JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, Texas, April 4, 2023—NASA and the Canadian Space Agency announced the four astronauts who will venture around the Moon during the first crewed mission since 1972’s Apollo 17.

The lunar flyby is scheduled no earlier than November 2024 followed by a crewed lunar landing in 2025.

Crew assignments announced Monday are Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist 1 Christina Hammock Koch and Mission Specialist 2 Jeremy Hansen, from Canada.

The approximately 10-day Artemis II flight test will launch on the agency’s Space Launch System rocket, prove the Orion spacecraft’s life-support systems and validate the capabilities and techniques needed for humans to live and work in deep space.

The flight, set to build upon the successful un-crewed Artemis I mission completed in December, will set the stage for the first woman and first person of color on the Moon through the Artemis program, paving the way for future long-term human exploration missions to the Moon, and eventually Mars. This is the agency’s Moon-to-Mars exploration approach.

“For the first time in more than 50 years, these individuals – the Artemis II crew – will be the first humans to fly to the vicinity of the Moon. Among the crew are the first woman, first person of color, and first Canadian on a lunar mission, and all four astronauts will represent the best of humanity as they explore for the benefit of all,” said Director Vanessa Wyche, NASA Johnson. “This mission paves the way for the expansion of human deep space exploration and presents new opportunities for scientific discoveries, commercial, industry and academic partnerships and the Artemis Generation.”

Meet Artemis II astronauts

This will be Wiseman’s second trip into space, serving previously as a flight engineer aboard the International Space Station for Expedition 41 from May through November 2014. Wiseman has logged more than 165 days in space, including almost 13 hours as lead spacewalker during two trips outside the orbital complex. Prior to his assignment, Wiseman served as chief of the Astronaut Office from December 2020 until November 2022.

The mission will be Glover’s second spaceflight, serving previously as pilot on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1, which landed May 2, 2021, after 168 days in space. As a flight engineer aboard the space station for Expedition 64, he contributed to scientific investigations, technology demonstrations, and participated in four spacewalks.

Koch also will be making her second flight into space on the Artemis II mission. She served as flight engineer aboard the space station for Expedition 59, 60 and 61. Koch set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman with a total of 328 days in space and participated in the first all-female spacewalks.

Representing Canada, Hansen is making his first flight to space. A colonel in the Canadian Armed Forces and former fighter pilot, Hansen holds a bachelor of science degree in space science from Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario, and a master of science in physics from the same institution in 2000, with a research focus on wide field of view satellite tracking.

He was one of two recruits selected by CSA in May 2009 through the third Canadian Astronaut Recruitment Campaign and has served as Capcom in NASA’s Mission Control Center at Johnson and, in 2017, became the first Canadian to be entrusted with leading a NASA astronaut class, leading the training of astronaut candidates from the United States and Canada.

NASA news release