Meet NASA’s Artemis II crew, who will usher in a new era of deep-space exploration

The first woman. The first person of color. The first Canadian. The four people who will soon step aboard a spacecraft for the first human moon mission in more than half a century represent a tapestry of historic milestones. The crew of the NASA-led Artemis II mission is set to expand the roster of deep-space explorers beyond the narrow scope of the Apollo-era astronauts — a group exclusively composed of White American men, almost all with military backgrounds. Yet while the astronauts will usher in an era of diversity for deep-space exploration, their credentials echo those of their Apollo counterparts….