exploration for decades but never sent one of its own beyond Earth orbit.
Glover, 46, was born in Pomona, California, and brings an extraordinary resume: 3,000 hours of flight time across more than forty different aircraft, over 400 carrier landings, and 24 combat missions. He piloted SpaceX's Crew Dragon on its second crewed flight in 2020, spending nearly six months on the space station. During the announcement at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Glover spoke about the broader significance of the moment. "We need to celebrate this moment in human history," he said. "It is the next step in the journey that will get humanity to Mars."
Koch, 44, an electrical engineer from Grand Rapids, Michigan, holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman—328 days in orbit. She has conducted six spacewalks, including the first all-female spacewalk in 2019. She also spent a year at the South Pole, an experience that NASA officials believe may prepare her for the intensity of a lunar mission. When Koch learned she had been selected, she described the moment as leaving her speechless. "It truly is an honor," she said in an interview. "It's amazing to be a part of this team that's going back to the moon and on to Mars."
The Artemis II mission will follow Artemis I, an uncrewed test flight that concluded in December 2022. That spacecraft traveled 1.4 million miles, looping around the moon and returning safely to Earth. NASA deemed the mission successful and is still analyzing the data. Artemis II will take a similar path but with humans aboard. The ten-day journey will send the crew further from Earth than any human has traveled, though the exact distance depends on when the rocket launches and where the moon sits in its orbit at that moment.
This mission is a stepping stone. NASA is working toward Artemis III, expected to launch later this decade, which will land the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface. That will be the first human moon landing since the Apollo program ended in 1972. However, critical technology remains under development—spacesuits for lunar walking and a lander to ferry astronauts from orbit to the surface are still being built. NASA originally targeted 2025 for Artemis III, but the agency's inspector general has already warned that delays will likely push it to 2026 or beyond.
The selection of this crew reflects a deliberate shift in how NASA builds its astronaut corps. Vanessa Wyche, director of Johnson Space Center, noted that the group includes both men and women, a contrast to the all-male test pilot crews of earlier space programs. "They still all have the right stuff," she said, using the phrase that has long defined astronaut selection. "We have requirements different than we did when we just had test pilots." The Artemis program itself is part of a larger vision: establishing a permanent outpost on the moon where astronauts can live and work, and eventually sending humans to Mars. For now, these four will carry that ambition forward, strapped into a capsule bound for the far side of the moon.
Citas Notables
We need to celebrate this moment in human history. It is the next step in the journey that will get humanity to Mars.— Victor Glover, during the announcement at NASA Johnson Space Center
It truly is an honor. It's amazing to be a part of this team that's going back to the moon and on to Mars.— Christina Koch, in an interview about her selection
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does it matter that Hansen is Canadian? Isn't an astronaut an astronaut?
It matters because Canada has never sent one of its own beyond Earth orbit. Hansen becomes the first. That's a threshold moment for a country that's been part of the space program for decades but always in a supporting role.
So this is really two missions—Artemis II and Artemis III. What's the difference?
Artemis II is a flyby. They go out, circle the moon, come back. It's a test of the spacecraft and the crew. Artemis III actually lands on the surface. That's where the first woman and first person of color will step onto the moon.
But Artemis III isn't ready yet, is it?
Not even close. The spacesuits don't exist yet. The lander is still being built. NASA said 2025, but their own inspector general is already saying 2026 or later. Artemis II is the proof of concept.
What struck you about Koch's reaction to being selected?
She said she was speechless. And then she talked about being part of a team going back to the moon and on to Mars. She's not thinking about herself—she's thinking about what comes next, what this opens up.
Is there any risk in sending four people that far from Earth?
Of course. They'll be further than any human has ever been. But Artemis I already made that journey uncrewed and came back fine. This is the next step—proving humans can survive it.
Why does NASA keep talking about Mars?
Because the moon is the proving ground. If you can establish a permanent base there, live and work there, you've solved the problems you'll face on Mars. The moon is the bridge.