NASA has named the crew for the Artemis II mission which will fly by the moon next year. It will be a 10-day mission and the first crewed step of the Artemis program (following Artemis 1 in November 2022).

The team consists of American astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

Koch will be the first ever female lunar astronaut, and already holds the record for longest continuous spaceflight by a woman. Glover will be the first black astronaut, and Hansen the first Canadian, to fly by the Moon. 

The crew of four was chosen from a pool of 41 candidates. It marks an important development towards Artemis III planned for 2025 which will land humans on the Moon, including the first woman and person of colour.