Meet Artemis II Astronaut Victor Glover

Victor Glover, Pilot for NASA's Artemis II mission around the Moon, reflects on the sensation of being far from Earth. He experienced a similar feeling on the Space Station and anticipates it will be even more profound from 200,000 miles away. The Challenger accident when he was ten inspired him to become an astronaut. Glover's biggest challenge was overcoming self-doubt, especially as the first in his family to attend college. He initially had more confidence in his athletic ability than his academic skills but pursued an engineering degree and a challenging technical career in flying. Artemis builds upon Apollo's legacy but also stands on its own as a new program with new objectives. Glover highlights the international crew and spacecraft components, noting that these comparisons enrich the Artemis story. As the pilot, he will have a unique opportunity to manually fly the spacecraft in space during a test mission. While he can't predict his exact feelings when flying past the Moon and seeing Earth from a quarter-million miles away, he emphasizes focus and awareness of the mission's serious risks. Success in passing the baton to Artemis III would truly be a cause for excitement.