NASA Astronaut Christina Koch to Make History as First Woman to Orbit Moon [Video]

Here’s the scoop!

• NASA astronaut Christina Hammock Koch will become the first woman to orbit the moon as part of the Artemis II mission next year.
• The mission will include four crew members, including Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, and NASA astronauts G. Reid Wiseman and Victor J. Glover Jr., who will become the first person of color to orbit the moon.
• Koch previously set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a female and completed six spacewalks, including the first all-female spacewalk.

NASA has announced that Christina Hammock Koch, a record-breaking astronaut, will make history as the first woman to orbit the moon.

The Artemis II mission, set to launch next year, will also include Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen and NASA astronauts G. Reid Wiseman and Victor J. Glover Jr., who will become the first person of color to orbit the moon. Koch, who previously set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a female, spoke about her disbelief, immense sense of honor and responsibility, and readiness for the mission.

Throughout her career, Koch has been driven by her passion for space and determination to achieve her dreams. She participated in the NASA Academy program and was selected as one of the eight members of the 21st NASA astronaut class in 2013.

Koch completed her astronaut candidate training in 2015 and has since spent over 300 days in space, contributing to hundreds of experiments and completing six spacewalks, including the first all-female spacewalk.

Koch has also shared her experiences through social media, posting photos and videos of Earth from space, playing with slime in zero gravity, and reminiscing about her time studying abroad in Ghana.