North Carolina astronaut will see Earth like no human has before
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NASA Astronaut Christina Koch was raised in North Carolina and attended public schools here. Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
Christina Koch, an astronaut raised in North Carolina and educated in the state's public schools, is set to fly around the Moon as soon as next month.
Why it matters: NASA's Artemis II mission marks a new era of space exploration, one that envisions a long-term presence on the Moon and trips to Mars.
- The spaceflight will provide Koch, a noted photographer, and the rest of the crew with a perspective no human has ever seen.
Flashback: Koch was born in Michigan but raised in Jacksonville, North Carolina, a military hub near the coast. She always wanted to be an astronaut, per the Jacksonville Daily News, dreaming of space travel while "looking up through the pine trees" as a kid.
- Marine base Camp Lejeune's diversity was an early source of inspiration, Koch told Onslow County high schoolers in a 2024 visit.
- "I grew up around so many different people from all over the world, so many different languages, so many different ways of being. That is one of the coolest things I took with me from Jacksonville, and I'm so thankful for it."
Catch up quick: Koch in 1997 graduated from the North Carolina School of Science & Math, a public high school in Durham that boards students from around the state.
- "I was completely and utterly intimidated," she said in 2023 about her first days at NCSSM. "I came to learn that through hard work and getting to know people, I could get through those experiences."
Koch called Raleigh home for several years as she studied physics and electrical engineering at N.C. State. She earned two undergraduate degrees and a master's, according to the university.
- "Two things — theoretical understanding and a hands-on approach to problem-solving — came together for me" during those years in Raleigh, Koch said in a 2023 alumni interview.
State of play: The 10-day Artemis II mission will see Koch — aka Mission Specialist I — and three other astronauts fly around the Moon and back.
- It's a dress rehearsal for the Artemis III lunar landing, which is scheduled to launch by 2028 and will take the first astronauts to the Moon since the Apollo missions more than half a century ago.
What we're watching: Koch is an avid photographer and frequently posts transmissions from space. It was in Durham at NCSSM that Koch discovered her passion for photography, her sister told the News & Observer in 2019.
- Because the spacecraft is taking such a long slingshot around the Moon, its crew will see a sight no human ever has — the whole Earth and its Moon lined up in one shot, per CBC Radio's "Quirks & Quarks."
- Another trip to the far side of the Moon, Apollo 8, produced the iconic "Earthrise" image, with our pale blue dot seen rising beyond the rocky lunar surface.
What she's saying: Koch told the Jacksonville high schoolers that seeing North Carolina's coast from the International Space Station was a profound moment for her.
- "Everything you've ever known — every football game, every math test, every speeding ticket, every note I played in band class — is in that picture," Koch told the students.
- "That is exactly why I think we explore, just to see things from a different perspective and learn about ourselves. We're just a planet out in space. We're not the be-all, end-all. This isn't the only way to be, and I absolutely love that," she continued.
Fun fact: Koch once spent 328 days living in space — the longest single spaceflight by a woman — and was part of the first all-female spacewalk, according to NASA.
- She will likely not be the first woman to set foot on the moon, however, because of lifetime limits on the time astronauts can spend in space, per New Scientist.
- Koch has previously worn an NCSSM T-shirt and carried a Wolfpack flag to space.
The latest: Koch has been quarantining in Houston for the past two weeks with the rest of the crew, which includes two other American astronauts and one Canadian.
- After a "wet dress rehearsal" revealed issues Tuesday, the crew is being released from quarantine.
What's next: The next launch window opens March 6.
Editor's note: NASA is pushing back the Artemis II launch one month after experiencing issues during prelaunch tests.