WORLD.- Today is a historic day for the return of human beings to the Moon after 53 years. This milestone is accompanied by the participation of the first woman on a manned mission: American astronaut Christina Kochas part of the Artemis II mission from NASA.
The NASA Artemis II mission will be a trip of about 10 days in which four astronauts will orbit the Moon aboard the Orion spacecraft, without landing on the moon. The route will exceed 400 thousand kilometers and will serve to test key systems for future manned missions to the lunar surface.
At 4:35 p.m. local time on April 1, 2026, the mission took off aboard the Orion spacecraft.
Christina Koch is accompanied by Reid Wisemanmission commander, African-American naval aviator Victor Glover and the Canadian Jeremy Hansenthe only one on the team without experience in space travel.
Who is Christina Koch?
Christina Koch, originally from Grand Rapids, Michigan, grew up in Jacksonville, North Carolina. She is an electrical engineer by training, recognized for set the record for the longest space flight made by a woman, with 328 days on the International Space Station.
Furthermore, in 2019 starred in the first space walk integrated only for women.
Their participation in Artemis II marks a significant advance in inclusion within space exploration and represents a key step towards humanity’s return to the natural satellite after more than 50 years.
The four astronauts will be the first humans to reach the Moon’s orbit since 1972, when the Apollo 17 mission left the natural satellite.
How many days will you spend in space?
The mission will last about ten days. In the first 24 hours after takeoff, the spacecraft will circle the Earth in low orbit and then another in high orbit, during which preparations will be finalized before making the decision to head toward the Moon.
From the Earth to the Moon, the trip will last four days, and once there, the crew will fly over the hidden side of the satellite at an altitude of between 4,800 and 14,500 kilometers.
After make a complete revolution around the moonthey will return to Earth and land on the coast of California, in the Pacific Ocean.
READ: Launch of Artemis II LIVE: NASA corrects problem and maintains historic takeoff
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