NASA Commander Reid Wiseman Prepares to Lead Artemis 2 Moon Mission

In just months, Reid Wiseman will lead four astronauts farther from Earth than any humans have traveled in half a century.

The retired Navy captain and test pilot commands Artemis 2, NASA's first crewed moon mission since Apollo 17 in 1972. "It's all I think about," Wiseman told reporters at Johnson Space Center, a natural shift for someone preparing to spend 10 days circling the moon starting April 1.

Wiseman brings serious credentials to the mission. He deployed twice to the Middle East as a Navy aviator and served as a test pilot at the famed Patuxent River station in Maryland. After joining NASA in 2009, he completed a long-duration mission to the International Space Station in 2014 and later served as NASA's chief astronaut.

But his most challenging role came in 2020 when his wife Carroll, a newborn intensive care nurse, passed away from cancer. Wiseman became a single parent to two daughters while maintaining his astronaut career. "Despite a long list of professional accolades, Reid considers his time as an only parent as his greatest challenge and the most rewarding phase of his life," his NASA biography states.

Now his teenage daughters understand both the risks and rewards of their father's upcoming journey. The crew will travel 250,000 miles from Earth, lose contact for 45 minutes on the moon's far side, and reenter Earth's atmosphere at Mach 39. Those numbers would make any parent nervous.

"They understand the risk, but they also understand the value of human exploration," Wiseman explained. His crew includes NASA pilot Victor Glover, the first Black person to leave low Earth orbit, NASA mission specialist Christina Koch, the first woman to venture beyond LEO, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, the first non-American on a moon mission.

The commander emphasized that crew input matters for critical decisions. Before the translunar injection burn that commits them to eight days away from Earth, all four astronauts will discuss together whether they're ready. "The crew matters in that technical decision," he said.

Why This Inspires

Wiseman sees Artemis 2 as bigger than four astronauts chasing personal dreams. American leadership created this opportunity, he notes, but the mission belongs to everyone. "We really want the whole world to feel like they are a part of this mission," he said. "We are all on this journey together."

The Artemis Accords now include over 50 nations working together on space exploration. If all goes according to plan, Artemis 2 will pave the way for the first moon landing since the Apollo era on Artemis 4 in 2028.

For Wiseman, the chance to fly with three exceptional teammates on a mission that inspires global unity makes every risk worthwhile. Right now, only four humans on Earth have this opportunity, and he's one of them.