Objective moon. Christina Koch, 44, the first woman to take part in a lunar mission

He is about to embark on a ten-day journey into space. Christina Koch will indeed take part in the Artemis II mission in 2024, NASA announced on Monday, April 3. Thus, she will become the first female astronaut to take part in a lunar mission. Make no mistake about it, an American engineer will not set foot on the moon. Christina Koch and the other three members of her team will simply stretch around the satellite, aiming to prepare for the return of humans to the lunar soil (the last person to walk there did so in 1972). NASA intends to create a base there and build a space station around the star.

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328 days in space

Christina Koch passionately brought up this expedition during a NASA press conference in Houston. “Am I enthusiastic?” said the 44-year-old cosmonaut. Absolutely, but I’ll put the question back to you. Because what excites me the most is knowing that your enthusiasm, your aspirations, your dreams will carry us through the Artemis II mission.” Surprised by this upcoming trip, the American engineer, designated mission specialist, however, is not the first attempt.

Within a decade, the 40-year-old man has already made six space walks. He even has two records. The longest continuous flight of a woman in space – 328 days – was carried out in 2019. At the time, he was a flight engineer on the International Space Station. And the first 100% female spacewalk, obviously outside of any spacecraft, was with another astronaut, Jessica Mair, in October of that year. In total, he spent 42 hours and 15 minutes on this type of missions.

closer to the stars

A dream come true for this kid from Grand Rapids, Michigan, who always aimed for the stars. “I can’t remember a single moment when I didn’t dream of becoming an astronaut,” he confided in 2020, when he joined the Artemis I mission, the first part of the program designed to return to the Moon. Very early on, the little girl was “thinking about the size of the universe, its place, and all there is to explore.”

“Ever since I was little, I’ve been someone who likes to push boundaries,” he continues in his 2020 video. I have always been inspired by the night sky and have found a balance between engineering in my career. space missions and scientific experiments in remote locations around the world.”

A year at the South Pole

After earning a bachelor’s degree in physics and electrical engineering and a master’s degree from North Carolina State University, Christina Koch began a career as an electrical engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. And contributes to the development of scientific instruments used in certain space missions. He is no less eager to explore.

From 2004 to 2007, he worked as a researcher in the United States Antarctic Program; an experience that led him to spend an entire year at the South Pole Research Station. “I spent months without seeing the sun, living with the same team and without getting mail or fresh food,” he confided later. Isolation, lack of family and friends around me (…) forced me to develop a strategy to maintain my mental health.

group 21

It was in 2013, after working as an electrical engineer at Johns Hopkins University’s Space Department and at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, that Christina Koch’s fondest wish came true. He then joined the 21st^e NASA Academy Promotion. At the end of the day, two years of training to become an astronaut.

Since then, the scientist has taken a series of spacewalks and documented his extraordinary daily life on Instagram, where he has 435,000 followers. We see him indulged in his passions of surfing, sailing and mountain climbing, but also photography. He posts pictures he took from the International Space Station or poses with his fellow astronauts. And when Christina Koch isn’t weightless, Robert, her husband since 2015, and their dog, LBD, help keep her feet on the ground.

“To my star sisters.”

Christina Koch knows well that she is an exception in a world where women make up only 11% of astronauts. That’s why she campaigns for gender equality on her Twitter account. On April 1, Women’s History Month, a day that celebrates the vital role women have played in American history, she wrote: Station:

Before adding: “Why is this important? For me, it’s about creating more successful missions and building a world where people with dreams have an equal chance to achieve them. To my star sisters. Before Christina Koch, they were 72 years old when they went into space. None of them have set foot on the Moon (yet).

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