Artemis II crew gets hero's welcome at Canadian Space Agency headquarters in Quebec

The crew of the Artemis II crew touched down at the Canadian Space Agency in Quebec.

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen says it took flying to the far side of the moon as a member of the Artemis II crew to get a new appreciation for how humans work together on Earth.

The 10-day mission launched April 1 from Florida, taking Hansen and this three American crewmates — commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialist Christina Koch — farther from Earth than any humans before them.

The astronauts told The Canadian Press in an interview at Canadian Space Agency headquarters in Longueuil, Que., that the lessons they learned were as much about human connection as science.

Hansen, who also served as a mission specialist, said he was blown away throughout the voyage by “how others show up in ways I would never have imagined.” Those connections ranged from the Anishinaabe artist who created a patch on his flight suit to the team of scientists contributing to the mission, he said.

Hansen said that before the crew launched into space, the science team realized that the astronauts, during their lunar flyby, would be the only humans capable of observing a solar eclipse because of their unique position. The work of the team on the ground, he said, gave him and his three crewmates “this opportunity to capture science that we didn’t even think about ahead of time.”

“The reality of humans is that as long as you open the door and you’re willing to … delegate, or just lift others up to contribute their gifts, it’s going to be much more magnificent than you thought it would be.”

Wiseman said he was surprised by how moved he was to watch the Moon grow larger and the Earth recede.

“We felt our location in the solar system, we could feel where we were between the Earth and the Moon, just by the way the Sun was hitting these two celestial bodies,” he said. “The human element really caught me off guard. It was much more than I ever expected.”

The Artemis II crew received a hero’s welcome on Thursday at the Canadian Space Agency headquarters on Montreal’s South Shore, where Hansen told a cheering crowd that many of the people in the room helped make the mission a success.

“Our team flew around the moon, and Canada was the second country in the world to send a human into deep space and I’ll just say, we did that,” he said, as staff and guests erupted into cheers.

Koch told the crowd that both she and Glover previously came to Canada for training on the Canadarm2 — a robotic arm attached to the International Space Station — and praised the country’s expertise in space hardware.

“I can tell you sincerely, this feels like home,” she said.

The crew then answered questions from federal Industry Minister Melanie Joly, air cadets, and children. The crew were joined by the Canadian Space Agency’s Jenni Gibbons, who was part of the team at NASA’s Mission Control Center during the Artemis mission, and also trained with the crew as the backup astronaut.

Gibbons told The Canadian Press that supporting Hansen on the mission was a career highlight for her and a moment of pride for Canada. “What a huge accomplishment, to have an astronaut in deep space, speaking French around the moon,” she said in an interview.

She said it’s vital for Canada to keep investing in space, especially as NASA moves toward establishing a lunar base. “There’s such a role for logistics and robotics on the surface of the moon, and Canada is so well-positioned to make those contributions,” she said.

Ahead of the question and answer period, Wiseman urged the space agency staff to stay focused and keep working on the technology that will contribute to future space missions.

“We need you now and we need you in the future, because you are a part of this,” he said. “That (Canadian) flag is going to be on the moon and it’s going to be moving robotics everywhere.”

He said the international makeup of the Artemis II crew brought a diversity of perspectives that strengthened the mission and united the world.

“This is an international team, and it’s an international team that just brings richness across the board, blending cultures, blending humans, blending fun, blending moon joy, and bringing the entire world together,” he said. “And we all did that. Thank you.”

The astronauts spent Wednesday in Ottawa, where they met with Prime Minister Mark Carney in his office on Parliament Hill. On Friday, they’ll address members of Montreal’s business community.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2025.

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press