NASA’s Artemis II left Earth’s orbit with four astronauts aboard, beginning a historic journey around the Moon, the first crewed mission to venture beyond low Earth orbit since the Apollo era. The Artemis II crew consists of four astronauts—NASA’s Reid Wiseman (commander), Victor Glover (pilot), Christina Hammock Koch (mission specialist), and CSA’s Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist).
Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, traveled aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft, launched by the Space Launch System rocket. Over the course of the mission, they journeyed thousands of kilometers from Earth, orbited the Moon, and then returned home.

Mission specialist Christina Koch brings extensive experience, having set a record for the longest continuous spaceflight by a woman at 328 days. With Artemis II, she is expected to become the first woman to travel around the Moon.

Rounding out the crew is mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, who will be the first Canadian astronaut to journey to the Moon. His inclusion highlights the international partnership behind the Artemis program.