What is it? 
The mission is to use NASA’s first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion Spacecraft around the Moon to test its capabilities for humans to travel into deep space. Artemis II will pave the way for future deep space missions and exploration capabilities. The crew includes the first woman and the first person of color to go to the Moon. The ship is to travel 6,400 miles around the Moon to collect flight test data on the Orion module.
Artemis Crew
In the Artemis II mission, four astronauts were selected to use NASA’s human deep space capabilities.
Reid Wiseman, commander of the mission.
Education: Bachelor of Science degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Trou, New York. And a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
Other positions: Wiseman commanded the NEEMO21 mission in Islamorada, Florida. Wiseman flew previously as a flight engineer aboard the ISS for Expedition 41, living in space for more than 165 days. He also served as chief of the Astronaut Office from 2020 to 2022.
Victor Glover, pilot of the mission.
Education: Bachelor of Science in General Engineering, a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering, A Master of Science in Systems Engineering and a Master of Military Operational Art and Science.
Other positions: Served as the pilot of NASA’s SpaceX Cew-1 mission to the ISS. Glover was also a test pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet, Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler. He accumulated 3,000 flight hours in more than 40 aircraft and 24 combat missions. He also has participated in 4 spacewalks.
Christina Koch, mission specialist.
Education: Attended North Carolina State University with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, a Bachelor of Science in Physics, and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering. Koch received an Honorary Ph.D from North Carolina State University in 2020.
Other positions: Koch was part of ISS Expeditions 59, 60, and 61. During those missions, her and the crew studied dark matter. Koch conducted 6 spacewalks, including the first three all women spacewalks, for 42 hours and 15 minutes. Koch has spent a total of 328 days in space.
Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist.
Education: Earned a Bachelor of Science in Space Science and Master of Science in Physics from the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario.
Other positions: Served as a CF-18 fighter pilot, a recruit from the Canadian Astronaut Recruitment Campaign and graduated from Astronaut Candidate Training. Hansen was a crew member of the NEEMO 19, where he lived and worked on the ocean floor in the Aquarius habitat for seven days, simulating deep-space exploration.
When is the launch?
They will launch at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in September 2025. The mission was supposed to happen in November 2024, because of battery issues and air ventilation controls, they rescheduled it for a later date.
