Celestial Tech Hub

The Artemis II Mission

Dec 08, 2023By Dion
Dion

Artemis II is a crewed mission, following Artemis I, which aims to test the crewed flight capabilities of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket system and the Orion spacecraft. This mission will carry astronauts beyond low Earth orbit, orbiting the Moon before returning to Earth. It serves as a precursor to Artemis III, which is intended to be the first mission since 1972 that lands astronauts on the lunar surface.

The Artemis program is a part of NASA's broader vision for sustainable lunar exploration and the eventual human exploration of Mars. The program aims to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon by the end of the 2020s, using the Lunar Gateway as a staging point for crewed missions to the lunar surface.

Reid Wiseman (Commander)


Alright, let's get into it, shall we? From left to right, we will go down the line, giving information on these four crucial individuals and their role on the Artemis II mission, from the left Reid Wiseman. Can I get all four of these fantastic individuals into one blog post? We will see what I can do. 


Reid Wiseman was a flight engineer on the International Space Center(ISS) for Expedition 41, from May 29, 2014 to November 2014. While Reid and his crew were in space, they could complete over 300 scientific experiments in physiology, medicine, physical science, earth science, and astrophysics. 


Reid, and his crew, also set a milestone for station science by completing a record of 82 hours of research in a single week.... 82 hours!?!?! How is that possible!! Working around the clock  is how they were able to do it, but when you're dedicated to what you love, you can knock anything out without question. This kind of dedication was huge for Reid. Being his was his first spaceflight, the emotions had to be high, in addition to setting such a huge milestone, not only that, he spent 13 of the 82 hours as the lead spacewalker. 


During the mission, Reid had a social media presence where he would share his raw emotions, about spaceflight, what he saw, and felt as a rookie flier. Reid also had an outstanding track record during his service in the Navy as a naval aviator.


Here is more information on Reid Wiseman and his outstanding feats in the Navy:

NASA. (2023, August 2). Reid Wiseman. NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/people/reid-wiseman/


Also, here is a video of Reid Wiseman giving us a fraction of what he's experienced while on the ISS and re-entry coming back from space to our very own soil.



Victor Glover (Pilot)

Next up, we have Victor Glover, the pilot of the Artemis II mission and the resilience dragon po- oops, I already went too far with explaining him without giving details about him... Here's the information about him before I spoil anything else.

Victor J. Glover, Jr. joined NASA's Astronaut Corps in 2013 while serving as a Legislative Fellow in the United States Senate. Notably, he piloted the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, named Resilience, on its historic mission, marking the first post-certification flight of SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, and a prolonged stay aboard the International Space Station. In addition to his space achievements, Glover, a California native and Naval Aviator, holds a diverse educational background, including degrees in General Engineering, Flight Test Engineering, Systems Engineering, and Military Operational Art and Science. He brings a wealth of experience as a test pilot in various aircraft, including the F/A-18 Hornet, Super Hornet, and EA-18G Growler, and has served in multiple locations across the United States and Japan, including deployments in both combat and peacetime.
 

NASA. (2023a, August 1). Victor J. Glover, Jr.. NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/people/victor-j-glover-jr/







Up next we have Christina Koch (Mission Specialist)

I feel bad because I had an excellent picture of Christina that I wanted to use for this blog, but I couldn't upload the image of her. :( So, I will do the next best thing: post her video and find another, seeing that I couldn't upload a photo like Victor and Reid. But before that, here is a little background on Christina. :)

The extraordinary journey of Christina Hammock Koch, a trailblazing astronaut chosen by NASA in 2013. After successfully completing astronaut candidate training in 2015, she soared to new heights as the flight engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 59, 60, and 61. In an awe-inspiring achievement, Koch etched her name in history, setting a remarkable record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman – an astounding 328 days spent in the cosmic expanse. Join us in celebrating the indomitable spirit, and stellar accomplishments, of Christina Hammock Koch as she continues to inspire the next generation of space explorers.



And here's another link for Christina that goes more in depth:

https://www.nasa.gov/people/christina-koch/


And last but not least Jeremy Hansen which happens to have the same issue with Christina, but don't worry, I kind-of like putting up videos and a small bio about them so this works out!


The next video that I'm going to upload is an interesting one. It gives us an interview with Jeremy. He said something that put the scale of this mission into perspective. Check it out!



Just the same I did with Christina, I'm also going to tack on a link giving us a look at what Jeremy has been up to up until now:

https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/astronauts/canadian/active/bio-jeremy-hansen.asp


Photos of the crew were retrieved from: