• 1 min read Artemis II Crew Trains on T-38 Monika Luabeya NASA astronaut Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen take off on a T-38 training flight from Ellington Field on Feb. • 11, 2026, as a waning crescent Moon hovers above. • Koch and Hansen, along with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, are part of NASA’sArtemis II mission, the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. • Artemis II will fly around the Moon and back to test Orion’s systems and capabilities before returning the crew to a splashdown off the California coast. • As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, Artemis will pave the way for new U.S. • crewed missions on the lunar surface in preparation to send the first astronauts to Mars.
Article Summaries:
- NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, joined by Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, completed a T‑38 training flight from Ellington Field on Feb. 11, 2026, ahead of Artemis II. The crew, slated for the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System and Orion spacecraft, will orbit the Moon and return to splash down off California’s coast. The mission will test Orion’s systems and pave the way for future U.S. lunar surface missions and eventual crewed Mars exploration. The training flight underscores the program’s preparation for the upcoming lunar fly‑by.
- On February 11, 2026, NASA astronaut Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen departed Ellington Field in a T‑38 trainer, marking a training milestone for the Artemis II crew. The four‑person team-Koch, Hansen, Reid Wiseman, and Victor Glover-will pilot the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft on the first crewed flight of the program. Artemis II will conduct a lunar fly‑by, testing Orion’s systems before returning to splash down off California’s coast. The mission is part of a broader effort to establish U.S. lunar operations and lay groundwork for future Mars crewed missions.
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