10.12.2020
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA has named the 18 astronauts — half of them women — who will train for its Artemis moon-landing program.
The first woman and next man on the moon will come from this elite group.
Vice President Mike Pence introduced the astronauts Wednesday at the close of his final meeting as chairman of the National Space Council. The announcement was made at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, beneath one of only three remaining Saturn V moon rockets from the 1960s and 1970s Apollo program.
Pence noted that the last of the 12 men to walk on the moon, the late Apollo 17 commander Gene Cernan, wanted nothing more than to remove “last” from his title. Cernan's final lunar footsteps were on Dec. 14, 1972.
“He spent the rest of his natural life advocating for America to go back to the moon, and we are going to honor Gene Cernan’s memory," Pence told the small crowd, seated several feet apart from one another.
Five of the astronauts — the only ones in attendance — walked onto the stage, waving and wearing masks.
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine stressed there would be more astronauts joining the group. NASA has 47 active astronauts.
The space agency is aiming for a moon landing by 2024, although the chances of that happening are growing increasingly dim. The upcoming change in administration also adds uncertainty.
Half of the NASA astronauts have spaceflight experience. Two are at the International Space Station right now: Kate Rubins and Victor Glover.
The two astronauts who performed the world's first all-female spacewalk last year made the cut: Christina Koch and Jessica Meir.
It’s a fairly young group, with most in their 30s or 40s. The oldest is 55, the youngest 32. Only two — Joe Acaba and Stephanie Wilson — flew on NASA’s old space shuttles.
“The history is awesome, but we’re here to look toward the future,” Acaba told reporters after the announcement.
The other experienced members on the list include Kjell Lindgren, Anne McClain and Scott Tingle, all former space station residents.
“We are dreamers, but even more so, we’re doers," McClain said.
She wants children from all backgrounds to take note of the diverse lunar team: “The doors are open, come on after us.”
Among those yet to rocket into space: Kayla Barron, Raja Chari, Matthew Dominick, Woody Hoburg, Jonny Kim, Nicole Mann, Jasmin Moghbeli, Frank Rubio and Jessica Watkins.
Quelle: abcNews
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Artemis: Nasa picks astronauts for new Moon missions
IMAGE COPYRIGHTDAVID DEHOYOS / NASA JSCNasa has announced 18 astronauts who will travel to the Moon under the agency's Artemis programme.
They include individuals who have already travelled to the International Space Station, as well as new recruits who have never flown in space.
The group includes the next man and first woman who will walk on the lunar surface in 2024.
The cadre of nine women and nine men were announced by US Vice-President Mike Pence at an event in Florida.
He said: "My fellow Americans, I give you the heroes of the future who will carry us back to the Moon and beyond."
Stephanie Wilson, who has flown into space three times aboard the space shuttle, Christina Koch, who holds the record for the longest continuous time in space for a woman, and Victor Glover, who recently launched to the ISS aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon, are among those who will fly to the Moon in coming years.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTROBERT MARKOWITZ / NASA JSCSpeaking at the eighth National Space Council meeting at Kennedy Space Center, Nasa administrator Jim Bridenstine said: "This is the first cadre of our Artemis astronauts. I want to be clear, there's going to be more."
The US space agency plans to send a man and woman to the Moon's south pole in 2024 for the first crewed landing since Apollo 17 in 1972.
But this will be followed by further flights by astronauts travelling in a spacecraft called Orion, which will be launched by a huge rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS).
Bridenstine has said that Nasa wants to establish a "sustainable" programme of lunar exploration, including the construction of a lunar base.
IMAGE COPYRIGHTNASAThe astronauts announced on Wednesday are:
- Joseph Acaba. Born 1967, Anaheim, California. Astronaut selection: 2004. Three flights - shuttle (2009), Soyuz (2012; 2018)
- Kayla Barron. Born 1987, Pocatello, Idaho. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Raja Chari. Born 1977, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Matthew Dominick. Born 1981, Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights.
- Victor Glover. Born 1976, Pomona, California. Astronaut selection: 2013. One flight - Crew Dragon (2020)
- Warren Hoburg. Born 1985, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Jonny Kim. Born 1984, Los Angeles, California. Astronaut selection: 2020. No flights
- Christina Koch. Born 1979, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Astronaut selection: 2013. One flight - Soyuz (2019)
- Kjell Lindgren. Born 1973, Taipei, Taiwan. Astronaut selection: 2009. One flight - Soyuz (2015)
- Nicole A Mann. Born 1977, Petaluma, California. Astronaut selection: 2013. No flights, assigned to Boeing Starliner crew
- Anne McClain. Born 1979, Spokane, Washington. Astronaut selection: 2013. One flight - Soyuz (2018)
- Jessica Meir. Born 1977, Caribou, Maine. Astronaut selection: 2013. One flight - Soyuz (2019)
- Jasmin Moghbeli. Born 1983, Bad Nauheim, West Germany. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Kate Rubins. Born 1978, Farmington, Connecticut. Astronaut selection: 2009. Two flights - Soyuz (2016; 2020)
- Frank Rubio. Born 1975, Los Angeles, California. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Scott Tingle. Born 1965, Attleboro, Massachusetts. Astronaut selection: 2009. One flight - Soyuz (2017)
- Jessica Watkins. Born 1988. Gaithersburg, Maryland. Astronaut selection: 2017. No flights
- Stephanie Wilson. Born 1966, Boston, Massachusetts. Astronaut selection: 1996. Three fllights - shuttle (2006; 2007; 2010)
Nine of the astronauts have already flown in space; eight are members of the most recent astronaut class - selected in 2017. One, Nicole Aunapu Mann, was selected in 2013, but has not yet flown on a mission.