NASA Astronauts Reveal Highs and Unexpected Moments on Their Journey to the Moon in First Interview from Artemis II
By LAUREN ACTON-TAYLOR, US NEWS REPORTER and ANNA WRIGHT, US REPORTER
The four NASA astronauts making their way as a part of the historic moon mission on Artemis II have given their first interview from the spacecraft.
Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen chatted to ABC and Fox News at Night, revealing the incredible details about their lives on Orion.
The team shared how they are sleeping in space, the shocking twist on launch day, and the spectacular moment that made them pause amid their race to the moon.
Speaking to ABC, Wiseman explained the crew had been surviving on just two short naps, joking that ‘sleeping in space is a comical thing.’
‘Christina has been sleeping heads down in the middle of the vehicle, kind of like a bat suspended from our docking tunnel,’ Wiseman said.
‘Victor has a nice little nook wedged in there. And then Jeremy has been stretched out on seat one, and I’ve been sleeping under under the displays, just in case anything goes wrong,’ he added.
The team revealed that they were absolutely stunned by how smoothly launch day went.
As the countdown neared to its final seconds before takeoff, the SLS rocket was fired on the first attempt.
‘We like to say that we’re prepared without having an expectation — but, in the back of your mind, you kind of hope you launch,’ Glover told Fox News at Night.
‘And then when we got really close, it was like, “Wait, we’re getting ready to go to space?”‘
Glover recalled the surge of exhilaration he felt when he realized the launch had succeeded.
Artemis II crew, from left, Canadien astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, Commander Reid Wiseman, mission specialist Christina Koch and pilot Victor Glover as they speak with NASA Mission Control
Artemis II launched from the Kennedy Space Center Wednesday evening, as one Southwest Airlines passenger captured incredible footage of the rocket soaring through the sky
‘It was a ride where you’re trying to be professional, but the kid inside you wants to break out and just hoot and holler,’ he quipped.
A breathtaking moment of the spacecraft reorienting left the team frozen mid-mission on their race to the moon.
‘There was a moment about an hour ago where Mission Control Houston reoriented our spacecraft as the sun was setting behind the earth,’ Wiseman said.
‘And I don’t know what we all expected to see at that moment, but you could see the entire globe, from pole to pole.
‘You could see Africa, Europe, and if you looked really close, you could see the northern lights. It was the most spectacular moment, and it paused all four of us in our tracks,’ he gushed.
The team set off on Wednesday, marking humanity’s first mission to reach the moon since 1972.
This monumental journey is expected to travel a maximum distance from Earth of 252,799 miles, crushing the Apollo 13 record by 4,144 miles.
‘We are not necessarily a crew that lives on superlatives, but this is a milestone that’s important,’ Koch said when asked how the team felt about becoming the first humans to travel this far into space.
‘We’re here to build a legacy for the future,’ she added, praising not only her crew but the entire NASA team that helped make their journey possible
The astronauts gave a warm shout out to their friends and families, thanking them for their love and support in this career milestone. Read The Full Article Click Here
Original source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15702975/passenger-view-artemis-launch-plane-southwest.html