President Donald J. Trump presented the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the four-person crew of the Artemis II mission at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Key facts
- •The Congressional Space Medal of Honor was established by Congress in 1969 to recognize exceptionally brave and meritorious service.
- •There have been 34 recipients of the award since the beginning of the U.S. space program.
- •The Artemis II crew included three NASA astronauts and one astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency.
- •The mission included a lunar flyby and set a new record for the farthest distance humans have traveled from Earth.
- •NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman stated that the mission demonstrated American leadership and exploration capabilities.
President Donald J. Trump awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen on August 28, 2026. The ceremony took place at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, honoring the crew for their service during the Artemis II mission. These are the first individuals to receive the medal since 2023.
By the numbers
Record-Setting Artemis II Mission
The Artemis II mission launched on April 1, 2026, and concluded with a safe splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on April 10. The crew traveled aboard the Orion spacecraft, which they named Integrity, and were the first to launch on NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. During the mission, the astronauts reached a distance of 252,756 miles from Earth, surpassing the previous record set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970. In total, the crew flew 695,081 miles, including a lunar flyby.
Future Artemis Program Goals
The Artemis II mission serves as a precursor to upcoming exploration efforts. NASA plans to conduct the Artemis III test flight in 2027 to demonstrate rendezvous and docking capabilities between the Orion spacecraft and commercial human landing systems. This will be followed by the Artemis IV mission in 2028, which is intended to return American astronauts to the lunar surface. Long-term goals for the program include establishing a base on the Moon to support future human missions to Mars.
Timeline
- April 1, 2026The Artemis II mission launched from Earth.
- April 10, 2026The crew splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean.
- August 28, 2026President Trump awarded the crew the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
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This article was independently rewritten by ManyPress editorial AI from reporting originally published by NASA Breaking News.
