{"id":3365,"date":"2026-08-04T04:05:05","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T04:05:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3365"},"modified":"2026-08-04T04:05:05","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T04:05:05","slug":"artemis-ii-astronauts-reflect-on-space-journey-at-red-rocks-it-was-always-our-hope-that-the-mission-would-move-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3365","title":{"rendered":"Artemis II astronauts reflect on space journey at Red Rocks: \u2018It was always our hope that the mission would move people\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cHow did it feel to look back at Earth?\u201d a small voice asked the astronauts. A line of children waiting to pop their own questions snaked from the boy standing at the shortened microphone into the wings of Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Monday.<\/p>\n

Read more Rescue team finds body of a boater who went missing at southern Colorado lake<\/a><\/p>\n

Christina Koch, one of four astronauts who manned NASA\u2019s Artemis II mission in April, smiled and stood from her chair, raising a thumb to the crowd and inviting everyone watching to do the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine you can cover up the entire Earth with your thumb,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s how small it was to us. Looking out at it, you couldn\u2019t necessarily recognize continents, you couldn\u2019t necessarily recognize rivers or oceans \u2026 but what you knew was that was home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koch, a mission specialist on Artemis II, and her crewmates \u2014 commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen \u2014 launched beyond Earth\u2019s atmosphere on April 1, becoming the first in human history to see the far side of the moon.<\/p>\n

The crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean nine days, one hour, 32 minutes and 15 seconds after launching, NASA communications manager Marcia Lindstrom told the crowd gathered at Red Rocks on Monday.<\/p>\n

When Koch was on the International Space Station during previous expeditions, the Earth looked fragile, she said. She could see the thin, blue line of the planet\u2019s atmosphere, reminding her of the \u201ctiny little space that keeps us all alive and gives us what we all need to stay alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

But from far away, near the moon, she said it looked powerful. It looked like a lifeboat, an \u201coasis hanging in the universe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The four astronauts took the stage shortly after 10 a.m. Monday. Just over two hours earlier, before the venue\u2019s doors even opened, traffic had already slowed to a crawl in Morrison and several of Red Rock\u2019s parking lots were full. Even after staff started scanning tickets, dense lines of eager fans wound down the amphitheater\u2019s stairs and ramps.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was always our hope that the mission would move people,\u201d Koch said. \u201cIt was never about us becoming well-known or anything, but just this desire that people would be motivated, inspired and see themselves reflected in the universe as we did in this journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Red Rocks Amphitheatre, a popular concert venue carved into the rock in Colorado, fits more than 9,500 people. Every seat was filled Monday morning.<\/p>\n

Children and adults alike sat on the edge of their seats, decked out in NASA and Artemis gear. When the astronauts walked onto the stage, applause thundered for nearly two minutes.<\/p>\n

The astronauts walked the Red Rocks audience through their historic launch and mission using photos and videos, along with behind-the-scenes commentary. They shared memories, like when Koch had to teach Hansen \u2014 the mission\u2019s only rookie \u2014 how to use the bathroom in space, and how they\u2019re adjusting to life back on Earth, some having to relearn how to set items down on counters instead of in midair, made possible in space by the lack of gravity.<\/p>\n

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Even after the go-ahead was given on launch day, the reality of setting out to orbit the moon didn\u2019t sink in until the boosters fired, Glover said. He said he was in awe throughout the mission, but excitement didn\u2019t replace his focused mindset until they landed back on Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just amazing the reach that this had,\u201d Glover said. \u201cI hope the future missions continue to \u2026 remind us what we\u2019re capable of \u2014 not in spite of our differences, but when we bring those differences together to collaborate for good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more 102-degree day in Denver topples 148-year-old record<\/a><\/p>\n

The Artemis II mission\u2019s success was supported and boosted by more than 250 Colorado companies, according to the governor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor about 40 minutes, when Orion crossed behind the moon, there was no radio signal,\u201d Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said. \u201cThat feels like a lifetime in spaceflight. When Orion came back around, and Mission Control heard the voices again, we knew the crew module designed and developed right here in Littleton had gotten the job done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Colorado has the country\u2019s highest concentration of aerospace jobs, and its universities produce more than a quarter of the country\u2019s astronautical engineers, Polis said. The state\u2019s aerospace industry \u201cdrives innovation, empowers our economy, keeps the nation safe (and) explores the frontiers of science,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Artemis III, which is expected to launch sometime next year, will take the next step toward putting humans back on the moon\u2019s surface by testing the docking mechanism for \u201clanders,\u201d said Lori Glaze, the associate administrator for NASA\u2019s Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate.<\/p>\n

Landers, also known as human landing systems, are smaller spacecraft that take astronauts down to the surface of the moon or other planets. After Artemis IV puts humans back on the moon, tentatively scheduled for 2028, the goal is to use the series of Artemis missions to learn and prepare for travel to Mars, Glaze said.<\/p>\n

The most difficult part of those missions will be the psychological aspect, Glover said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMars at its closest is 35 million miles (from Earth), and it\u2019s as far as 250 million miles on the other side of the sun,\u201d Glover said. \u201cYou\u2019re going to be so far from home, food, comfort, your loved ones, everything that you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, unlike the moon missions, astronauts won\u2019t be able to look up at the sky and see Earth, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cArtemis, along with our Moon Base program, comprises the most daring, technically challenging, collaborative, and international endeavor that humanity has ever attempted,\u201d Glaze said. \u201cWe are going to reach farther. We\u2019re going to dream bigger, and we\u2019re going to secure America\u2019s leadership in deep space exploration and discovery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Glaze said her greatest inspiration comes from recognizing that Artemis is more than a program; it\u2019s a promise made to the next generation. Students across the world will take up the reins and push space exploration farther than ever before, she said.<\/p>\n

To the kids who want to be astronauts someday, the Artemis space explorers offered four pieces of advice: remain curious about the world, be a resilient and lifelong learner, reach out for support and do what scares you.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t go to the moon on our own,\u201d Hansen said. \u201cYoung people need to understand: If they tell people where they\u2019re trying to go, they\u2019re going to find out that people will help them get there. They can\u2019t do it on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more 25 states sue over Trump\u2019s new tariffs, calling them \u2018pretext\u2019 to replace his old ones<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Artemis II crew, the first to see the far side of the moon, reflected on their journey at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado on Monday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3364,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colorado-news","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nArtemis II astronauts reflect on space journey at Red Rocks: \u2018It was always our hope that the mission would move people\u2019 - Colorado Springs Moverss<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=3365\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Artemis II astronauts reflect on space journey at Red Rocks: \u2018It was always our hope that the mission would move people\u2019 - 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