Hansen describes ‘disbelief’ of being in space for 1st time
With their Orion capsule en route to the moon, the crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission spoke with reporters on Thursday about the achievement. Mission commander Reid Wiseman said seeing the Earth from pole to pole ‘paused all four of us in our tracks,’ while Canadian mission specialist Jeremy Hansen described the ‘disbelief’ of his first time in space.
Hansen said the experience of being in space for the first time has been surreal.
“It’s just so extraordinary,” he said during yesterday’s crew Q&A.
“I just kept saying to them [fellow crew members] yesterday, ‘I really like it up here. I wish I could have gotten here sooner.’ It just makes me feel like a little kid.”
Even though they’d been preparing for the moment for years, Hansen said he was in “disbelief” when the launch went off without a hitch.
“‘I just had a huge smile across my face.”
Later, he added he had to remember to keep his cool while Artemis II lifted off.
“You’re trying to be professional, but the kid inside you just wants to hoot and holler.”
