On April 1st, four astronauts launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the Artemis II mission, aiming to make history with a crewed flight orbiting the moon as one of the mission’s primary objectives. One of these astronauts is Christina Koch, who has not only made history as an Artemis II crew member but also throughout her impressive career. Here are some of these notable moments:
Spearheaded First All-Female Spacewalk:
Koch and fellow NASA astronaut Jessica Meir completed the first all-female spacewalk in October 2019, and since then, multiple have occurred. A spacewalk is when an astronaut completes work in space, usually spending between 5 to 8 hours outside of their spacecraft. In Koch and Meir’s case, they spent multiple hours replacing a power controller outside of the International Space Station.
Longest Single Spaceflight By a Woman:
From March 2019 to early 2020, Koch spent 328 days straight aboard the International Space Station, helping researchers gain insight into the medical effects of prolonged space travel on women in the process.
First Woman to Travel Beyond Low Earth Orbit:
Low Earth Orbit refers to the space that is closest to Earth, which ranges from about 100 to 1,200 miles from the surface of the Earth. As an Artemis II crew member, Koch is now the first woman to have travelled beyond this distance.
First Woman to Orbit the Moon:
Artemis II has now successfully orbited the moon, passing the lunar far side on April 6th. This historic moment denotes the first time a woman (or a human in general) has encountered this side of the moon.
One of Four to Travel the Farthest from Earth:
Since humans have never passed the lunar far side of the moon until now, this mission marks the farthest that humans have ever travelled from Earth. Koch is one of four people in history who can say they have accomplished this feat.