Jeremy Hansen: Artemis 2 Canadian astronaut will fly around the moon

astronaut jeremy hansen looking at the camera. he wears an orange spacesuit and the collar is white. behind him is a black background
Artemis 2 mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, who will be the first non-American to leave low Earth orbit. (Image credit: NASA)

Jeremy Hansen is a Canadian space astronaut scheduled to fly around the moon.

Hansen the mission specialist aboard Artemis 2, is expected to start his 10-day mission in November 2024. Flying with Hansen on the moon mission will be three NASA astronauts: commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialist Christina Koch. 

Artemis 2 will be the first spaceflight for Hansen, who is a Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut. But Hansen is highly experienced in other matters. His career experience includes piloting fighter jets for NORAD, mentoring an astronaut class and working in the top echelons of Canadian space policy.

Hansen will be the first non-American to leave low Earth orbit, as all other astronauts who ventured to the moon were Americans during the Apollo program, which brought 24 individuals to lunar realms between 1968 and 1972.

Related: Why will NASA's Artemis 2 only fly around the moon, not orbit or land?

Pre-astronaut career

Hansen was born on Jan. 27, 1976, and grew up in two towns near London, Ont., a city west of Toronto. His work in aerospace began at the tender age of 12 when he joined the 614 Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron of London. 

Hansen earned his Air Cadet glider wings at age 16 and then a year later, at age 17 in 1992, received his private pilot license and was accepted to the Royal Military College Saint-Jean in Quebec. By 1994, thanks to "the discipline and self-confidence" Air Cadets gave Hansen, the youngster was accepted for officer training in the Canadian Armed Forces, his Canadian Space Agency biography states.

After completing basic training in British Columbia, Hansen began a 4-year bachelor's degree in space science at the Royal Military College (initially in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., then graduating from the branch in Kingston, Ont. in 1999.) He completed CF-18 fighter pilot training in 2003.

Hansen then served as a fighter pilot for five years, between 2004 and 2009, with 441 Tactical Fighter Squadron and 409 Tactical Fighter Squadron; he also was Combat Operations Officer at 4 Wing Operations. His work included efforts with NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) and in the Arctic.

Related: Meet Jeremy Hansen, the Canadian astronaut on board Artemis 2 moon mission

Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen poses in front of a CF-18 fighter jet in October 2012, during a trianing flight with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Cold Lake, Alberta. Hansen served there for most of his pilot career prior to joining the CSA. (Image credit: National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces)

Early astronaut career

Hansen was recruited to the CSA after the 2008-09 recruitment campaign that selected two astronauts among 5,350 applicants, the agency stated. Selected alongside Hansen was David Saint-Jacques, who eventually received an International Space Station mission in 2018-19.

The duo graduated from basic astronaut training in 2011, alongside the 2009 NASA astronaut class. Hansen was assigned to capcom duties in Mission Control as well as ongoing mission support. 

Hansen also increased his remote environment experience for simulating spaceflight. For example, he was a crew member in the European Space Agency's Cooperative Adventure for Valuing and Exercising human behaviour and performance Skills (CAVES) program in a cave complex in Sardinia in 2013. He also served with NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) 19, which worked underwater in 2014. 

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen participates in extravehicular activity training at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory near NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. (Image credit: NASA)

Waiting 15 years for space

Canada's contribution to the ISS is modest, at 2.3% according to the CSA. The Canadarm2 used for servicing the ISS and berthing spacecraft is Canada's contribution to the consortium and allowed for flights approximately every six years.

Hansen, therefore, did not fly for a while, as two-time astronaut Chris Hadfield was assigned to an ISS mission in 2012-13 and Saint-Jacques then received his 2018-19 flight. But Hansen picked up significant ground responsibilities in the meantime.

Hansen was assigned as the schedule manager for the 2017 astronaut class, acting as a mentor and training coordinator alike. Behind the scenes, Hansen also worked closely with top Canadian policy-makers. Navdeep Bains, the former minister responsible for the CSA, once tweeted that Hansen was a key voice in forming the space policy surrounding Artemis 2.

The Canadian Space Agency's Canadarm3 funded the seat for Artemis 2. Canadarm3 will service NASA's future Gateway space station. (Image credit: Canadian Space Agency)

Artemis 2's seat for CSA came courtesy of a deal announced in 2019 in which Canada joined NASA-led Artemis Accords for international exploration. Canadarm3 would be that country's contribution, to service the NASA Gateway space station near the moon, and in exchange, Canada would receive seats on Artemis 2 and a Gateway mission.

The crew for Artemis 2, however, was not named until April 3, 2023. Hansen and his three colleagues were brought on stage in front of a packed audience at Ellington Field near Houston during the livestreamed announcement. Should the mission leave in November 2024 as expected, Hansen's first spaceflight will come after 15 years of patiently waiting his turn.

Related: Artemis 2's Canadian astronaut got their moon mission seat with 'potato salad'

Artemis 2 mission specialist Jeremy Hansen.
Jeremy Hansen

Jeremy Hansen is a Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut assigned to Artemis 2, a round-the-moon mission. He will be the first non-American to leave low Earth orbit. He joined the CSA in 2009. Although he hasn't flown yet, his ground responsibilities included mentoring an astronaut class and working in space policy.

What does Artemis 2 mean for you, your family and Canada?

It was really meaningful to talk to my family about that, to share that with my wife and children and my parents and to see how authentically excited my kids were for me. But bigger than all of that, this isn't really about me. I feel a great sense of pride for Canada. And that really hit me.

What are your Artemis 2 duties going to be?

We know we'll have a lot to do, and we know we have to divide some of it up. We also have talked about making sure we get as many hands [as possible] flying the vehicle so that we have more astronauts with that experience and more perspectives.

As someone who has spent their career flying vehicles in high-performance situations, what are you looking forward to with Orion?

It will just be fun for me to learn a new system and put it through its paces. We want to 'buy down' risk on this mission for Artemis 3. So we're not just going to try and get out [to the moon] and back; we're actually going to stress the vehicle intentionally.

This exclusive interview was conducted on April 3, 2023 hours after Jeremy Hansen was named mission specialist on Artemis 2. It has been edited and condensed.

Additional resources

Follow along with Hansen's activities in real time at his Twitter account and Facebook page. Read more about Artemis 2 at NASA's website.

Bibliography

Bains, Navdeep. [@NavdeepSBains]. (2023, April 3).  "What an amazing choice. So proud of @Astro_Jeremy who was instrumental in helping develop the @csa_asc space strategy for #ArtemisII." Twitter. https://twitter.com/NavdeepSBains/status/1642915451561820162

Canadian Space Agency. (2019, December.) Evaluation of Human Space Missions and International Space Station Utilization: Project No. 17/18-02-01. https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/publications/er-1718-0201.asp.

Canadian Space Agency. (2016, June 17). 2009 Astronaut Recruitment Campaign. https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/astronauts/how-to-become-an-astronaut/2009-recruitment-campaign.asp.

Canadian Space Agency. Biography of Jeremy Hansen. (2023, Feb. 2). https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/astronauts/canadian/active/bio-jeremy-hansen.asp.

NASA. (2023, April 5). Our Artemis Crew. https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis-ii/

Elizabeth Howell is the co-author of "Why Am I Taller?" (ECW Press, 2022; with Canadian astronaut Dave Williams), a book about space medicine. Follow her on Twitter @howellspace. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.

Elizabeth Howell
Staff Writer, Spaceflight

Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist) Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission. Her latest book, "Why Am I Taller?", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary instructor in communications and science at several institutions since 2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well) to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace