Prior to every episode of Star Trek, Captain James T. Kirk, played by Canadian William Shatner, would proclaim his desire ‘to boldly go where no man has gone before.’
Fellow Canadian Jeremy Hansen will have the chance to do just that, only this time in actual space.
Hansen was among four astronauts named to the crew of Artemis II, which aims to be the first to fly around the moon, currently scheduled to launch in November of 2024.
Such an announcement would be exciting on its own, but the fact the United States’ NASA opted to include a Canadian makes it all the more intriguing. Though we may be loath to admit it, Canada’s space program simply isn’t advanced enough to conduct a mission of this nature-though we’ve certainly made our mark in outer space from the likes o Roberta Bondar to the Canadarm to Chris Hadfield. NASA no doubt had a healthy list of applicants to shift through when selecting their final four for this historic mission. Granted a very few select individuals in the world can be qualified as astronauts-NASA currently has 41 listed as ‘active’ astronauts. The fact they went out of their way to select a Canadian is noteworthy-but also clever on their part. While the entire world will likely have a keen interest in this mission, Canadians are sure to be that much more engaged in the coming months.
That’s not to say Hansen isn’t deserving. For over a decade he’s been cleared for space travel, having gone through all the rigorous training without ever knowing if he’d have the opportunity. A quick internet search indicates 565 have reached the necessary height to be considered to have left Earth’s atmosphere and entered into space. That’s easily less than one per cent of the world’s population. Much fewer, 12 total, have actually walked on the moon. Though Hansen’s mission won’t afford him the opportunity to actually land on the moon, if all goes to plan, he’ll fly completely around it in a figure eight pattern, something that has never been done.
Artemis II’s mission is sure to ignite the next generation’s fascination with space travel. At one point or another, every kid has looked up at a full moon on a clear night and fantasized about walking on its surface. Hard as it may be to believe, next year’s mission would be the first crewed mission to the moon since the final Apollo expedition, way back in 1972. Apollo 11’s successful moon landing on July 16, 1969, was a generational event. The type of event anyone alive at the time can recall where he or she was when watching it unfold. That moment spawned a new found obsession with space travel and a wave of sci-fi fantasy unlike anything seen before it.
Ideally this upcoming mission will do the same. The fact a young generation of Canadians will be able to see one of their own making history could be the catalyst that sparks an interest in science and technology. Perhaps in the not so distant future it will be a team of Canadians who graciously invite another nation to join their crew as they look to explore the final frontier.
-Adam Prudhomme