Trump to honour historic Artemis II crew

Washington, Aug 21 (IANS) President Donald Trump will award the Congressional Space Medal of Honour to the four astronauts who completed NASA’s Artemis II mission around the Moon, the space agency said Friday.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen will receive the honour at a White House-led ceremony on August 28 at NASA’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston, with NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman joining Trump and the astronauts.

The crew completed a 10-day mission around the Moon on April 10 aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft.

It was the first crewed flight of Orion and carried humans beyond the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

NASA said the four astronauts also travelled farther into space than any humans had previously flown.

The Congressional Space Medal of Honour is one of the highest recognitions awarded to US astronauts. It is authorised by Congress and presented by the president to individuals who distinguish themselves through exceptionally meritorious achievements and contributions to human spaceflight.

Although Hansen is a Canadian astronaut, he served on the Artemis II crew through the partnership between NASA and the Canadian Space Agency.

The mission marked Canada’s first participation in a crewed flight around the Moon and made Hansen the first Canadian to travel beyond low-Earth orbit.

Wiseman served as the mission commander, with Glover as pilot. Koch and Hansen served as mission specialists.

Glover became the first Black astronaut to participate in a lunar mission, while Koch became the first woman assigned to a mission around the Moon.

Artemis II tested Orion’s life support, navigation, communications, and other spacecraft systems with astronauts aboard before future missions attempt to return humans to the lunar surface.

The mission followed Artemis I, an uncrewed test flight that travelled around the Moon before returning to Earth.

NASA views the Artemis programme as the foundation for a sustained human presence on and around the Moon.

The agency plans to use knowledge gained from lunar missions to prepare for the more complex challenge of eventually sending astronauts to Mars.

The programme also involves international and commercial partners contributing technology, spacecraft components, scientific instruments and logistical support.

India joined the US-led Artemis Accords in 2023, committing to principles intended to promote peaceful, transparent and sustainable civil-space exploration.

NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation have expanded cooperation through scientific missions, astronaut training and Earth-observation projects.

Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla’s visit to the International Space Station further increased public interest in human spaceflight and strengthened discussions about future India-US cooperation beyond low-Earth orbit.

–IANS

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