Artemis II: Why NASA is sending a crew around the moon after 50 years

moon.NASA is planning to send four astronauts, including a Canadian, around the moon with the launch of the Artemis II mission set for next year.

Read more: NASA reveals next-gen spacesuit for the next astronauts on the Moon In preparation for that, on Monday, the U.S space agency and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will be announcing the four-person crew that will venture around the moon and back.Monday’s event will be held at the NASA Johnson Space Center’s Ellington Field in Houston.Canada’s Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne will be in attendance along with the CSA’s vice president, Mary Preville.On April 3, you will meet the team of astronauts flying to the Moon on the #Artemis II mission.These explorers will pave the way for future lunar landings and our next giant leap — human exploration of Mars.

https://t.co/PRlRVEsJVz pic.twitter.com/BBlyhVJZNV— NASA (@NASA) March 28, 2023“The approximately 10-day flight test will pave the way for lunar surface missions, including landing the first woman and first person of color on the Moon,” NASA says on its website.If successful, this will be the first time humans get that close to the moon since the Apollo program more than 50 years ago.And for the first time, there will be Canadian representation, with a CSA astronaut among the Artemis II crew.

Read more: Can we stop an asteroid from hitting Earth? Chris Hadfield, a retired Canadian astronaut, called it a “historic” moment.“It’s just opening the door for all the things that are going to follow – an exploration of the moon and the solar system beyond,” he told Global News in an interview Sunday.Hadfield helped pick the four astronauts for Artemis II.While he didn’t give away any names ahead of the announcement,.