As the Artemis II crew made their final approach home today, one of America's most prominent astronaut-turned-lawmakers paused to reflect on what the mission means, not just for space exploration, but for the next generation watching from Earth.
Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a former NASA astronaut himself, took to social media as the four-person crew prepared for splashdown off the coast of San Diego, sharing a message that was less about the mission's technical achievements and more about its power to inspire.
"Somewhere out there a kid is watching this mission who might be inspired to study science and engineering and one day be the first person to walk on another planet," Sen. Kelly wrote. "That's one of the reasons why space exploration matters, and why Artemis II matters."
Watching History Being Made
In a separate statement, Kelly opened up about his complicated feelings while watching the mission unfold from the Senate floor rather than from above the horizon.
"I would love to be able to do this right now," he said. "I'd have to miss some votes in the Senate to do it, but to go around the moon would be incredible, or go to the surface of the moon."
Kelly, who logged nearly a year aboard the International Space Station, admitted the mission stirred something personal. As a child, he said, he dreamed of being the first person to set foot on Mars, a dream he now recognizes belongs to someone else.
"Obviously, I was born in the wrong decade, maybe even the wrong century, to do that," he said. "But there's a kid out there, watching today, probably, who's watching this mission and is going to be possibly inspired to pursue a career in science and engineering and might be that first person that takes that first step on another planet."
Kelly's comments came as the Artemis II crew, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, completed a 694,481-mile journey that marked humanity's first return to the vicinity of the Moon since 1972.
Splashdown is targeted for 8:07 p.m. EDT in the Pacific Ocean.
