Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen part of Artemis II mission to fly to moon

Image: NASA Twitter video capture

An exciting day for Canadians!

“Fifty-years after the end of the Apollo missions, we are going back to the moon! Back to the moon” exclaimed Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Francois-Phillipe Champagne!

He was in Houston for the historic announcement.

A Canadian astronaut will be aboard the Artemis II mission set to fly to the moon.

Jeremy Hansen, a former fighter pilot will be part of the four-person crew on the Orion spacecraft, set to launch next year.  He currently works on astronaut training and mission operations.

The 47-year-old says “A Canadian is going to the moon, with our international partnership, and it is glorious.”

Hansen says he’s in awe of what Canada’s ‘can-do’ attitude can achieve, along with big goals and the right leadership.

“We are going to the moon together,” Hansen said.  “Let’s go!”

This comes after Artemis I made an un-crewed mission to the moon in December of last year, for a 1.4 million mile journey.

Here they are. @SenBillNelson announces the #Artemis II crew, the next astronauts to fly around the Moon:@Astro_Christina@Astro_Jeremy@AstroVicGlover@Astro_Reid

We go together. https://t.co/XdUizg2Wye pic.twitter.com/6Yo4I2lKeJ

— NASA (@NASA) April 3, 2023