Technicians roll out NASA’s Orion spacecraft from the Final Assembly and Systems Test Chamber on June 28, 2024. The integrated spacecraft, which will be used for the Artemis II mission to orbit the moon, is undergoing final rounds of testing and assembly, including end-to-end performance verification of its subsystems and checking for leaks in its propulsion systems.

A 30-ton crane recently renovated Orion Height Room where it happened Electromagnetic TestingThe spacecraft will now undergo a series of tests in which the air will be removed and it will be placed in a near-vacuum environment, creating a space where the pressure is extremely low. This will result in no atmosphere, as the spacecraft will experience during future lunar missions. Data recorded during these tests will be used to qualify the spacecraft to fly safely. Artemis II Astronauts have to go through the harsh environment of space.

Get updated information on the Artemis II mission.

Image source: NASA/Radislav Sinyak

NASA has selected the astronaut. André Douglas As a backup crew member for the agency’s Artemis II test flight, the first crewed mission under NASA’s Artemis campaign.

Douglas will train alongside NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

If a NASA astronaut is unable to take part in a flight, Douglas will join the flight. Artemis II Crew.

“Andre’s educational background and extensive operational experience in his various jobs prior to joining NASA are clear evidence of his readiness to support this mission,” said Joe Acaba, chief astronaut at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “He excelled in his astronaut candidate training and technical assignments, and we are confident he will continue to do so as NASA’s backup crew member for Artemis II.”

CSA announced Jenny Gibbons He will join the mission as a backup crew member in November 2023. Gibbons will step in to represent Canada if Hansen is not available.

“Canada’s seat on the historic Artemis II flight is a direct result of our contribution of Canadarm3 to the Lunar Gateway. Jenny Gibbons’ work as a backup is of the utmost importance to our country,” said CSA President Lisa Campbell. “Since being recruited, Jenny has repeatedly distinguished herself through her work with NASA and CSA. She is also a tremendous role model for Canada’s future scientists, engineers and explorers.”

The selection of Douglas and Gibbons as backup crew members for Artemis II is independent of the selection of crew members for Artemis III. NASA has not yet selected crew members for Artemis flights beyond Artemis II. All active NASA astronauts are eligible for assignment to any human spaceflight mission.

The approximately 10-day Artemis II test flight will launch on the agency’s powerful SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, validating the Orion spacecraft’s life-support systems, and the capabilities and technologies needed for humans to live and work in deep space.

More details about the Artemis II backup crew

Douglas will graduate from NASA’s Astronaut Candidate Training Program in March 2024. He is a native of Virginia and holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the US Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, as well as four postgraduate degrees from various institutions, including a doctorate in systems engineering from George Washington University in Washington. Douglas served in the US Coast Guard as a naval architect, salvage engineer, damage control assistant and officer of the deck. He also served as a staff member at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, where he worked on marine robotics, planetary defense and space exploration missions for NASA. Douglas participated in the Joint EVA and Human Surface Mobility Test Team 5, working with a specialized group that develops, integrates and executes human-in-the-loop testing, analog missions and moonwalks. Most recently, Douglas worked with teams on the development of the Lunar Terrain Vehicle, Pressurized Rover, Lunar Gateway and Lunar Spacesuit.

Gibbons was recruited as a CSA astronaut in 2017 and completed his basic training in 2020. Since then, Gibbons has continued to serve the Canadian Space Program and has worked in a variety of positions, including Mission Control as a capsule communicator (CAPCOM) during spacewalks, and in commercial spacecraft and daily International Space Station operations. Gibbons holds an honours bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from McGill University in Montreal. While at McGill, he conducted research on flame propagation in microgravity in collaboration with CSA and Canada’s National Research Council Flight Research Laboratory in Ontario. He holds a doctorate in engineering from Jesus College at the University of Cambridge in England.

Under NASA’s Artemis mission, the agency is laying the groundwork for long-term scientific exploration on the Moon, landing the first woman, the first Black person, and our first internationally partnered astronaut on the lunar surface, and preparing for a human mission to Mars for the benefit of all.

Find more information about NASA’s Artemis mission at:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis

-Ending-

Rachel Craft/Madison Tuttle
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov,madison.e.tuttle@nasa.gov

Courtney Beasley
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
courtney.m.beasley@nasa.gov

During the Arizona moonwalks, scientists learned how to communicate their priorities succinctly and clearly to the flight control team, which then talked with the astronauts. If scientists needed to change the traverse plan to return to a site for more pictures, for instance, they had to rationalize the request to the flight director in charge. If the director approved, a designated person communicated the information to the crew. For this simulation, that person was NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, pictured above, who’s  a geologist by training.