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NASA astronaut Christina Hammock Koch peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft’s main cabin windows, looking back at Earth, as the crew travels towards the moon on April 4, 2026.<\/p>\n
NASA<\/p>\n
Artemis II was more than a moonshot<\/a>.<\/p>\n It was a chance to board the Orion spacecraft with four astronauts who loved their jobs, worked cohesively as a team and successfully flew around the moon.<\/p>\n Their joy was contagious<\/a>. Their accomplishments were awe-inspiring. And humanity is still \u201cBasking in Reflected Glory\u201d \u2013 or\u00a0BIRGing, as psychologists call it. It\u2019s the phenomenon that occurs after a sports team wins.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cI didn’t have anything to do with these astronauts going on this mission around the moon, but it makes me feel proud of humans and what we can do,\u201d said Eden King, a psychology professor at Rice University. \u201cAnd I can bask in that as well.\u201d<\/p>\n ARTEMIS: What’s next for the Artemis program? When NASA could return to the moon \u2014 and its race with China<\/a><\/p>\n The Artemis II mission lasted nine days, one hour and 32 minutes. Its novelty \u2013 flying humans around the moon<\/a> for the first time since 1972 \u2013 snagged headlines in a fragmented, 24\/7 news cycle.<\/p>\n Then NASA\u2019s live video helped people connect with the crew<\/a>: NASA astronauts Reid\u00a0Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Hammock Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Glover was the first Black man to fly around the moon. Koch was the first woman, and Hansen was the first Canadian.\u00a0<\/p>\n People saw themselves in this crew. And with the live video, they watched as the astronauts worked inside their capsule. They listened as the crew excitedly described seeing the Earth and moon.\u00a0<\/p>\n And many of the astronauts\u2019 comments focused on unity and the beauty of humanity.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou look amazing. You look beautiful,\u201d Glover said to those on Earth, speaking in an interview with ABC News<\/a>. \u201cAnd from up here, you also look like one thing. Homo sapiens is all of us, no matter where you’re from or what you look like. We’re all one people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n A poignant moment came after the crew suggested naming a crater for\u00a0Wiseman\u2019s late wife, Carroll, who died from cancer in 2020. The Artemis II astronauts could be seen wiping away tears and embracing in a group hug.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n King at Rice said humans subconsciously compare themselves to others \u2014 especially others that look or act like themselves. The astronauts\u2019 openness to sharing their perspectives made a difference on this mission.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we see and get to know these people through their public relations, and when they look like us, they genuinely inspire us,\u201d King said of the Artemis II astronauts. \u201cWe make those associations between what they’re doing and what we could possibly do.\u201d<\/p>\n Craving a shared experience<\/p>\n Humans are not new to space. The International Space Station has been sheltering people for an uninterrupted 25 years, and its\u00a0crew members often share photos and participate in live videos.\u00a0<\/p>\n But King said the station\u2019s longevity no longer interrupts human consciousness. It has been taken for granted. The Artemis II mission was new \u2014 and just short enough to remain relevant for today\u2019s attention spans.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n