Grand Rapids Astronaut Is First Woman Assigned To Lunar Mission

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Grand Rapids native Christina Hammock Koch will be among the four astronauts chosen to return humanity to the moon for the first time in five decades, NASA announced Monday. She is the first woman ever named to a lunar crew.

The astronauts have been chosen to venture around the moon on Artemis II, the first crewed mission working to establish a long-term presence at the moon for science and exploration, NASA said. It will be the first time humans have ventured so far from Earth since the last Apollo mission in 1972. The capsule is not scheduled to land on 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 Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA's Johnson Space Center. "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."

The Artemis II mission is aiming to take flight toward the end of 2024 and is tasked with flying around the moon and returning to Earth ahead of a lunar landing the following year. The 10-day mission is designed to prove the viability of the spacecraft's life-support systems and validate the updated approach to how humans can live and work in deep space. Last year's Artemis I mission sent an unmanned Orion capsule to the moon and back.

The agency's modern lunar exploration program will include establishing a sustainable human lunar presence by the end of the decade. NASA officials said they will use what's learned on and around the Moon to take the next giant leap: sending astronauts to Mars.

NASA introduced its Artemis II crew for the first time Monday morning, including Koch. Being the first woman on a NASA moon crew will add to a highly accomplished career in space.

Born in Grand Rapids, Koch was raised in North Carolina but spent her summers on a family farm in Michigan before joining the astronaut corps in 2013.

She already holds the record for the longest spaceflight by a woman, at 328 days, having completed three consecutive expeditions on the space station in 2018. Koch holds a master's degree in electrical engineering and will serve as one of two mission specialists.

The mission's commander is Reid Wiseman, of Baltimore, Md., who joined NASA as an astronaut in 2009 and completed a 165-day mission on the International Space Station in 2014.

Victor Glover, of Pomona, Calif., will serve as the mission's pilot. He became an astronaut in 2013 and most recently piloted Space X's Crew Dragon spacecraft. He previously served as a flight engineer aboard the International Space Station.

Before that, Glover was a Navy test pilot and holds three master's degrees. He graduated from Ontario High School in 1994 and is married to Dionna Odom of Berkeley, Calif. They are raising four children in Southern California.

"This is a big day," Glover said Monday. "We have a lot to celebrate and it's so much more than the four names that have been announced."

Jeremy Hansen, a Canadian astronaut, will be the first non-American on a NASA moon mission, serving as the second mission specialist. Hansen is a fighter pilot and holds a master's degree in physics. The Canadian Space Agency selected him as an astronaut in 2009 and was the first Canadian to lead NASA's astronaut training in the U.S. and Canada.

If the Artemis II mission is successful, NASA is aiming to move forward with the manned Artemis III mission as soon as 2025.

“It’s an exciting time for the Artemis people, no question about it,” Harrison Schmitt, the last surviving astronaut from Apollo 17 told the New York Times. People did not “fully realize that we’re about three generations away from any experience with human beings being in deep space, and that’s probably the most important part of the mission,” he said.