History was in the making as 44-year-old Victor Glover set off for his first long-term space mission.
What We Know:
- A team of astronauts arrived last week at NASA’s international launch site as part of SpaceX’s second crew launch. They are set to stay at the station for six months, making Glover the first Black astronaut to have a long-term stay at a space station.
- The southern California native is the only space rookie in the four-member space crew. The space team includes astronauts: Michael Hopkins, Shannon Walker, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Soichi Noguchi.
- According to NASA’s website, Glover was “selected as an astronaut in 2013 while serving as a Legislative Fellow in the United States Senate”. The former Navy commander is now serving as a pilot and second-in-command on the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, named Resilience. The team launched into space on November 15, 2020.
- Glover is the 15th Black astronaut to reach space. When asked to describe the experience, he stated, “It is something to be celebrated once we accomplish it, and, you know, I am honored to be in this position and to be a part of this great and experienced crew. And I look forward to getting up there and doing my best to make sure that, you know, we are worthy of all the work that’s been put into setting us up for this mission.”
We hope to see more Black astronauts following in his footsteps.
