NASA to Announce New Astronaut Class, Preview Artemis II Moon Mission

NASA will debut its 2025 class of astronaut, evaluated more than 8,000 applications

(NASA) — NASA will host a multi-day event to introduce America’s newest astronaut class and provide briefings for the Artemis II crewed test flight around the Moon.

The activities will take place in September at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

After evaluating more than 8,000 applications, NASA will debut its 2025 class of astronaut candidates during a ceremony at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, September 22.

The astronaut selection event will stream live on NASA+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, NASA’s YouTube channel, and the agency’s X account.

The selected candidates will undergo nearly two years of training before they graduate as flight-eligible astronauts for agency missions to low Earth orbit, the Moon, and ultimately, Mars.

Next, NASA will preview the upcoming Artemis II mission, slated for no later than April 2026.

The test flight, a launch of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, will send NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on an approximately 10-day mission around the Moon.

Artemis II will help confirm the systems and hardware needed for human deep space exploration. This mission is the first crewed flight under NASA’s Artemis campaign and is another step toward new U.S.-crewed missions on the Moon’s surface that will help the agency prepare to send American astronauts to Mars.

The Artemis II events briefings will stream live on the agency’s YouTube channel and X account. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms.

Following the briefings, NASA will host an Artemis II media day at NASA Johnson on September 24 to showcase mission support facilities, trainers, and hardware for Artemis missions, as well as offer interview opportunities with leaders, flight directors, astronauts, scientists, and engineers.

Information for the astronaut candidate selection and Artemis II events, including briefing participants, is as follows:

Monday, September 22 at 12:30 p.m.: 2025 Astronaut Candidate Selection Ceremony

Tuesday, September 23 at 10 a.m.: Artemis II Mission Overview Briefing

● Lakiesha Hawkins, acting deputy associate administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
● Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, Artemis launch director, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida
●Judd Frieling, lead Artemis II ascent flight director, NASA Johnson
● Jeff Radigan, lead Artemis II flight director, NASA Johnson
● Rick Henfling, lead Artemis II entry flight director, NASA Johnson
● Daniel Florez, test director, Exploration Ground Systems, NASA Kennedy

Tuesday, September 23 at 12 p.m.: Artemis II Science and Technology Briefing

● Matt Ramsey, Artemis II mission manager, NASA Headquarters
● Debbie Korth, deputy Orion Program manager, NASA Johnson
● Jacob Bleacher, manager, Science, Technology Utilization, and Integration, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
● Mark Clampin, acting deputy associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters

Wednesday, September 24 at 10 a.m.: Artemis II Crew News Conference

● Reid Wiseman, commander
● Victor Glover, pilot
● Christina Koch, mission specialist
● Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist

Learn more about how NASA leads human spaceflight efforts.

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