Meet Christina Koch: NASA astronaut, NC grad flying Artemis-II

Christina Koch, who already has a storied career of firsts since becoming a NASA astronaut in 2013, will fly around the Moon during the Artemis-II mission in 2024.

Koch was the first of four astronauts announced during a special ceremony in Houston Monday. Artemis-II will be the first Artemis mission to carry humans.

The mission marks the first time in 50 years astronauts have been assigned to a moon mission following the 1972 return of Apollo 17. Artemis-II includes the first woman and the first African American assigned to a lunar mission.

With Artemis-III in the years ahead, NASA intends to put the first person of color and the first woman on the lunar's surface.