Artemis II astronauts send emotional messages home as NASA prepares for landmark return from moon

By ANNA WRIGHT, US REPORTER 06:18 10 Apr 2026, updated 13:09 10 Apr 2026

The four NASA astronauts on the historic Artemis II Moon mission delivered powerful messages to loved ones back on Earth as they prepared to embark on their journey home. 

Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen shared heartfelt shoutouts to family and future space explorers on Thursday.

'I think it’s worth pointing out I learn as much, maybe more from you than you learn from me,' Hansen told his children. 

'But the one thing I would remind you, and I think is worth reminding ourselves and other youth is that all you have to do on any given day is just get up and do your best and try to find joy in your day and try to contribute in a meaningful and positive way.'

The astronaut continued, saying that 'as humans, we put too much pressure on ourselves' to be perfect.  

'If you look at what we’re doing out here, it is far from perfection, but we are getting it done,' he said.  

The microphone was passed to Glover, who shared a touching message for his kids, one that also resonated deeply with the crew inside the spacecraft. 

'As we are on our way back from this dream of a mission, your mom and I look forward to supporting you, chasing and catching your own dreams,' Glover said. 

'We spent years coaching you, but we are very much in that transition to being cheerleaders and just rooting for you in life.' 

'And to the future citizens out there, the same sentiment applies,' Glover continued. 

'I hope this mission is giving you something that you can take and put in your pocket, or in your heart and mind that you keep with you. 

'But it’s not because we want you to see what we’ve tried to show you. It’s because we want you to take this and build a vocabulary to explain the world to us.' 

Wiseman expressed deep gratitude to his daughters and calling his family’s support 'unbelievable.'

'I don’t think they knew what this mission really meant when we launched, but they have learned through the outpouring of public support, their friend’s support and family’s support,' he explained. 

'Really, the world has come together. We have seen it and we have seen it through their eyes too. 

'And it has been a very proud moment for me as their father to see the joy in their expression and the way they email and communicate when we have private conferences.'

Koch gushed over her nine nieces and nephews, thanking them for their letters and love: 'It truly touched my mission and I feel like you're here with me.'

'I love you and thank you for the amazing letters you wrote me, the amazing pictures you drew me,' Koch said. 'You had beautiful Earths and rockets, and they truly touched my mission.' 

The team lifted off on April 1, marking humanity's first mission to reach the Moon since 1972.

It was the furthest space exploration mission undertaken in human history, coming 57 years after American astronauts first set foot on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. 

This monumental journey is expected to travel a maximum distance from Earth of 252,799 miles, beating the Apollo 13 record by 4,144 miles.

The ten-day journey saw the astronauts launch into orbit and then separate their Orion spacecraft from the launch vehicle, break out of low-Earth orbit, circle the Moon and then return. 

The historic flight is the first step in NASA's new multi-step to land on the Moon by 2028 at the earliest. 

NASA has said the Artemis campaign is about laying the groundwork for future Mars missions, harnessing space's economic benefits and creating an enduring human presence beyond Earth.

It's also—as is anything these days in the United States—about heading off China's own lunar land grab: Washington wants to remain in front of Beijing's own plans to put a man on the Moon by 2030.

But Artemis appears to be the opening step in a much more consequential infrastructure race that also pits Washington against Beijing—a giant leap toward an extraterrestrial AI future.