Mission Artemis II | Six unique items on board
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“Pumpkin” combinations
During the first space shuttle missions, astronauts wore white spacesuits. This was the case for Marc Garneau in 1984. After the Challenger explosion in 1986, NASA reviewed its emergency procedures and realized that in the event of rescue at sea, the white would be difficult to see, relates astronaut David Saint-Jacques. We decided to follow the example of the Air Force, which in the 1970s had adopted orange jumpsuits for high-altitude flights, to encourage rescues at sea. In English, they are called “pumpkin” jumpsuits (pumpkin), said Mr. Saint-Jacques.
A not insignificant doggie
PHOTO CHRIS O’MEARA, ARCHIVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Rise dog will fly with the astronauts of the Artemis II mission.
Since that of Yuri Gagarin in 1961, manned space missions have all included a zero-gravity indicator which, when it begins to float in the cabin, indicates that Earth orbit has been reached. That of Artemis II is a doggie, Rise, inspired by the photo Earthrise sketched by the Apollo 8 astronauts in 1968. The drawing was selected from those sent by 2,600 children.
Maple products in space
Each of the four astronauts is entitled to a few personal snacks. Canadian Jeremy Hansen chose maple syrup, supplied by a Quebec producer, and maple cookies. American Commander Reid Wiseman asked for beef jerky from his native South, pilot Victor Glover for hot sauces, and Christina Koch for mango smoothies.
A tribute to the First Nations
IMAGE PROVIDED BY THE CANADIAN SPACE AGENCY
The patch of Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen
Jeremy Hansen has his own mission patch, designed expressly for him by Manitoba Anishnabe artist Henry Guimond. The astronaut asked after attending a sacred ceremony in 2023 in his community. The crest includes animals symbolizing respect (bison), love (eagle), courage (bear), honesty (a mythological primate), wisdom (the beaver, Mr. Hansen’s favorite), humility (the wolf) and truth (the turtle), as well as “Grandmother Moon.”
A private toilet
PHOTO PROVIDED BY NASA
Life-size replica of the capsule Orion in which the astronauts practiced before the mission, at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston
During the Apollo missions, astronauts had to do all their natural needs in plastic bags in the common room. Artemis II astronauts consider themselves “lucky” to have a private toilet, accessible from a door on the floor of the capsule Orion. It is the size of a small airliner toilet. The astronauts will spend the duration of the mission in a restricted living space of around 9 m3.
A nod to Apollo 18
PHOTO ASHLEY LANDIS, ARCHIVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
Apollo program artifacts housed at NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston
In 1970, after Apollo 13, NASA canceled the last two planned lunar missions, Apollo 18 and 19. The Soviets’ abandonment of their lunar project made such an expense unnecessary. An American flag that was to be installed on the Moon during Apollo 18 will circle the Moon with Artemis II. The lunar capsule will also carry a piece of canvas from the Wright brothers’ plane which made the first powered flight in history in 1903.
