“Maybe the biggest thing I miss from being on the space station is that I had a chance to unwind and process in real time,” Glover says. “I felt profoundly connected to the Earth, actually getting to miss being there.”
For the first time since 1972, there will be a flight to the moon. Four astronauts will embark on the mission — one of them went to Cal Poly.
Victor Glover, who graduated from Cal Poly in 1999 with a degree in general engineering, will be the pilot for the mission, Artemis II.
The main purpose of Artemis II is to test the Orion Spacecraft’s flight fitness and life support as it journeys into deep space, according to NASA. The success of the mission will be a factor in determining when NASA will launch Artemis III, a mission to land on the moon.
Alongside Glover, Reid Wiseman (commander), Christina Koch (mission specialist) and Jeremy Hansen (mission specialist) will embark on Artemis II. Glover, Wiseman and Koch are from NASA, while Hansen is from the Canadian Space Agency.
Glover has gone through rigorous training to minimize risk in space, according to a Cal Poly Magazine article. From physical fitness to learning technical and scientific aspects of the mission, training takes place for at least two years prior to the mission itself.
However, there is still the reality that the crew will be out in the unknown and will be out of contact with Earth for about an hour as they fly around the moon’s farthest side, according to the magazine article.
Artemis II is one of the first major steps in establishing a permanent lunar base and venturing beyond the moon, according to the article. However, even if Artemis II goes perfectly, NASA does not plan on launching Artemis III for at least another year.
The mission will be deemed complete after a successful splashdown, which is expected to see the Orion module land safely in the Pacific Ocean after its 10-day flight.
The mission is aimed to launch in April of 2026, according to NASA.