Listen: In November 2024, astronaut Jeremy Hansen will take one giant leap for both space exploration and his country, Canada. He will be the first non-American to fly to the moon. Hansen has been selected as one of the four crew members of Artemis II - the NASA-led mission to send humans to and around the moon for the first time in more than fifty years.
In the first episode of Next Giant Leap, a podcast produced in partnership between GZERO Media and the space company MDA, Jeremy Hansen tells host Kevin Fong why he believes humanity needs to return to the moon, and how a successful Artemis 2 flight will pave the way for the first attempt to land two people on the lunar surface since the Apollo era.
Jeremy Hansen is candid about the risks which he and his crewmates will be taking on their historic ten-day mission. He’s also philosophical about the long wait he has had for his first opportunity to voyage into space.
Jeremy Hansen. Credit: NASA
Jeremy Hansen
Astronaut, Canadian Space Agency & Mission Specialist of the Artemis II mission
Jeremy Hansen was selected to be an astronaut by the Canadian Space Agency in 2009. Prior to becoming an astronaut, Colonel Hansen served as a CF-18 fighter pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In 2023, NASA announced that Jeremy Hansen will be one of the four astronauts aboard its Artemis 2 mission. This will be the first mission to send humans to and around the moon in more than fifty years. Jeremy will be the first non-American on a lunar flight.
Kevin Fong. Credit: Anthony Cullen
Dr. Kevin Fong (host)
Professor, Department of Science, Technology, Education and Public Policy (STEaPP) at University College London
Kevin Fong is a senior emergency care physician and anesthesiologist in the UK’s National Health Service. He is also an expert in space medicine and has worked as a researcher in NASA’s human spaceflight program in Houston. He is also a broadcaster who has hosted many radio and television shows, and podcasts on space flight and exploration. They include the BBC hit podcast ‘13 Minutes to the Moon’.
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