Some journeys are measured in miles, and some in the way a person comes to see the place they started from. Reid Wiseman, a Maryland native and commander of the Artemis II lunar flyby, has returned to the Baltimore area for his high school homecoming, carrying with him the memory of a 10-day voyage that took four humans farther from Earth than anyone before them. He speaks of that distance not as a triumph of one person but as the work of many hands, and of a small blue world that shrank to the size of a thumb. Now, as he steps toward emeritus status, he turns his attention to guiding those wh
Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman Returns to Baltimore for Dulaney Homecoming
Earth was the size of a thumb, so the crew called it 'Tiny Earth.'
Mark
Why does a homecoming parade merit this much attention?
Mimi
Because the person leading it commanded Artemis II. He went around the moon in April, and now he's riding down Padonia Road to the school he graduated from in 1993.
Mark
The distance record is the headline number, isn't it?
Mimi
Yes, more than 252,000 miles from Earth, the farthest humans have ever been. But what he talks about is the view: Earth the size of a thumb, which the crew called Tiny Earth.
Luke
Let me flag something. The 252,000-mile figure and the record claim come through this one report, which quotes Wiseman and the account of the mission. I can't verify them independently from what's here.
Mimi
Fair. What the piece does show clearly is what he chose to emphasize, which was the people behind the flight rather than himself.
Mark
He named the launch director, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson.
Mimi
And the Houston engineers and the flight controllers. He said it didn't hit him until they got back that their lives were in those teams' hands.
Luke
That's his reflection, though. The report doesn't give us the controllers' own reaction beyond his saying it was deeply impactful for them.
Mark
And the retirement? He's leaving flight duty.
Mimi
He announced last week he's moving to NASA emeritus status, but he'll keep guiding the next generation of astronauts.
Luke
What's still unknown is what that guiding role looks like in practice. The report doesn't say, and it doesn't say whether he'll fly again in any capacity.
Der Puls
- A crew of four traveled more than 252,000 miles from Earth, setting a record for the farthest humans have ever been from home.
- Earth shrank to the size of a thumb from the far side of the moon, and the crew nicknamed it "Tiny Earth."
- The full weight of the mission only settled in after landing, as the crew realized their lives had rested in the hands of engineers, controllers, and launch leaders.
- Wiseman is stepping back from active flight duty to emeritus status, shifting toward mentoring the next generation of astronauts.
- Homecoming events in Baltimore County on Sept. 18 and 19 bring him back to Dulaney High School and onto the Orioles mound.
Some journeys are measured in miles, and some in the way a person comes to see the place they started from. Reid Wiseman, a Maryland native and commander of the Artemis II lunar flyby, has returned to the Baltimore area for his high school homecoming, carrying with him the memory of a 10-day voyage that took four humans farther from Earth than anyone before them. He speaks of that distance not as a triumph of one person but as the work of many hands, and of a small blue world that shrank to the size of a thumb. Now, as he steps toward emeritus status, he turns his attention to guiding those who will follow him beyond.
Before the parade and the first pitch, Reid Wiseman stopped at TV Hill in Baltimore to talk about coming home. The Artemis II commander, a Maryland native and a 1993 graduate of Dulaney High School in Baltimore County, is back for the homecoming festivities there.
The trip follows a mission that carried him far beyond any homecoming. In April, Wiseman led pilot Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen on a 10-day flight around the moon, covering more than 252,000 miles and setting a record for the greatest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth. From that far side of the moon, Earth was the size of a thumb, and the crew began calling it "Tiny Earth." Wiseman called the journey an emotional one, and said the crew agreed on what mattered most: the planet, family and friends, and the luck of being part of it.
He was quick to share credit with launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the Houston engineering teams, and the mission control and flight controllers. The true weight of it, he said, arrived only after they returned, when they understood their lives had been in those people's hands.
Last week he announced his move to NASA emeritus status, stepping back from active flight duty while staying on as a guide for the next generation. His advice to anyone was simple: stay curious, get out and experience this beautiful planet, and you will probably live a happy life.
His homecoming schedule includes the Dulaney parade on Friday, Sept. 18, and on Saturday, Sept. 19, he throws out the first pitch at the Orioles game against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Before the parade and the pitch, Reid Wiseman stopped by TV Hill at WJZ in Baltimore to talk about being home. The commander of Artemis II, a Maryland native, is back in the Baltimore area for the homecoming festivities at his alma mater, Dulaney High School in Baltimore County, where he graduated in 1993.
The trip follows a mission that carried him much farther from Baltimore than any homecoming ever could. In April, Wiseman led a four-person crew on a 10-day flight around the moon. With him were pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen. Together they traveled more than 252,000 miles from Earth, a distance that set a record for the farthest humans have ever been from the planet.
Wiseman described what that distance looked like from the far side of the moon. Looking back, he said, Earth was the size of a thumb, tiny enough that the crew started calling it "Tiny Earth." He called the mission an emotional journey, one that gave him and his crewmates a new sense of what matters most. On that point, he said, they all agreed: it comes down to the planet, to family and friends, and to feeling lucky to be part of the whole effort.
Although the four astronauts drew most of the attention, Wiseman said many others deserve recognition. He named Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the launch director, who let the rocket fly. He also pointed to the engineering teams in Houston that flew and operated the vehicle, along with the mission control team and the flight controllers. The weight of that, he said, did not register until the crew got back: their lives were in those people's hands, and he described the experience as deeply impactful for them.
Last week, Wiseman announced that he is moving to NASA emeritus status. That means he is retiring from active flight duty, though he will continue to serve as a guide for the next generation of astronauts.
Asked for one piece of advice for anyone, astronaut or not, he kept it simple. Stay curious about the world, he said. Get out and experience this beautiful planet, and you will probably live a happy life.
The homecoming itself has a full schedule for him. Wiseman will headline Dulaney's celebration, including the homecoming parade on Friday, Sept. 18, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The route begins at Pot Spring Elementary School and runs along Padonia Road to the Dulaney High School parking lot.
The next day, Saturday, Sept. 19, he will throw out the first pitch at the Orioles game against the Milwaukee Brewers, which starts at 4:05 p.m. After that, his focus shifts to the role he has described for himself in emeritus status: mentoring the astronauts who come next.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
Just stay curious about the world. Get out there, experience this beautiful planet, and I think you're gonna live a happy life.— Reid Wiseman
It didn't really hit me until we got back, but our lives were in their hands.— Reid Wiseman, on the launch, engineering and mission control teams
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