NASA names first woman and black man for its first Moon mission in over 50 years

NASA unveiled the crew for its first human trip to the Moon in more than 50 years, which includes the first woman and black man to fly on the Moon. Christina Koch, a NASA astronaut who holds the mark for the longest single female spaceflight, will serve as a mission specialist on next year’s Artemis II mission around the Moon.

In November 2024, NASA’s Victor Glover, a naval aviator, will drive the Orion spacecraft around the Moon, becoming the first black man to do so., The mission commander is experienced NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, 47, and Jeremy Hansen, 47, a former fighter pilot now with the Canadian Space Agency.

The three Americans and one Canadian will become the first astronauts to venture that deep into space since the historic Apollo missions ended in 1972. The Artemis II flight is a prelude to returning humans to the Moon for the first time in a half-century and an eventual mission to Mars.

The three American astronauts have all spent time on the International Space Station (ISS) while Hansen, the Canadian mission specialist, will be making his first space flight.

The four astronauts, dressed in blue flight suits, were introduced by NASA administrator Bill Nelson at an event at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

“The largest, most powerful rocket in the world is going to propel them onward and upward into the heavens,” Mr Nelson said. “We choose to go back to the Moon and then on to Mars.”

Mars by 2040

Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry, attended the event and said his country “could not be more proud” to have a Canadian on the crew for the flight.

As part of the Artemis program, NASA aims to send astronauts to the Moon in 2025 — more than five decades after the final Apollo mission.

Besides putting the first woman and first person of colour on the Moon, the US space agency hopes to establish a lasting human presence on the lunar surface and eventually launch a voyage to Mars.