For millennia a constantly present yet ever-changing shining celestial object in the sky captivated humans. Similarly, the Canadian native Jeremy Roger Hansen was always fascinated by space and used to dream of going near the Luna. Well, nearly four decades later, Hansen has made his dream come true as he will become the first non-American astronaut to fly to the moon.

The topic of space exploration and the moon had been only the indulgence of human imagination for a long time. However, since Apollo 11, humans have been more ambitious than they have ever become.

As Buzz Aldrin followed Neil Armstrong onto the moon’s surface, he said Beautiful, Beautiful. Magnificient desolation. Dear selenophile readers, today in this article, our piece of commentary will focus on Jeremy Roger Hansen biography. Likewise, we will get to know more about the latest updates on what’s happening with the mission of our only satellite.

Fueled By Love of Airplane, Destined to Become A Space-Man

Jeremy Roger Hansen was born on January 27, 1976, in London, Ontario, Canada, to parents Gary Hansen and Nancy Hansen. He grew up on a farm near Ailsa Craig and later moved to Ingersoll for his high school education.

Fueled by a love of airplanes, Jeremy’s fascination with rockets, space, and the moon began when he was 5. His mom Nancy recalled that as a kid, he used to sit for hours looking at pictures of Neil Armstrong in a volume of the encyclopedia.

Since his childhood, Hansen has adored science and technology. His father, Gary, recalls that Jeremy, as a kid, had a very strong interest in science, technology, and space. Further, Gary recalls that his son’s passion never went away since he told him about the Canadian Air Cadet program.

Therefore at 12, Jeremy joined the program, and his journey into aviation began. The family visited the Kennedy Space Center as they planned a family trip to Florida. Likewise, the Hansens tried tied to fulfill every possible demand of their son. After achieving his dream of becoming an astronaut, Hansen credits his parents and teachers, who helped him believe in himself. At 17, Hansen earned his pilot’s license.

Hansen graduated from Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute in Ontario. Afterward, he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Space Science with First class honors from the Royal Military College, Ontario(1999). From the same college, Hansen completed a Master of Science degree in physics in 2000 with a research focus on a wide field of view satellite tracking.

After all those long, hard years of dreaming and waiting, Hansen will be the first Canadian to orbit the Earth’s satellite and the first non-American astronaut to make the trip in 2024. Scroll down to learn how Hansen became one of the members of an expedition that is happening after nearly 50 years.

What is Artemis II Mission?

The 2018 biographical movie First Man follows the years leading up to the Apollo 11 mission to the moon in 1969. And maybe in the future, we will be seeing documentation of Artemis II and its depiction on the big screen. Now, let’s learn more about Artrmis programs.

The Artemis program is a robotic and human Moon exploration program led by NASA, and after Artemis I, there will be three other lunar landing missions dated up to 2028.

Artemis I was an unmanned moon-orbiting mission launched on November 16, 2022. The 2024 NASA’s Artemis II lunar mission will send astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972, a period of almost 50 years. The Orion spacecraft, powered by a Space Launch System rocket, will carry astronauts on a lunar flyby around the moon. Therefore, Artemis II will be the first crewed mission currently planned to be launched by the Space Launch System (SLS) in November 2024.

Artemis II features a free-return trajectory and is the final test before the Artemis 3 crewed lunar landing mission in 2025. The Artemis II crew includes NASA astronaut and pilot Victor Glover, NASA astronaut and mission scientist Christina Koch, NASA astronaut and commander Reid Wiseman, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen.

In early 2023, the Biden administration’s budget framework proposed $27.2 Billion for NASA in 2024, which would include increased funding for Artemis. The Budget fully funds the rockets, crew vehicles, lunar landers, space suits, and other systems needed to fly astronauts around the Moon on the Atrtemis II mission.

With Artemis II, the four pioneers will fly into space; they will launch on 8.8 million pounds of thrust; they will pilot Orion and test its life support system; they will venture 600,000 miles around the moon and back. Further, they will return to Earth at 30 times the speed of sound.

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Why Jeremy Hansen As A First Canadian For Artemis II is a Big Deal?

In 2020, the Canadian Space Agency secured Jeremy Hansen’s spot for Artemis II 2020 through an agreement with NASA. As per the agreement, Canada committed to provide a robotic arm called the Canadarm3 for Gateway, an American-led outpost spacecraft that is to orbit the moon. The outpost spacecraft orbiting the Moon will provide vital support for a sustainable, long-term return of astronauts to the lunar surface.

On April 3, 2023, NASA’s Artemis II moon crew was unveiled to the world, standing on a stage at Ellington Field near Johnson Space Center in Houston. Through Artemis II, Hansen will be flying to the moon is the first time in space. Hansen is a colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Further, Hansen will be the first Non-American to leave low Earth orbit, and

After the news broke, the Canadian prime minister,  Justin Trudeau, congratulated Hansen and the team. He said there are only 24 people in the history of the world who’ve seen the full circle of the earth, and they’re all Americans. Trudeau congratulated Hansen as he will be the first Canadian, the first non-American, which is a big deal.

For all those accomplishments, he has been waiting longer than any other Canadian astronaut to go to space.

Learn About Artemis II Crew

Besides Hansen, there are three other members of Artemis II. Let’s take a look.

Reid Wiseman spent 165 days in Earth orbit on his first mission, a 2014 flight to the ISS. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, and former fighter pilot for the U.S. Navy, he was selected for NASA’s 20th astronaut class in 2009. Wiseman recently served as chief of NASA’s astronaut office from 2020 to 2022.

Victor Glover became a NASA astronaut in 2013. He flew as pilot of SpaceX’s first operational crewed spaceflight (Crew-1) and logged 167 days on the ISS in 2021. Born in Pomona, California, he is an engineer and captain in the U.S. Navy. Glover was the first Black astronaut to serve on a space station crew.

Christina Koch was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and raised in Jacksonville, North Carolina. A member of NASA’s 21st astronaut class selected in 2013, Koch set a record aboard the International Space Station for the single longest mission by a woman at 328 days. During that 2019 stay, she was also one-half of the first-ever all-female spacewalk. Koch is an engineer and former U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) station chief.

Jeremy Hansen’s Wife is A Medical Doctor

Jeremy Hansen’s wife, Catherine Hansen, is a medical doctor. She is a board-certified OB/GYN and menopause practitioner, coach, facilitator, and speaker with over 25 years of experience, guiding midlife women to re-align, re-center, and reclaim their life. At present, she is working as the head of menopause at Pandia Health, a women-founded, women-led, doctor-led birth control delivery service.

Jeremy Hansen’s spouse completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology, followed by a fellowship in sexual health and certification in menopause. She is a passionate physician and advocates for women and girls. Further, Catherine also volunteers with Orbis Canada, a non-profit organization serving the welfare of women and young girls.

The Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen and his partner have 3 adult children whose information is yet to be revealed. Nevertheless, the Hansen family is accomplished in the field of science and technology.

In conclusion, the four astronauts are going on a mission, and they have made a decision to go for people. Jeremy Hansen and the team are an inspiration as they are going to make the expedition more exciting. In the end, the moon is normally the largest celestial object we can see, whose light serves as a reminder of our connection to the universe.