Astronauts from NASA’s Artemis II mission reflected Thursday on the quirks, challenges, and broader implications of their historic journey around the moon, offering a mix of humor and insight into what happens during human spaceflight.
Speaking publicly in Houston for the first time since splashdown six days ago, the four-person crew described a mission that took them farther from Earth than humans have traveled before.
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NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, also shared lighter moments from the 10-day mission, including how sleep felt during and after the trip.
Koch joked that following their cramped journey together, the astronauts’ beds aboard the Navy recovery ship felt “way too far” and she suggested pulling them together. The crew splashed down Friday in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.
Koch said sleeping on Earth has been an adjustment because “space sleep is the best sleep.” She also explained how she had to get used to gravity again.
“In the first few days, I thought I was floating,” she said. “I truly thought I was floating, and I had to convince myself I wasn’t.” She added that she had woken up and held a shirt in the air, and when it fell to the ground, “It actually surprised me.”
Hansen, on the other hand, said he’s been sleeping great because he doesn’t have Wiseman “underneath me kicking me.”
Despite the mission’s success, astronauts acknowledged technical hiccups, including issues with the Orion’s toilet system — a topic that drew particular public interest.
Wiseman explained that while the toilet itself worked great, the vent that drains waste to a tank got clogged shortly after the mission started.
Wiseman, the mission’s commander, explained that the tank empties waste into space and said it was “fun” to see it emptied.
“It’s just like a billion little tiny flecks of ice heading out into deep space,” he said.
The hiccup underscored the kind of operational challenges NASA continues to refine ahead of longer and more complex missions, including a planned return to the lunar surface.
Astronauts also addressed the psychological and physical demands of the flight, describing a tightly coordinated team effort in a confined environment.
“Everything we did up there was a four-person activity,” Glover said, adding that even brief phone calls with family members felt like “being teleported out of the vehicle.”
Beyond technical milestones, the crew emphasized the mission’s symbolic importance.
Koch spoke about the significance of NASA’s evolving messaging around the Artemis program. After NASA removed language promising the first woman and person of color on the moon, she emphasized that diversity remains embedded in the astronaut corps itself.
“Our astronaut corps, because of decisions we made collectively decades ago, represents our entire country and our entire world in many ways,” she said. “Decades ago, we made the decision that everyone who has a dream gets to work equally hard to achieve that dream, and then, if we’re not going for all, and by all, we aren’t answering humanity’s call to explore, which is what we do here.”
The next step in the Artemis program is for Artemis III in 2027 to test the lander that will be used on Artemis IV, which will return astronauts to the lunar surface for the first time since 1972.
Wiseman admitted that during the lunar flyby, a lunar landing would have been possible if the resources were available.
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“I’m telling you right now, if we had a first flight lander on board that thing, I know at least three of my crew mates would have been trying to land on the moon,” he said.
But the landing will happen on the Artemis IV mission, which is expected to target a spot near the moon’s south pole in 2028, another stepping stone toward the greater goal of establishing a long-term presence on the moon.
