The first humans to walk on the Moon since 1972 are getting ready to head back. Not to land, but to fly around it.
Reid Wiseman is the man steering that effort. As the commander of the Artemis II mission, he is leading the crew on a nine-day loop around the lunar surface. The launch is scheduled for April 1, 2026. It is the first crewed trip to the Moon since Apollo 17 touched down in December 1972.
Wiseman didn’t just stumble into this role. He grew up in Baltimore. Even as a kid, he was obsessed with rockets. That childhood curiosity stuck. He was selected as an astronaut in 2009. It took time. But when space finally called, he was ready.
Before this mission, he already knew the view from orbit. In 2014, he spent 165 days aboard the International Space Station. That long-duration flight gave him experience in the daily grind of living in microgravity. It’s not just about the big moments. It’s about the routine. The isolation. The work.
Now, he faces a different kind of challenge. Artemis II isn’t about staying put. It’s about going far. Further than any crewed spacecraft has gone since the Apollo era.
Why does this matter? Because it sets the stage for landing. For staying. For building a permanent presence. Wiseman and his crew are the test flight. The proof of concept. If they succeed, the door opens. If they fail, the timeline shifts.
There is no room for error here. The stakes are high. The technology is new. The risks are real.
But Wiseman has flown before. He has seen the Earth from above. He knows what it takes to survive in space. This time, he is leading the charge toward a destination that has been waiting for half a century.
The moon is closer now. Not in distance, but in reach. And Wiseman is at the helm.
