A Journey to the Moon: Following the Artemis II Mission

For ten days, four astronauts made history. They traveled farther into space than any humans before. They flew around the Moon and returned safely to Earth. I followed every single moment of the Artemis II mission. I watched the launch, their close flyby of the Moon, and the nervous landing. Before they launched, the crew said astronauts are the calmest people on launch day. I was not that calm. My heart raced with excitement.

My excitement was hard to hold back. As the rocket fired its big engines and rose into the sky, my reaction became famous online. Standing near the countdown clock at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida was a powerful experience. You saw a blinding white light that you could not look away from. A loud roar hit you a few seconds after the launch. The force of the blast went right through your body.

I could not quite believe the reality. Four human beings were strapped into their seats at the top of a 98-meter-tall rocket. They were heading to the Moon. The astronauts were Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen. When they saw Earth from far above, Glover told the world, "Planet Earth, you look beautiful." Then, they used their main engine to leave. They began a 250,000-mile journey to the Moon.

As the crew got used to weightlessness, live video came back to Earth. It was clear that they were packed tightly inside. They lived, worked, ate, and slept in a space about the size of a minibus. There was no privacy from each other or from the millions of people watching them. Everyone followed every move they made.

People paid close attention to their toilet, officially called the Universal Waste Management System. The expensive toilet cost $23 million to build. It had plumbing problems. We learned exactly how this affected the astronauts. In a media meeting, people asked about their "number ones and number twos." It was okay to go to the bathroom for "number twos." For "number ones," they used special bags with funnels. These were called collapsible contingency urine devices.

At the Johnson Space Center in Houston, we spent time in Mission Control. This room is the brain of the whole operation. The team stared at their screens while data poured in. They watched every system, from navigation to the air they breathed. This work was vital. We must remember this was a test flight. It was the first time humans flew on this specific rocket and spacecraft. Test flights have real risks.

Talking to Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen before the launch made the danger real. He told me he spoke to his wife and three children. He told them he might not come back. Reid Wiseman also had honest talks with his two daughters about the dangers. He raised them alone after his wife died six years ago. This loss led to one of the most touching moments of the mission.

Every person we spoke to at NASA cared deeply about the four astronauts. From the leader Jared Isaacman to the scientists and engineers, everyone rooted for them. As the crew got closer to the Moon, it grew larger in their window. New features appeared on the surface. They named a crater after Reid's late wife, Carroll. The crater is a bright spot you can see from Earth. The crew, all in tears, hugged their commander. Back in Houston, no one in Mission Control had a dry eye.

Everyone at NASA cares deeply about this group. They wanted them to succeed. And the crew did succeed. After breaking the record set by Apollo 13 for the furthest distance ever traveled, the Artemis astronauts kept going. They traveled 252,756 miles from Earth. They took thousands of photos and recorded audio of the dark, beautiful Moon surface passing below.

The legacy of the Apollo missions runs deep in this trip. Messages from Apollo astronauts Charlie Duke and Jim Lovell played during the flight. Jim Lovell's message was recorded before he died last year. But some asked if this was just a nostalgia trip. Why spend all this time and money going back to the Moon when the United States has been there? The mission cost is estimated at $93 billion.

NASA's administrator, Jared Isaacman, wants his agency to build on Apollo, not just repeat it. He has many plans for exploring the Moon. These include a landing in 2028 and a base on the Moon. In the future, he wants to send humans to Mars. Some people wonder if robots could do the job instead. Orbiters, rovers, and landers might work. But Isaacman said humans must be there. He told me that exploration is part of human DNA. He also said this comes with risk. This risk was most clear in the final challenge: returning to Earth.

Returning to Earth was the final and biggest challenge. Victor Glover said re-entry felt like riding a fireball through the atmosphere. As the capsule rushed back, it got very hot. The heat was half as hot as the surface of the Sun.

Watching this ride from Mission Control caused great anxiety. This was especially hard when the signal dropped out for six very long minutes. The capsule was getting close to Earth. The relief was huge when a small white dot appeared above the ocean. Then, Wiseman's voice spoke in Mission Control: "Houston, we have you loud and clear."

The capsule dropped under huge parachutes. It gently splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. The astronauts were back on Earth. The calm atmosphere in Mission Control was gone. The room erupted in celebration. The team in Houston and the thousands who worked on the project had safely brought their friends home.

The Artemis astronauts had an extraordinary experience. They know it will take time to fully understand what happened. They also have a special connection to each other. I spoke to the crew as their journey ended. I asked what they would miss most. Christina Koch answered without hesitation. She said she would miss the camaraderie. She said the crew were now like family.

They went to space as relatively unknown people. Now Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen are household names. It feels like we were in the front row while history was made. This mission gripped millions of people around the world. For a few days, the astronauts took us away from Earth and let us ride along. If NASA achieves its plans and other countries join in, we will all be back for more.